1997–98 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks men's basketball team

The 1997–98 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks men's basketball team represented Northern Arizona University in the 1997-98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Lumberjacks were led by head coach Ben Howland, and played their home games at the Walkup Skydome as members of the Big Sky Conference. After finishing atop the conference regular season standings, Northern Arizona won the Big Sky tournament to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament – the first appearance in school history. As No. 15 seed in the West region, the Lumberjacks lost to No. 2 seed Cincinnati in the opening round, 65–62.[1]

1997–1998 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks men's basketball
Big Sky Regular season champions
Big Sky tournament champions
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Record21–8 (13–3 Big Sky)
Head coach
Home arenaWalkup Skydome
Seasons
1997–98 Big Sky men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Northern Arizona 13 3   .813 21 8   .724
Weber State 12 4   .750 14 13   .519
Portland State 10 6   .625 15 12   .556
Eastern Washington 10 6   .625 16 11   .593
Montana 9 7   .563 16 14   .533
Montana State 9 7   .563 19 11   .633
Cal State Northridge 7 9   .438 12 16   .429
Idaho State 2 14   .125 6 20   .231
Sacramento State 0 16   .000 1 25   .038
Conference tournament winner

Roster

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1997–98 Northern Arizona Lumberjacks men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
C 50 Dan McClintock 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 260 lb (118 kg) So Visalia Visalia, California
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

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

Roster

Source[2]

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
Nov 15, 1997*
Sonoma State W 89–67  1–0
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Nov 19, 1997*
at Stephen F. Austin L 70–72  1–1
William R. Johnson Coliseum 
Nacogdoches, Texas
Nov 22, 1997*
6:30 pm
at Texas-Pan American W 62–57  2–1
UTPA Fieldhouse 
Edinburg, Texas
Nov 25, 1997*
San Diego L 68–73  2–2
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Dec 3, 1997*
at Arizona State L 76–87  2–3
Wells Fargo Arena 
Tempe, Arizona
Dec 6, 1997*
7:05 pm
Texas-Pan American W 105–56  3–3
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Dec 13, 1997*
Western Oregon W 91–63  4–3
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Dec 18, 1997*
at No. 11 UCLA L 68–90  4–4
Pauley Pavilion 
Los Angeles, California
Dec 21, 1997*
UC Irvine W 88–56  5–4
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Dec 30, 1997*
at San Jose State W 77–64  6–4
Event Center Arena 
San Jose, California
Big Sky regular season
Jan 3, 1998
at Eastern Washington W 83–48  7–4
(1–0)
Reese Court 
Cheney, Washington
Jan 5, 1998
at Portland State L 70–72  7–5
(1–1)
Viking Pavilion 
Portland, Oregon
Jan 9, 1998
Montana W 73–60  8–5
(2–1)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Jan 10, 1998
Montana State W 76–72  9–5
(3–1)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Jan 14, 1998
at Idaho State W 87–60  10–5
(4–1)
Holt Arena 
Pocatello, Idaho
Jan 16, 1998
at Weber State L 75–83  10–6
(4–2)
Dee Events Center 
Ogden, Utah
Jan 24, 1998
Idaho State W 87–61  11–6
(5–2)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Jan 31, 1998
Cal State Northridge W 86–85 OT 12–6
(6–2)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Feb 5, 1998
at Montana State W 102–96 OT 13–6
(7–2)
Worthington Arena 
Bozeman, Montana
Feb 7, 1998
at Montana L 66–73  13–7
(7–3)
Dahlberg Arena 
Missoula, Montana
Feb 12, 1998
Portland State W 87–54  14–7
(8–3)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Feb 14, 1998
Eastern Washington W 94–79  15–7
(9–3)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Feb 19, 1998
Sacramento State W 86–49  16–7
(10–3)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Feb 21, 1998
Weber State W 79–70 OT 17–7
(11–3)
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Feb 25, 1998
at Cal State Northridge W 64–61  18–7
(12–3)
The Matadome 
Northridge, California
Feb 27, 1998
at Sacramento State W 92–52  19–7
(13–3)
Hornets Nest 
Sacramento, California
Big Sky tournament
Mar 6, 1998*
(1) (6) Cal State Northridge
Semifinals
W 86–79  20–7
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
Mar 7, 1998*
(1) (4) Montana State
Championship game
W 77–50  21–7
Walkup Skydome 
Flagstaff, Arizona
NCAA tournament
Mar 12, 1998*
(15 W) vs. (2 W) No. 9 Cincinnati
First round
L 62–65[1]  21–8
BSU Pavilion 
Boise, Idaho
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain.

Source[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Cincy Shoots Down N. Arizona, 65-62". CBS News. March 12, 1998. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  2. ^ "1997-98 Men's Basketball Roster". Northern Arizona University Athletics. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  3. ^ "1997-98 Men's Basketball Schedule". Northern Arizona University Athletics. Retrieved March 4, 2023.