1980–81 Fresno State Bulldogs 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=Fresno State Bulldogs
|sport=Basketball
|image=
|conference=Pacific Coast Athletic Association Conference
|division=
|short_conf=PCAA
|CoachRank=
|APRank=
|record=25–4
|conf_record= 12–2
|head_coach=Boyd Grant
|hc_year=4th
|asst_coach1=
|asst_coach2=
|asst_coach3=
|stadium=Selland Arena
|champion=PCAA Regular season champion
PCAA tournament champion
|tourney=NCAA tournament
|tourney_result=Second round
}}
{{1980–81 Pacific Coast Athletic Association men's basketball standings}}
The 1980–81 Fresno State Bulldogs men's basketball team represented California State University, Fresno during the 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. This was head coach Boyd Grant's fourth season at Fresno State. The Bulldogs played their home games at Selland Arena and were members of the Pacific Coast Athletic Association. They finished the season 25–4, 12–2 in PCAA play to win the conference regular season title. They defeated {{cbb link|year=1981|sex=men|team=San Jose State Spartans|title=San Jose State}} to win the PCAA tournament and earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The Bulldogs were upset in the opening round by Northeastern, 55–53.{{cite news |title=ALA.-BIRMINGHAM OUSTS VIRGINIA; GEORGETOWN GAINS; FRESNO STATE FALLS, 58-40-OREGON STATE ROUTS IDAHO |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/03/19/sports/ala-birmingham-ousts-virginia-georgetown-gains-fresno-state-falls-58-40-oregon.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=March 19, 1982 |access-date=February 25, 2023}}
Roster
{{CBB roster/Header|year=1980|team=Fresno State Bulldogs|teamcolors=y|high_school=yes}}
{{CBB roster/Player|first=Rod|last=Higgins|num=22|pos=F|ft=6|in=7|lbs=195|class=JR|rs=y|home=Harvey, Illinois |high_school=Thornton Township |link=y }}
{{CBB roster/Player|first=Bernard|last=Thompson|num=34|pos=F|ft=6|in=6|lbs=200|class=FR|rs=y|home=Phoenix, Arizona |high_school=South Mountain HS |link=y }}
{{CBB roster/Player|first=Pete|last=Verhoeven|num= |pos=F|ft=6|in=9|lbs=|class=SR|rs=y|home= |high_school= |link=y }}
{{CBB roster/Footer
|head_coach=
- Boyd Grant ({{college|Colorado State}})
|asst_coach=
|roster_url=https://gobulldogs.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/1980-81
|accessdate=
}}
Schedule and results
{{CBB schedule start|rank=|gamehighs=|attend=}}
|-
!colspan=9 style={{NCAA color cell|Fresno State Bulldogs}}| Regular season
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Nov 28, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Air Force Falcons|title=Air Force}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Selland Arena
| site_cityst = Fresno, California
| gamename =
| score = 55–40
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 1–0
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Nov 29, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Portland State Vikings|title=Portland State}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Selland Arena
| site_cityst = Fresno, California
| gamename =
| score = 96–65
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 2–0
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 1, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Arizona Wildcats|title=Arizona}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = McKale Center
| site_cityst = Tucson, Arizona
| gamename =
| score = 77–65
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 3–0
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 6, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = Boise State
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Bronco Gym
| site_cityst = Boise, Idaho
| gamename =
| score = 65–40
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 4–0
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 9, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = Arizona
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Selland Arena
| site_cityst = Fresno, California
| gamename =
| score = 70–60
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 5–0
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 20, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Mississippi State Bulldogs|title=Mississippi State}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Selland Arena
| site_cityst = Fresno, California
| gamename =
| score = 58–45
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 6–0
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 29, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Northern Illinois Huskies|title=Northern Illinois}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Chick Evans Field House
| site_cityst = DeKalb, Illinois
| gamename =
| score = 71–59
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 7–0
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Dec 31, 1980
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away = yes
| neutral =
| rank =
| opponent = Kansas State
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Ahearn Field House
| site_cityst = Manhattan, Kansas
| gamename =
| score = 39–47
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 7–1
}}
|-
!colspan=9 style={{NCAA color cell|Fresno State Bulldogs}}| PCAA Tournament
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Mar 6, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral = yes
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=Utah State Aggies|title=Utah State}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Anaheim Convention Center
| site_cityst = Anaheim, California
| gamename = Semifinals
| score = 71–57
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 20–3
}}
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Mar 7, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral = yes
| rank =
| opponent = {{cbb link|year=1980|sex=men|team=San Jose State Spartans|title=San Jose State}}
| opprank =
| site_stadium = Anaheim Convention Center
| site_cityst = Anaheim, California
| gamename = Championship game
| score = 52–48
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 25–3
}}
|-
!colspan=9 style={{NCAA color cell|Fresno State Bulldogs}}| NCAA Tournament
{{CBB schedule entry
| date = Mar 13, 1981
| time =
| nonconf = yes
| away =
| neutral = yes
| rank =
| seed = 6 W
| opponent = Northeastern
| opprank =
| oppseed = 11 W
| site_stadium = Special Events Center
| site_cityst = El Paso, Texas
| gamename = First round
| score = 53–55
| overtime =
| attend =
| record = 25–4
}}
{{CBB schedule end
| rank =
| poll =
| timezone =
| region = W
| regionname = West
| notes =
Rankings
{{main|1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings}}
*{{cite book|title=ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game|publisher=Random House|pages=877–878|year=2009|isbn=0-345-51392-4}}
NBA draft
{{main|1981 NBA draft}}
| class="wikitable"
{{CollegePrimaryHeader|team=Fresno State Bulldogs| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club }} | |||
| align="center" bgcolor=""
| 4 | 85 | Peter Verhoeven | Portland Trail Blazers |
| align="center" bgcolor="" |
References
{{reflist}}
{{Fresno State Bulldogs men's basketball navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:1980-81 Fresno Stage Bulldogs men's basketball team}}
Category:Fresno State Bulldogs men's basketball seasons
Fresno State Bulldogs men's bask