1955–56 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team

The 1955–56 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team represented Marshall College (now Marshall University) during the 1955–56 NCAA men's basketball season. The Thundering Herd, led by first-year head coach Jule Rivlin, played their home games at the Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse as members of the Mid-American Conference. They finished the season 18–5, 10–2 in MAC play to finish in first place. For the first time in school history, they received the MAC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost to Morehead State in the first round.

1955–56 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball
NCAA tournament, first round
ConferenceMid-American Conference
Record18–5 (10–2 MAC)
Head coach
Home arenaVeterans Memorial Fieldhouse
Seasons
1955–56 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Marshall 10 2   .833 18 5   .783
Miami (OH) 8 4   .667 12 8   .600
Western Michigan 7 5   .583 11 9   .550
Toledo 6 6   .500 9 13   .409
Ohio 5 7   .417 13 11   .542
Kent State 5 7   .417 10 11   .476
Bowling Green 1 11   .083 4 19   .174
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

The season also marked the first time in the program's history that the Thundering Herd were ranked in the AP Poll during the season, coming in at No. 18 on the week of January 31.[2]

Roster

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1955–56 Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
Bob Ashley 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Dave Dingess 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Jack Freeman 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
G 16 Hal Greer 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
So
Joe Hunnicutt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Dave Kirk 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
John Mayfield 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Sonny Parkins 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Jerry Pierson 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)
Cebe Price 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
17 Charlie Slack 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Sr
Paul Underwood 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Ron Williamson
Bill Zban
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
  • None

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

[3]

Schedule/results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular Season
Dec 8, 1955*
Spring Hill W 83–69  1–0
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Dec 10, 1955*
Washington and Lee W 115–83  2–0
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Dec 15, 1955
Ohio W 87–71  3–0
(1–0)
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Dec 17, 1955
at Western Michigan L 70–80  3–1
(1–1)
Oakland Gymnasium 
Kalamazoo, MI
Dec 20, 1955*
at Morehead State L 89–102  3–2
Button Hall 
Morehead, KY
Dec 29, 1955*
vs. Boston College
Fayetteville Invitational
W 130–69  4–2
 
Fayetteville, IN
Dec 30, 1955*
vs. Denver
Fayetteville Invitational
W 79–78  5–2
 
Fayetteville, IN
Jan 4, 1956
Miami (OH) W 99–93  6–2
(2–1)
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Jan 7, 1956
Western Michigan W 85–72  7–2
(3–1)
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Jan 12, 1956
at Ohio W 72–63  8–2
(4–1)
Woodruff Hall 
Athens, OH
Jan 14, 1956
Toledo W 92–53  9–2
(5–1)
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Jan 18, 1956*
Morris Harvey W 115–76  10–2
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Jan 20, 1956*
at Baldwin Wallace W 91–87  11–2
 
Berea, OH
Jan 21, 1956
at Kent State W 97–83  12–2
(6–1)
Men's Physical Education Building 
Kent, OH
Jan 28, 1956
Kent State W 110–108  13–2
(7–1)
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Feb 2, 1956*
No. 18 Morehead State L 103–108  13–3
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Feb 7, 1956*
West Virginia Wesleyan W 85–64  14–3
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Feb 10, 1956
at Bowling Green W 87–85  15–3
(8–1)
 
Bowling Green, OH
Feb 11, 1956
at Toledo W 78–70  16–3
(9–1)
The Field House 
Toledo, OH
Feb 20, 1956
Bowling Green W 95–91  17–3
(10–1)
Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse 
Huntington, WV
Feb 22, 1956
at Miami (OH) L 82–103  17–4
(10–2)
Withrow Court 
Oxford, OH
Feb 25, 1956*
at Morris Harvey W 109–91  18–4
 
Charleston, WV
NCAA tournament
Mar 12, 1956*
vs. Morehead State
First Round – Midwest Region
L 92–107  18–5
Allen County War Memorial Coliseum 
Fort Wayne, IN
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

[4][5]

References

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  1. ^ "1955-56 Mid-American Conference Season Summary". college-basketball-reference. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  2. ^ "Marshall Thundering Herd AP Poll History". college-basketball-reference. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  3. ^ "1955-56 Marshall Thundering Herd Roster and Stats". college-basketball-reference. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  4. ^ "1955-56 Marshall Thundering Herd Schedule and Results". college-basketball-reference. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  5. ^ Marshall Record Book Archived April 25, 2022, at the Wayback Machine p. 38 Retrieved May 24, 2019