# 1997–98 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team

The 1997–98 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team represented West Virginia University as a member of the Big East Conference during the 1997-98 season. The team played their home games at WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, West Virginia. Led by 20th-year head coach Gale Catlett, the Mountaineers received an at-large bid to the 1998 NCAA tournament as the No. 10 seed in the West region. West Virginia advanced to the Sweet Sixteen and finished with an overall record of 24–9 (11–7 Big East).

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 15, 1997* | | East Carolina | W 87–66 | 1–0 | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Nov 22, 1997 | | Alabama A&M | W 114–85 | 2–0 | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Nov 28, 1997 | | at Puerto Rico-Mayagüez | W 111–63 | 3–0 | Caguas Municipal Complex (106) San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Nov 29, 1997* | | vs. Rice | W 78–61 | 4–0 | Caguas Municipal Complex San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Nov 30, 1997* | | vs. Dayton | W 96–74 | 5–0 | Caguas Municipal Complex San Juan, Puerto Rico |
| Dec 3, 1997 | | at No. 13 Connecticut | L 75–88 | 5–1 (0–1) | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut |
| Dec 6, 1997 | | St. John's | W 86–70 | 6–1 (1–1) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Dec 13, 1997* | | Ohio | W 89–63 | 7–1 | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Dec 16, 1997* | | Robert Morris | W 101–52 | 8–1 | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Dec 20, 1997* | | vs. No. 20 Georgia | W 86–81 | 9–1 | Georgia Dome Atlanta, Georgia |
| Dec 22, 1997* | No. 23 | at Virginia Tech | W 55–52 | 10–1 | Cassell Coliseum Blacksburg, Virginia |
| Dec 27, 1997* | No. 23 | Duquesne | W 90–78 | 11–1 | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Dec 31, 1997 | No. 22 | at Georgetown | L 65–74 | 11–2 (1–2) | Verizon Center Washington, D.C. |
| Jan 3, 1998* | No. 22 | Boston College | W 79–57 | 12–2 (2–2) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Jan 5, 1998 | No. 25 | Georgetown | W 81–70 | 13–2 (3–2) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Jan 10, 1998 | No. 25 | Miami (FL) | W 98–84 | 14–2 (4–2) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Jan 15, 1998 | No. 21 | Notre Dame | L 72–74 | 14–3 (4–3) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Jan 18, 1998 | No. 21 | at Villanova | W 79–65 $^{OT}$ | 15–3 (5–3) | The Pavilion Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Jan 20, 1998 | No. 23 | at Rutgers | W 80–72 | 16–3 (6–3) | Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway, New Jersey |
| Jan 24, 1998 | No. 23 | Providence | W 81–63 | 17–3 (7–3) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Jan 28, 1998 | No. 17 | vs. Pittsburgh | W 76–72 | 18–3 (8–3) | Civic Arena Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Feb 3, 1998 | No. 15 | Pittsburgh | W 90–72 | 19–3 (9–3) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Feb 7, 1998 | No. 15 | at St. John's | L 69–77 | 19–4 (9–4) | Carnesecca Arena New York, New York |
| Feb 11, 1998 | No. 16 | No. 6 Connecticut | W 80–62 | 20–4 (10–4) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Feb 14, 1998 | No. 16 | at No. 23 Syracuse | L 58–73 | 20–5 (10–5) | Carrier Dome Syracuse, New York |
| Feb 16, 1998* | No. 20 | vs. Marshall | W 71–58 | 21–5 | Charleston Civic Center Charleston, West Virginia |
| Feb 22, 1998 | No. 20 | Seton Hall | W 81–71 | 22–5 (11–5) | WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia |
| Feb 25, 1998 | No. 19 | at Boston College | L 69–72 | 22–6 (11–6) | Silvio O. Conte Forum Boston, Massachusetts |
| Feb 28, 1998 | No. 19 | at Miami (FL) | L 66–70 | 22–7 (11–7) | Miami Arena Miami, Florida |
| Big East Tournament ||||||
| Mar 4, 1998* | (5) No. 23 | vs. (12) Rutgers First round | L 65–72 | 22–8 | Madison Square Garden New York, New York |
| NCAA Tournament ||||||
| Mar 12, 1998* | (10 W) | vs. (7 W) No. 24 Temple First round | W 82–52 | 23–8 | BSU Pavilion Boise, Idaho |
| Mar 14, 1998* | (10 W) | vs. (2 W) No. 9 Cincinnati Second Round | W 75–74 | 24–8 | BSU Pavilion Boise, Idaho |
| Mar 19, 1998* | (10 W) | vs. (3 W) No. 7 Utah West Regional semifinal – Sweet Sixteen | L 62–65 | 24–9 | Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Anaheim, California |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West. All times are in Eastern. ||||||