1997–98 Prairie View A&M Panthers basketball team

The 1997–98 Prairie View A&M Panthers basketball team represented Prairie View A&M University during the 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Panthers, led by 13th-year head coach Elwood Plummer, played their home games at the William Nicks Building in Prairie View, Texas as members of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. They finished the conference slate at 6–10, to finish in 6th place. In the SWAC Tournament, they defeated Jackson State, Alabama State, and Texas Southern to win the SWAC championship. The Panthers received an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament – the first appearance in program history – as the 16 seed in the Midwest region. Prairie View A&M fell to No. 1 seed Kansas in the opening round to finish the season with a 13–17 record.

1997–98 Prairie View A&M Panthers basketball
SWAC tournament champions
NCAA tournament
Conference	Southwestern Athletic Conference
Record	13–17 (6–10 SWAC)
Head coach	Elwood Plummer (13th season)
Home arena	William Nicks Building

1997–98 SWAC men's basketball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Texas Southern	12	–	4		.750			15	–	16		.484
Jackson State	11	–	5		.688			14	–	13		.519
Grambling	10	–	6		.625			16	–	12		.571
Southern	10	–	6		.625			14	–	13		.519
Alcorn State	8	–	8		.500			12	–	15		.444
Prairie View A&M †	6	–	10		.375			13	–	17		.433
Alabama State	6	–	10		.375			11	–	17		.393
Mississippi Valley State	6	–	10		.375			6	–	21		.222
Arkansas–Pine Bluff	3	–	13		.188			4	–	23		.148
† 1998 SWAC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

Roster

Source:

1997–98 Prairie View A&M Panthers men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown G Tamarron Sharpe 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) — Sr	Head coach Elwood Plummer Assistant coach(es) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Source:

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
Nov 15, 1997*		Philander Smith	W 83–77	1–0	William J. Nicks Building  Prairie View, Texas
Nov 20, 1997		at Arkansas-Pine Bluff	L 74–81	1–1 (0–1)
Nov 22, 1997*		at Wichita State	L 52–67	1–2	Levitt Arena  Wichita, Kansas
Nov 24, 1997*		Jarvis Christian	W 120–107	2–2	William J. Nicks Building  Prairie View, Texas
Dec 13, 1997*		at Texas Tech	L 63–86	3–3	Lubbock Municipal Coliseum  Lubbock, Texas
Dec 20, 1997*		at No. 18 Ole Miss	L 59–106	3–5	Tad Smith Coliseum  Oxford, Mississippi
Dec 29, 1997*		at Dayton	L 52–110	3–7	University of Dayton Arena  Dayton, Ohio
SWAC regular season
SWAC tournament
Mar 5, 1998*		vs. Jackson State Quarterfinals	W 60–58	11–16	Reunion Arena  Dallas, Texas
Mar 6, 1998*		vs. Alabama State Semifinals	W 65–61	12–16	Reunion Arena  Dallas, Texas
Mar 7, 1998*		vs. Texas Southern Championship game	W 59–57	13–16	Reunion Arena  Dallas, Texas
NCAA tournament
Mar 13, 1998*	(16 MW)	vs. (1 MW) No. 2 Kansas First round	L 52–110	13–17	Myriad Convention Center  Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest. All times are in Central Time.