SMU Mustangs men's basketball

The SMU Mustangs men's basketball team represents Southern Methodist University (SMU) in University Park, Texas and currently competes in the American Athletic Conference of NCAA Division I college basketball. The Mustangs are currently coached by Rob Lanier. In 104 years of basketball, SMU's record is 1,377–1,237. SMU has reached one Final Four, has made 12 NCAA Tournament Appearances, won 16 Conference Championships, had 11 All-Americans, and 23 NBA Draft selections.[2]

SMU Mustangs
2023–24 SMU Mustangs men's basketball team
UniversitySouthern Methodist University
First season1916 (1916)
All-time record1,377–1,237 (.527)
(through the 2019–20 season)
Head coachRob Lanier (1st season)
ConferenceThe American
(ACC in July of 2024)
LocationUniversity Park, Texas[lower-alpha 1]
ArenaMoody Coliseum
(Capacity: 7,000)
NicknameMustangs
Student sectionThe Mob
ColorsRed and blue[1]
   
Uniforms
Home jersey
Team colours
Home
Away jersey
Team colours
Away
Alternate jersey
Team colours
Alternate
NCAA tournament Final Four
1956
NCAA tournament Elite Eight
1956, 1967
NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen
1955, 1956, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1967
NCAA tournament appearances
1955, 1956, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1993, 2015, 2017
Conference tournament champions
1988, 2015, 2017
Conference regular season champions
1917, 1935, 1937, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1972, 1988, 1993, 2015, 2017

SMU finished the 2016–17 season with a 30–5 record, and won their second conference title in three years. They set the school record for single season wins, and returned to the NCAA Tournament following a postseason ban in the 2015–16 season.[3]

History

1916: The Beginning

1916 was the inaugural season of SMU basketball where it went 12–2. SMU joined the Southwest Conference in the 1918–19 season. SMU won its first two conference titles in 1935 and 1937.

1955-1967: The Doc Hayes Era (Golden Era of Pony Hoops)

All-American Jim Krebs powered Mustang teams in the mid 1950s.

Doc Hayes took over as SMU's head coach in 1947. By 1955 Hayes had SMU in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history advancing to the Sweet Sixteen and had won their first conference title in almost 20 years. The four year stretch from 1955–58, SMU went 77–28, won four consecutive Southwest Conference championships, and reached 3 Sweet Sixteen's while also reaching the school's only ever Final Four in the 1955-56 season, led by All-American Jim Krebs. SMU during the Doc Hayes era won 8 SWC championships and reached the NCAA tournament 6 times including Final Four and Elite Eight appearances. Doc Hayes retired after the 1967 season with a final record of 298–191 (.609) at SMU.

1968-1993: The Fall to Mediocrity

Following Doc Hayes, SMU basketball fell down into a period of mediocrity with some sprinkled success highlighted by SMU greats Jon Koncak, Ira Terrell, and Gene Phillips. Though the Bob Prewitt and Sonny Allen eras were largely unsuccessful and only produced one Southwest Conference Championship during a stretch between 1968 and 1980 the program looked to be back on the rise during the Dave Bliss era. Bliss and star big man Jon Koncak led SMU to 3 NCAA tournament appearances and an NIT appearance. The Dave Bliss era was highlighted by his final season where SMU went 28–7 winning the SWC regular season and tournament championships and making it to the Second round of the NCAA Tournament. SMU would win the SWC Championship and reach the NCAA tournament one more time in the 1993 season under John Shumate, however, this was the start of the Dark Ages of SMU basketball.

1994-2012: The Dark Ages

This period was the dark age for SMU basketball. From 1994 to 2012 SMU had just seven winning seasons and did not win any conference titles or reach the NCAA tournament. The Mustangs only reached the NIT and CIT once each during these nineteen years.

2012-2016: The Larry Brown Era

The reemergence of SMU basketball occurred when Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown took over the Mustangs in the 2012 season, coinciding with the $48 million renovation of Moody Coliseum. By his second season, he had led SMU to a 27–10 record, and to a championship appearance in the NIT. In his third season, (2014–15) led by Nic Moore, SMU won its first conference title in 22 years (regular season and tournament champions), and returned to the NCAA tournament, losing a controversial game to UCLA on a goaltending call. In the 2015–16 season, SMU was banned from postseason play due to NCAA violations, but still managed to start the season with an unprecedented 18–0 record, peaking at the #8 spot in the AP Poll, and finish the season at 25–5. It was SMU's third straight 25+ win season. In the summer of 2016, Brown stepped down as SMU's basketball coach unexpectedly, finishing with a record of 85–39(.685). He currently holds the third-highest W-L percentage of any head coach in SMU basketball history.[4]

2016–2024: Maintaining Success (Post Larry Brown)

SMU in action against the Tulane Green Wave in 2018

Tim Jankovich took over in the summer of 2016 following the departure of Larry Brown. In his first full season as SMU's head coach, SMU achieved a 30–4 overall record, including a 17-1 in-conference record, and finished ranked #11 in the AP Poll.[5] The Mustangs won the 2016–17 American Athletic Conference regular season and conference tournament titles, and received a bid to the NCAA tournament as a 6 seed, where they were upset by 11th seeded USC by one point in the opening round.[6] Following the season, Junior standout Semi Ojeleye announced that he would not be returning for his final year,[7] joining seniors Sterling Brown and Ben Moore in entering the NBA draft where both Ojeleye and Brown were selected 37th and 46th overall, respectively. Ben Moore spent 27 games with the G League team, Fort Wayne Mad Ants where he averaged 11.4 points per game and 6.7 rebounds per game.[8] He was recently signed to a two way contract with the Indiana Pacers on January 12, 2018.[9] This marks the first time an SMU player has been drafted since 2001.[10] This is also the first time SMU has ever had 3 players join their first NBA rosters in the same season, topping the previous high of 1.[11]

2024: Move to the ACC

In July 2024, SMU will leave The American for the Atlantic Coast Conference, returning SMU to the power-conference ranks for the first time since the collapse of the Southwest Conference.[12]

SMU career records

Games Played Sterling Brown — 136 games
Rebounds Jon Koncak — 1,169 rebounds
Assists Butch Moore — 828 assists
Steals Bryan Hopkins — 225 steals
Blocks Jon Koncak — 278 blocks
Points Scored Jeryl Sasser — 1992 points[13]
Career Wins Sterling Brown — 109 wins

Season-by-season results

Under Larry Brown and Tim Jankovich:[14]

Statistics overview
Season Coach Overall Conference Standing Postseason
SMU Mustangs (Conference USA) (2012–2013)
2012–13 Larry Brown 15–175–1111th
SMU Mustangs (American Athletic Conference) (2013–present)
2013–14 Larry Brown 27–1012–6T–3rdNIT Runner-up
2014–15 Larry Brown 27–715–31stNCAA Division I Round of 64
2015–16 Larry Brown & Tim Jankovich 25–513–52ndIneligible
2016–17 Tim Jankovich 30–517–11stNCAA Division I Round of 64
2017–18 Tim Jankovich 17–166–129th
2018–19 Tim Jankovich 15–176–129th
2019–20 Tim Jankovich 19–119–97th
Total:175–88 (.665)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Postseason

Complete NCAA tournament results

The Mustangs have appeared in 12 NCAA Tournaments. Their combined record is 10–14.

The NCAA began seeding the tournament with the 1978 edition.

Year Seed Round Opponent Result
1955Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place Game
Bradley
Tulsa
L 79–81
L 67–68
1956First Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National 3rd Place Game
Texas Tech
Houston
Oklahoma City
San Francisco
Temple
W 68–67
W 89–74
W 84–63
L 68–86
L 81–90
1957Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place Game
Kansas
Saint Louis
L 65–73 OT
W 78–68
1965Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place Game
Wichita State
Houston
L 81–86
W 89–87
1966Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place Game
Kansas
Cincinnati
L 70–76
W 89–84
1967Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Louisville
Houston
W 83–81
L 75–83
1984#9First Round
Second Round
#8 Miami (OH)
#1 Georgetown
W 83–69
L 36–37
1985#5First Round
Second Round
#12 Old Dominion
#4 Loyola–Chicago
W 85–68
L 57–70
1988#7First Round
Second Round
#10 Notre Dame
#2 Duke
W 83–75
L 79–94
1993#10First Round#7 BYUL 71–80
2015#6First Round#11 UCLAL 59–60
2017#6First Round#11 USCL 65–66

NIT results

The Mustangs have appeared in five National Invitation Tournaments (NIT). Their combined record is 5–5.

Year Round Opponent Result
1986First RoundOklahoma StateL 63–67
2000First RoundMissouri StateL 64–77
2014First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Finals
UC Irvine
LSU
California
Clemson
Minnesota
W 68–54
W 80–67
W 67–65
W 65–59
L 63–65
2021First RoundBoise StateL 84–85
2022First Round
Second Round
Nicholls
Washington State
W 68–58
L 63–75

CIT results

The Mustangs have appeared in one CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). Their record is 3–1.

Year Round Opponent Result
2011First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Oral Roberts
Jacksonville
Northern Iowa
Santa Clara
W 64–57 OT
W 63–62
W 57–50
L 55–72

CCA/NCIT results

The Mustangs appeared in one of the two National Commissioners Invitational Tournaments, in 1974, and went 0-1.

Year Round Opponent Result
1974QuarterfinalsUSCL 80-82

Notable players

Summary

Name Class year Notability Reference(s)
Jim Krebs 1957 Former NBA player (1st round, 3rd overall), led SMU to Final Four [15][16]
Rick Herrscher 1958 1958 SWC Player of the Year [17]
Gene Phillips 1971 3 time SWC Player of the Year; Former NBA player [17]
Ira Terrell 1976 Former NBA player (45th overall) & 1976 SWC POY [17]
Jon Koncak 1985 Former NBA player (1st Round, 5th overall) [18]
Mike Wilson 1993 1993 SWC Player of the Year [17]
Jeryl Sasser 2001 Former NBA player (1st Round, 22nd overall), 1998-99 WAC Player of the Year [19][20]
Quinton Ross 2003 Former NBA player; 2002-03 WAC Player of the Year [21][20]
Nic Moore 2016 2015 & 2016 AAC Player of the Year; French A League Player for Nanterre 92 [22]
Sterling Brown 2017 NBA Player (2nd Round, 46th overall); Winningest player in SMU History [22]
Semi Ojeleye 2017 2017 AAC Player of the Year; 2017 AP All-American Honorable Mention; NBA Player (2nd Round, 37th overall) [23]

NBA draft picks

^ Denotes players who are currently active in the NBA
Year Round Pick Player Selected by NBA games played
194963Bob PrewittNew York Knicks0
1951768Jack BrownRochester Royals0
195713Jim KrebsMinneapolis Lakers515
19571098Bobby MillsSt. Louis Hawks0
1958647Rick HerrscherSt. Louis Hawks0
1961983Steve StrangeChicago Packers0
1962435Jan LoudermilkLos Angeles Lakers0
1964434Gene ElmoreSan Francisco Warriors0
1966652Carroll HooserDetroit Pistons56
1967774Charlie BeasleyCincinnati Royals281
196916196Bill VoightMilwaukee Bucks0
196917202Lynn PhillipsMilwaukee Bucks0
19717119Gene PhillipsMilwaukee Bucks31
1974697Sammy HerveyAtlanta Hawks0
1976345Ira TerrellPhoenix Suns127
1980245Brad BransonDetroit Pistons72
198515Jon KoncakAtlanta Hawks784
19855113Carl WrightPhiladelphia 76ers0
19866125Kevin LewisSan Antonio Spurs0
19875105Terry WilliamsGolden State Warriors0
2001122Jeryl SasserOrlando Magic82
2017237Semi OjeleyeBoston Celtics53
2017246Sterling Brown^Philadelphia 76ers34
2018254Shake Milton^Dallas Mavericks20

Notable undrafted players

^ Denotes players who are currently active in the NBA
Draft year Player NBA games played
1948Roy Pugh23
1967Denny Holman46
1988Carlton McKinney9
2003Quinton Ross458
2016Nic Moore0
2017Ben Moore2
2021Feron Hunt2

Mustangs in international leagues

Awards

AAC Player of the Year

Player Year(s)
Nic Moore2015, 2016
Semi Ojeleye2017
Kendric Davis2021

AAC Tournament MVP

Player Year(s)
Markus Kennedy2015
Semi Ojeleye2017

AAC Sixth Man of the Year

Player Year(s)
Markus Kennedy2016
Ben Emelogu2017

WAC Player of the Year

Player Year(s)
Jeryl Sasser1999
Quinton Ross2003

SWC Player of the Year

Player Year(s)
Rick Herrscher1958
Denny Holman1967
Gene Phillips1970
Ira Terrell1976
Mike Wilson1993

All-Americans

SMU has had 12 All-Americans:

2016-2017 Semi Ojeleye (Jr.)(AP All-American Honorable Mention); 2015–16 Nic Moore (Sr.) (AP All-American Honorable Mention); 2014–15 Nic Moore (Jr.) (AP All-American Honorable Mention); 2002–03 Quinton Ross (Sr.); 1984–85 Jon Koncak (Sr.) (2nd team – Consensus); 1975–76 Ira Terrell (Sr.); 1970–71 Gene Phillips (Sr.); 1969–70 Gene Phillips (Jr.); 1959–60 Max Williams (Sr.); 1956–57 Jim Krebs (Sr.) (1st team – Consensus); 1955–56 Jim Krebs (Jr.); 1934–35 Whitey Baccus (Sr.)

Footnotes

  1. Almost all of the SMU campus is located in University Park, a separate city within the Dallas city limits. All locations in University Park have a Dallas mailing address.

References

  1. SMU Art Sheet (PDF). August 2, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  2. "Complete Factbook" (PDF). 2020–21 Men's Basketball Almanac at SMUMustangs.com. Retrieved 2021-01-12.
  3. "NCAA bans SMU from postseason, suspends Larry Brown for rules violations". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2016-04-07.
  4. "SMU Mustangs Coaches - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  5. "NCAA College Basketball Polls, College Basketball Rankings, NCAA Basketball Polls - ESPN". ESPN.com.
  6. "USC vs. SMU — Game Summary — March 17, 2017 — ESPN". ESPN.com.
  7. Evan Daniels [@EvanDaniels] (12 May 2017). "SMU's Semi Ojeleye plans to sign with an agent and stay in the NBA Draft, per a source. Averaged 19 PPG & 6.9 RPG last season" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  8. "Ben Moore G-League Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
  9. "Report: Former SMU standout Ben Moore signs two-way deal with Indiana Pacers". 12 January 2018.
  10. FOX (23 June 2017). "Two SMU basketball players selected in 2017 NBA Draft".
  11. "Southern Methodist Players in the NBA - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com.
  12. "The Atlantic Coast Conference Welcomes the University of California, Berkeley, Southern Methodist University and Stanford University as New Members" (Press release). Atlantic Coast Conference. September 1, 2023. Retrieved September 1, 2023.
  13. "SMU Athletics" (PDF). smumustangs.com.
  14. "Southern Methodist Mustangs Index - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  15. "NCAA Tournament History".
  16. "Jim Krebs Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
  17. "Southwest Conference Player of the Year Winners - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  18. "Jon Koncak Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
  19. "Jeryl Sasser Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
  20. "Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year Winners - College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com.
  21. "Quinton Ross Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
  22. "Nic Moore Europe Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
  23. "SMU's Semi Ojeleye named AAC Player of the Year". 9 March 2017.
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