ROSTER
Cutline (Back L to R): Joey Willis, Wayne Smith, Hiram Harris, Ronnie Spivey, David Jordan, Willie Simmons, Karl Malone, Ken Roberson, Robert Godbolt, Derrick Kearney, Rennie Bailey Front (L to R): Roderick Hannibal, Alan Davis, Tony Dawson, Adam Frank, Thomas Galvin
SYNOPSIS
Ronnie Spivey, Alan Davis, Tony Dawson, Thomas Galvin, Roderick Hannibal, Rennie Bailey, Adam Frank, Wayne Smith, Derrick Kearney, Karl Malone, Willie Simmons, David Jordan, Hiram Harris, Ken Roberson, Robert Godbolt Coming off a 19-9 campaign, the Bulldogs were looking to knock off Lamar, the SLC’s defending champions. Under Andy Russo, LA Tech finished the regular season, 22-6, second in the conference behind the Cardinals. However, in a thrilling SLC final in Beaumont, Texas, the Bulldogs upset Lamar, 68-65, behind Willie Simmons’ 17 points, ending the Cardinals’ 80-game home court winning streak, which was then the nations longest. The win vaulted LA Tech into its first-ever NCAA Division I Tournament, and the Bulldogs took advantage of the honor by polishing off Fresno State, 66-56, in first round action. Houston ended the Bulldogs season at 26-7 with a 77-69 win, but not before LA Tech turned some heads on the national level.
2016-17 MEN’S BASKETBALL
1983-84
1984-85 ROSTER
Cutline (Back L to R): David Jordan, Karl Malone, Robert McAlister, Willie Simmons, Mike Ames (Middle L to R): Darryl Emerson, Wayne Smith, Joey Willis, Adam Frank, Kelvin Lewis (Front L to R): Roderick Hannibal, Kevin Tatum, Keith Troutman, Tony Dawson, Alan Davis, Willie Bland
SYNOPSIS
Simply said, this was the greatest season in LA Tech basketball. The Bulldogs accomplished a multitude of firsts on the way to their 29-3 record and drew a great deal of media attention. It started with 10 straight wins and one of those came over 6th ranked Louisville, earning LA Tech its own spot in the Top 20 for the first time ever in Division I. Included in the early win streak were tournament titles at the Wendy’s Classic in Bowling Green, Kentucky and the Marshall Invitational in Huntington, West Virginia. Although Oklahoma ended the streak at the All-College Tournament just before Christmas, the Bulldogs went on to bulldoze its way to an 11-1 conference record to win the championship and then won a spot in the NCAA playoffs by taking the league tournament. LA Tech proceeded to whip Pittsburgh and Ohio State in the sub-regional before losing, 86-84, to Oklahoma in overtime in the Midwest Regional in Dallas. When it finally ended, the Bulldogs were ranked eighth nationally and had become one of the Cinderella teams of the season.
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