UMass Minutemen Basketball - History

History

The men's basketball program has a history of over 100 years. The Minutemen, as they have been called since 1972, celebrated their 100th season in 2008-09. Though the program's first game was played on January 10, 1900, there were several years in which no team was assembled.

The program's first coach was Harold M. Gore, who in 11 seasons compiled a record of 85-53 (.616 win percentage), highlighted by a 12-2 season in 1925-26. In 1933-34, Massachusetts was the only undefeated team in men's college basketball, going 12-0. For the 1948-49 season, Massachusetts joined the Yankee Conference to mark the first time they participated in conference play. U of M would go on to be 10-time champions of the Yankee Conference.

The 1960s and 70s were prosperous for the program. The 1961-62 team went 15-9 and participated in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. They would go on to win 4 Yankee Conference titles in the '60s, and played in the NIT at the end of the 1969-70 season. The program compiled a record of 142-103 (.580) in the '60s. The 1969-70 team featured Julius Erving. In his first game with the varsity team, a 90-85 win over Providence College, Erving scored 27 points and grabbed 28 rebounds.

In the first eight seasons of the '70s, the Redmen/Minutemen compiled a record of 152-65 (.700). They won 5 Yankee Conference titles, and played in 5 NITs. The early '70s teams featured players such as Erving, Al Skinner, and Rick Pitino. Jack Leaman, who coached the team for 13 seasons, hung it up after the 1978-79 season, with a record of 217-126 (.632).

The Minutemen fell on hard times in the late 70s and 80s, but would rebound under the direction of rookie coach John Calipari, who took the head coaching job in 1988.

The 1990s were the defining decade for UMass basketball. Calipari helped the Minutemen become A-10 Tournament Champs five consecutive times (1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95, 1995-96), and appeared in the NCAA Tournament seven times, including two appearances in the Elite Eight (1995, 1996) and a Final Four appearance (1996) that resulted in third place, the highest ever for the Minutemen. (Note, however, that NCAA sanctions stripped the Minutemen of their 1996 NCAA Tournament victories.) In the 1990s, the Minutemen were frequently ranked first in the Associated Press season polls.

Since 1998, the Minutemen have slipped out of the national spotlight, not returning to the NCAA Tournament since. The most successful seasons were in 2006-07, when the Minutemen shared the A-10 Regular Season championship with Xavier, and advanced to the second round of the NIT. In 2007-08, the Minutemen advanced to the 2008 NIT championship game, where they lost to the Ohio State Buckeyes 92-85. In 2012 the Minutemen reappeared in the NIT tournament after a successful season with a 22-11 record.