# 1977–78 Texas Longhorns men's basketball team

The 1977–78 Texas Longhorns men's basketball team represented the University of Texas at Austin in the 1977–78 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as a member of the Southwest Conference. They finished the season 26-5 overall, tied for the SWC regular season title with a 14–2 record and won the 1978 National Invitation Tournament. They were coached by Abe Lemons in his second season as head coach of the Longhorns. They played their home games at the Special Events Center in Austin, Texas.

## Roster

| Name | # | Position | Height | Weight | Year | Home Town | High School |
| Ron Baxter | 12 | Guard-Forward | 6–4 | 205 | Sophomore | Los Angeles | Dorsey |
| Brent Boyd | 4 | Guard | 6–3 | 185 | Sophomore | Baton Rouge, Louisiana | Catholic University |
| Tyrone Branyan | 31 | Forward | 6–7 | 220 | Junior | Placentia, California | El Dorado |
| Rob Cunningham | 35 | Forward-Center | 6–8 | 215 | Freshman | Westport, Connecticut | Staples |
| John Danks | 32 | Forward | 6–6 | 190 | Sophomore | Beaver Dam, Kentucky | Ohio County |
| Ovie Dotson | 15 | Guard | 6–5 | 200 | Junior | San Antonio, Texas | Sam Houston |
| Gary Goodner | 42 | Forward | 6–7 | 220 | Senior | Denton, Texas | Denton |
| Henry Johnson | 33 | Forward | 6–6 | 190 | Freshman | Los Angeles | Manual Arts |
| Jim Krivacs | 11 | Guard | 6–1 | 160 | Junior | Indianapolis | Southport |
| John Moore | 00 | Guard | 6–1 | 170 | Junior | Altoona, Pennsylvania | Altoona |
| Mike Murphy | 41 | Forward | 6–8 | 215 | Senior | Austin, Texas | Crockett |
| Tom Nichols | 55 | Center | 6–10 | 230 | Senior | Houston, Texas | Sharpstown |
| Dave Shepard | 44 | Guard | 6–4 | 205 | Freshman | Los Angeles | Manual Arts |
| Keith Stephens | 52 | Forward | 6–8 | 210 | Freshman | Pasadena, California | Pasadena |
| Phillip Stroud | 30 | Forward | 6–7 | 220 | Junior | Houston, Texas | Wheatley |

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| November 26, 1977* | | at USC | L 64–65 | 0–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA |
| November 29, 1977* | | Oklahoma | W 83–76 | 1–1 | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| December 3, 1977* | | Mississippi State | W 81–69 | 2–1 | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| December 5, 1977* | | LSU | W 82–66 | 3–1 | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| December 7, 1977* | | at Oklahoma State | W 108–87 | 4–1 | Gallagher Hall Stillwater, OK |
| December 10, 1977* | | Alaska Anchorage | W 87–65 | 5–1 | Special Events Center Austin, Texas |
| December 17, 1977* | | at Centenary | W 87–65 | 6–1 | Gold Dome Shreveport, LA |
| December 20, 1977* | | Oklahoma City | W 88–71 | 7–1 | Special Events Center Austin, Texas |
| December 26, 1977* | | vs. Army Milwaukee Classic | W 74–73 | 8–1 | MECCA Arena Milwaukee, WI |
| December 27, 1977* | | at No. 5 Marquette Milwaukee Classic | L 56–65 | 8–2 | MECCA Arena Milwaukee, WI |
| January 5, 1978 | | at TCU | W 90–41 | 9–2 (1–0) | Daniel–Meyer Coliseum Fort Worth, TX |
| January 7, 1978 | | Texas Tech | W 90–41 | 10–2 (2–0) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| January 10, 1978 | | at Houston | W 100–89 | 11–2 (3–0) | Hofheinz Pavilion Houston, TX |
| January 14, 1978 | | No. 3 Arkansas | W 75–69 | 12–2 (4–0) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| January 17, 1978 | No. 15 | Rice | W 78–64 | 13–2 (5–0) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| January 23, 1978 | No. 15 | at Texas A&M | W 79–77 $^{OT}$ | 14–2 (6–0) | G. Rollie White Coliseum College Station, TX |
| January 25, 1978 | No. 15 | Baylor | W 78–76 | 15–2 (7–0) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| January 28, 1978 | No. 15 | at SMU | W 85–80 | 16–2 (8–0) | Moody Coliseum University Park, TX |
| January 30, 1978 | No. 15 | Houston | W 73–72 | 17–2 (9–0) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| February 1, 1978 | No. 12 | at No. 2 Arkansas | L 71–75 | 17–3 (9–1) | Barnhill Arena Fayetteville, AR |
| February 4, 1978 | No. 12 | TCU | W 87–60 | 18–3 (10–1) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| February 7, 1978 | No. 12 | at Rice | W 102–86 | 19–3 (11–1) | Rice Gymnasium Houston, TX |
| February 13, 1978 | No. 12 | Texas A&M | W 90–66 | 20–3 (12–1) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| February 4, 1978 | No. 12 | at Baylor | L 77–79 | 20–4 (12–2) | Heart O' Texas Fair Complex Waco, TX |
| February 18, 1978 | No. 12 | at Texas Tech | W 78–63 | 21–4 (13–2) | Lubbock Municipal Coliseum Lubbock, TX |
| February 21, 1978 | No. 14 | SMU | W 82–74 | 22–4 (14–2) | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| SWC tournament ||||||
| March 4, 1978 | (1) No. 12 | vs. (3) Houston Final | L 90–92 | 22–5 | The Summit Houston, TX |
| NIT ||||||
| March 10, 1978 | No. 16 | Temple First Round | W 72–58 | 23–5 | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| March 15, 1978 | No. 17 | Nebraska Quarterfinal | W 67–48 | 24–5 | Special Events Center Austin, TX |
| March 19, 1978 | No. 17 | vs. Rutgers Semifinal | W 96–76 | 25–5 | Madison Square Garden New York, NY |
| March 21, 1978 | No. 17 | vs. NC State Final | W 101–93 | 26–5 | Madison Square Garden Houston, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. ||||||