1996–97 South Alabama Jaguars basketball team

The 1996–97 South Alabama Jaguars basketball team represented the University of South Alabama as members of the Sun Belt Conference during the 1996–97 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Jaguars were led by head coach Bill Musselman and played their home games at the Mitchell Center. They finished the season 23–7, 14–4 in Sun Belt play to finish in first place. They won the Sun Belt tournament to earn an automatic bid to the 1997 NCAA tournament as the 13 seed in the Southeast region. In the opening round, the Jaguars lost to eventual National champion Arizona.[1]

1996–97 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball
Sun Belt Regular season co-champions
Sun Belt tournament champions
NCAA tournament, first round
ConferenceSun Belt Conference
Record23–7 (14–4 Sun Belt)
Head coach
Home arenaMitchell Center
Seasons
1996–97 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
New Orleans 14 4   .778 22 7   .759
South Alabama 14 4   .778 23 7   .767
Arkansas–Little Rock 11 7   .611 18 11   .621
Lamar 10 8   .556 15 12   .556
Louisiana Tech 10 8   .556 15 14   .517
Western Kentucky 9 9   .500 12 15   .444
Southwestern Louisiana 9 9   .500 12 16   .429
Arkansas State 8 10   .444 15 12   .556
Jacksonville 4 14   .222 5 23   .179
Texas–Pan American 1 17   .056 3 25   .107
1997 Sun Belt Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

Roster

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1996–97 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 5 Rusty Yoder 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Jr
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

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

[2]

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
Nov 23, 1996*
Abilene Christian W 85–62  1–0
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Nov 26, 1996*
West Florida W 86–60  2–0
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Nov 29, 1996*
Grambling W 57–54  3–0
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Dec 3, 1996*
at Southern Miss L 36–55  3–1
Reed Green Coliseum 
Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Dec 7, 1996*
Florida A&M W 81–53  4–1
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Dec 10, 1996*
UAB W 74–63 OT 5–1
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Dec 18, 1996*
at Auburn L 51–60  5–2
Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum 
Auburn, Alabama
Dec 21, 1996*
Nicholls State W 69–66  6–2
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Dec 28, 1996
Southwestern Louisiana L 63–66  6–3
(0–1)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Jan 2, 1997*
Arkansas–Little Rock W 64–56  7–3
(1–1)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Jan 4, 1997
Arkansas State W 72–53  8–3
(2–1)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Jan 9, 1997
Texas-Rio Grande Valley W 72–58  9–3
(3–1)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Jan 11, 1997
at Lamar W 84–62  10–3
(4–1)
Montagne Center 
Beaumont, Texas
Jan 13, 1997
at Jacksonville W 77–45  11–3
(5–1)
Jacksonville Memorial Coliseum 
Jacksonville, Florida
Jan 18, 1997
at Western Kentucky W 68–66  12–3
(6–1)
E.A. Diddle Arena 
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Jan 20, 1997
New Orleans W 65–52  13–3
(7–1)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Jan 23, 1997
at Arkansas–Little Rock L 47–48  13–4
(7–2)
Barton Coliseum 
Little Rock, Arkansas
Jan 25, 1997
at Arkansas State W 79–68  14–4
(8–2)
Convocation Center 
Jonesboro, Arkansas
Jan 30, 1997
at New Orleans L 51–58  14–5
(8–3)
Lakefront Arena 
New Orleans, Louisiana
Feb 1, 1997
at Texas-Rio Grande Valley W 65–51  15–5
(9–3)
UTPA Fieldhouse 
Edinburg, Texas
Feb 3, 1997
Louisiana Tech W 56–50  16–5
(10–3)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Feb 13, 1997
Lamar W 66–53  17–5
(11–3)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Feb 15, 1997
Jacksonville W 92–74  18–5
(12–3)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Feb 20, 1997
at Louisiana Tech W 44–43  19–5
(13–3)
Thomas Assembly Center 
Ruston, Louisiana
Feb 22, 1997
Western Kentucky W 83–59  20–5
(14–3)
Jaguar Gym 
Mobile, Alabama
Feb 24, 1997
at Southwestern Louisiana L 62–65  20–6
(14–4)
Cajundome 
Lafayette, Louisiana
Sun Belt Conference tournament
Mar 1, 1997*
(2) vs. (7) Southwestern Louisiana
Quarterfinals
W 66–39  21–6
Barton Coliseum 
Little Rock, Arkansas
Mar 2, 1997*
(2) at (3) Arkansas–Little Rock
Semifinals
W 71–52  22–6
Barton Coliseum 
Little Rock, Arkansas
Mar 4, 1997*
(2) vs. (5) Louisiana Tech
Championship game
W 44–43  23–6
Barton Coliseum 
Little Rock, Arkansas
NCAA tournament
Mar 13, 1997*
(13 SE) vs. (4 SE) No. 15 Arizona
First round
L 57–65  23–7
The Pyramid 
Memphis, Tennessee
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
W=West.
All times are in Central Time.

[3]

References

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  1. ^ "Arizona Tops S. Alabama 65-57". The Washington Post. March 14, 1997. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  2. ^ "1996-97 South Alabama Jaguars Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  3. ^ "2019-20 South Alabama Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). University of South Alabama Athletics. Retrieved February 12, 2022.