1985–86 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team


The 1985–86 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1985-86 college basketball season. The Irish were led by head coach Digger Phelps, in his 15th season, and played their home games at the Athletic & Convocation Center in Notre Dame, Indiana. The Irish completed a perfect season at home (15–0). Notre Dame earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they were upset by Arkansas–Little Rock in the opening round.[1] The team finished with a 23–6 record and a No. 10 ranking in the final AP poll.

1985–86 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
CoachesNo. 11
APNo. 10
Record23–6
Head coach
Home arenaAthletic & Convocation Center
Seasons
1985–86 NCAA Division I men's basketball independents standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 10 Notre Dame - -   23 6   .793
Chicago State - -   22 6   .786
Eastern Washington - -   20 8   .714
Texas–Pan American - -   20 8   .714
Marquette - -   19 11   .633
DePaul - -   18 13   .581
New Orleans - -   16 12   .571
Dayton - -   17 13   .567
Southwestern Louisiana - -   15 13   .536
Miami (Fla.) - -   14 14   .500
Tennessee State - -   14 14   .500
Utica - -   13 14   .481
Florida A&M - -   12 16   .429
Brooklyn - -   9 22   .290
U.S. International - -   8 20   .286
Texas–San Antonio - -   7 24   .226
Central Florida - -   6 22   .214
Rankings from AP Poll

Roster

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1985–86 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 4 David Rivers 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Jersey City, New Jersey
F 15 Donald Royal 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr New Orleans, Louisiana
F/C 41 Tim Kempton 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Sr Jamaica, New York
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

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

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular Season
Nov 22, 1985*
No. 12 Saint Joseph's (IN) W 79–49  1–0
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Nov 30, 1985*
No. 11 Butler W 87–56  1–0
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Dec 3, 1985*
No. 10 at No. 19 Indiana L 67–82  1–1
Assembly Hall 
Bloomington, Indiana
Dec 7, 1985*
No. 10 Loyola–Chicago W 71–58  2–1
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Dec 9, 1985*
No. 17 Oregon W 72–63  3–1
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Dec 21, 1985*
No. 19 Valparaiso W 98–54  4–1
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Dec 30, 1985*
No. 17 Creighton W 80–54  5–1
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Jan 4, 1986*
No. 17 at La Salle W 77–63  6–1
The Palestra 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jan 7, 1986*
No. 16 at Providence W 78–72  7–1
Providence Civic Center 
Providence, Rhode Island
Jan 11, 1986*
No. 16 at DePaul W 70–54  8–1
Rosemont Horizon 
Rosemont, Illinois
Jan 13, 1986*
No. 13 at BYU L 76–80  8–2
Marriott Center 
Provo, Utah
Jan 18, 1986*
No. 13 UCLA W 74–64  9–2
Athletic & Convocation Center (11,345)
Notre Dame, Indiana
Jan 20, 1986*
No. 16 Hofstra W 91–67  10–2
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Jan 22, 1986*
No. 16 American W 67–56  11–2
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Jan 26, 1986*
No. 16 at No. 1 North Carolina L 61–73  11–3
Dean Smith Center 
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Jan 29, 1986*
No. 14 Utah W 94–64  12–3
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Feb 1, 1986*
No. 14 Marquette W 72–70  13–3
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Feb 3, 1986*
No. 14 Maryland W 69–62  14–3
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Feb 5, 1986*
No. 14 at Dayton L 65–67  14–4
University of Dayton Arena 
Dayton, Ohio
Feb 8, 1986*
No. 14 at No. 8 Syracuse W 85–81  15–4
Carrier Dome 
Syracuse, New York
Feb 11, 1986*
No. 14 Fordham W 81–58  16–4
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Feb 16, 1986*
No. 14 at No. 2 Duke L 74–75  16–5
Cameron Indoor Stadium 
Durham, North Carolina
Feb 19, 1986*
No. 14 vs. Manhattan W 102–47  17–5
Madison Square Garden 
New York, New York
Feb 22, 1986*
No. 14 at Miami (FL) W 126–73  18–5
Knight Center 
Miami, Florida
Feb 25, 1986*
No. 12 DePaul W 70–59  19–5
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Mar 1, 1986*
No. 12 at Marquette W 74–66  20–5
MECCA Arena 
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Mar 3, 1986*
No. 12 at New Orleans W 75–67  21–5
Lakefront Arena 
New Orleans, Louisiana
Mar 8, 1986*
No. 12 Dayton W 69–55  22–5
Athletic & Convocation Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
NCAA Tournament
Mar 14, 1986*
(3 MW) No. 10 vs. (14 MW) Arkansas–Little Rock
First round
L 83–90  23–6
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 
Minneapolis, Minnesota
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll/UPI Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

[2]

Rankings

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[3]

References

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  1. ^ "LITTLE ROCK FALLS ON IRISH". The Chicago Tribune. March 15, 1986. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  2. ^ "2019-20 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). Notre Dame Athletics. p. 120. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  3. ^ *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 932–933. ISBN 0-345-51392-4.