1980–81 Ball State Cardinals men's basketball team
{{short description|American college basketball season}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox college sports team season
|year = 1980–81
|team = Ball State Cardinals
|sport = Basketball
|image = Ball State Athletics wordmark.png
|image_size = 250
|conference = Mid-American Conference
|short_conf = MAC
|CoachRank =
|APRank =
|record = 20–10
|conf_record = 10–6
|head_coach = Steve Yoder
|hc_year =
|asst_coach1 =
|asst_coach2 =
|asst_coach3 =
|asst_coach4 =
|mvp =
|stadium = Irving Gymnasium
|champion = MAC Regular season co-champions
MAC tournament champions
|tourney = NCAA tournament
|tourney_result =
}}
{{1980–81 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings}}
The 1980–81 Ball State Cardinals men's basketball team represented Ball State University as a member of the Mid-American Conference during the 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cardinals were led by head coach Steve Yoder and played their home games at Irving Gymnasium in Muncie, Indiana. After finishing in second place during the MAC regular season, Ball State won the MAC tournament to receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament {{ndash}} the first appearance in program history. As No. 12 seed in the Mideast region, the Cardinals were beaten in a very competitive game by No. 5 seed Boston College in the opening round, 93–90. The team finished with a record of 20–10 (10–6 MAC).
Roster
{{CBB roster/Header|year=1980|team=Ball State Cardinals|teamcolors=y|high_school=y}}
{{CBB roster/Player|first=Ray|last=McCallum|num=|pos=G|ft=5|in=9|lbs=|class=So|rs=|home=West Memphis, Arkansas|high_school={{nbsp}}|note=|link=y}}
{{CBB roster/Footer
|head_coach=
|asst_coach=
|roster_url=https://ballstatesports.com/sports/mens-basketball/schedule/1980-81
|accessdate=
}}
Schedule and results
{{CBB schedule start|time=|ranklink=1980-81 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings|rankyear=1980|rank=|tv=|record=yes|attend=}}
|-
!colspan=9 style={{NCAA color cell|Ball State Cardinals}}| Non-conference regular season
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Nov 29, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = Indiana
| opprank = 5
| site_stadium = Assembly Hall
| site_cityst = Bloomington, Indiana
| gamename =
| score = 69–75
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 0–1
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 9, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = Wisconsin
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Wisconsin Field House
| site_cityst = Madison, Wisconsin
| gamename =
| score = 72–85
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 0–2
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 13, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Indiana State Sycamores|title=Indiana State}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Irving Gymnasium
| site_cityst = Muncie, Indiana
| gamename =
| score = 76–60
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 1–2
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 22, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Bradley Braves|title=Bradley}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Robertson Memorial Field House
| site_cityst = Peoria, Illinois
| gamename =
| score = 73–106
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 1–3
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 27, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = Nebraska
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Irving Gymnasium
| site_cityst = Muncie, Indiana
| gamename =
| score = 67–62
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 2–3
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Jan 5, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Butler Bulldogs|title=Butler}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Hinkle Fieldhouse
| site_cityst = Indianapolis, Indiana
| gamename =
| score = 69–66
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 3–3
}}
|-
!colspan=9 style={{NCAA color cell|Ball State Cardinals}}| MAC regular season
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Feb 28, 1981
| time =
| nonconf =
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Central Michigan Chippewas|title=Central Michigan}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Rose Arena
| site_cityst = Mount Pleasant, Michigan
| gamename =
| score = 83–84
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 17–9
| conference = 10–6
}}
|-
!colspan=9 style={{NCAA color cell|Ball State Cardinals}}| 1981 MAC men's basketball tournament
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Mar 3, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = Ohio
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Irving Gymnasium
| site_cityst = Muncie, Indiana
| gamename = Quarterfinals
| score = 85–70
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 18–9
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Mar 4, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral = yes
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Toledo Rockets|title=Toledo}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Crisler Arena
| site_cityst = Ann Arbor, Michigan
| gamename = Semifinals
| score = 79–77
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 19–9
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Mar 5, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral = yes
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Northern Illinois Huskies|title=Northern Illinois}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Crisler Arena
| site_cityst = Ann Arbor, Michigan
| gamename = Championship game
| score = 79–66
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 20–9
}}
|-
!colspan=9 style={{NCAA color cell|Ball State Cardinals}}| 1981 NCAA Division I basketball tournament
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Mar 13, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral = yes
| rank =
| seed = 12 ME
| opponent = Boston College
| opprank =
| oppseed = 5 ME
| site_stadium = Memorial Coliseum
| site_cityst = Tuscaloosa, Alabama
| gamename = First round
| score = 90–93
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 20–10
}}
{{CBB schedule end
| rank = yes
| poll = AP Poll
| timezone = Eastern Time
Source{{cite web|title=Record Book|url=http://static.ballstatesports.com/custompages/mbb/pdfs/record-book.pdf|publisher=Ball State University Athletics|access-date=April 23, 2023}}}}
References
{{reflist}}
{{Ball State Cardinals men's basketball navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ball State Cardinals men's basketball Team}}
Category:1980–81 Mid-American Conference men's basketball season
Category:1980 in sports in Indiana
Category:1981 in sports in Indiana
Category:1981 NCAA Division I basketball tournament participants