# 1983–84 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team

The 1983–84 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented Illinois State University during the 1983–84 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Redbirds, led by sixth year head coach Bob Donewald, played their home games at Horton Field House and were members of the Missouri Valley Conference.
The Redbirds finished the season 23–8, 13–3 in conference play to finish in a tie for first place. They were the number one seed for the Missouri Valley Conference tournament by virtue of sweeping the season series over the University of Tulsa. They were defeated in a semifinal game to Creighton University.
The Redbirds received an at-large bid to the 1984 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. They were assigned to the Midwest Regional as the number eight seed where they defeated the University of Alabama in the first round and lost to DePaul University in the second round.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition Season |||||||||
| November 15, 1983* 7:30 pm | | | | | | | | Horton Field House Normal, IL |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| November 26, 1983* 7:30 pm | | Tennessee–Martin | W 68–56 | 1–0 | 19 – Johnson | 6 – Zwart | – | Horton Field House (4,599) Normal, IL |
| November 29, 1983* 7:30 pm | | at South Alabama | W 84–70 | 2–0 | 32 – Johnson | 5 – H.Cornley, Zwart | – | Jaguar Gym (3,122) Mobile, AL |
| December 3, 1983* 7:30 pm | | at No. 16 DePaul | L 66–69 | 2–1 | 16 – Johnson | 9 – H.Cornley, Johnson | – | Rosemont Horizon (13,057) Rosemont, IL |
| December 5, 1983* 7:30 pm | | at Illinois–Chicago | W 92–79 | 3–1 | 24 – Stefanovic | 11 – Zwart | – | UIC Pavilion (1,004) Chicago, IL |
| December 10, 1983* 2:45 pm | | Wisconsin–Green Bay | W 77–55 | 4–1 | 25 – H.Cornley | 14 – H.Cornley | – | Horton Field House (6,497) Normal, IL |
| December 16, 1983* 6:00 pm | | vs. Utah State Indiana Classic [Semifinal] | W 80–74 | 5–1 | 26 – H.Cornley | 8 – Stefanovic | – | Assembly Hall (10,119) Bloomington, IN |
| December 17, 1983* 8:00 pm | | at Indiana Indiana Classic [Final] | L 44–54 | 5–2 | 12 – Johnson | 10 – H.Cornley | – | Assembly Hall (14,123) Bloomington, IN |
| December 22, 1983* 7:30 pm | | Northern Iowa | W 67–46 | 6–2 | 20 – H.Cornley | 7 – Zwart | – | Horton Field House (6,598) Normal, IL |
| December 27, 1983* 6:00 pm | | vs. Baylor Golden Triangle Classic [Semifinal] | W 65–36 | 7–2 | 16 – H.Cornley | 15 – H.Cornley | – | Civic Arena (6,000) Pittsburgh, PA |
| December 28, 1983* 8:00 pm | | vs. Pittsburgh Golden Triangle Classic [Final] | L 54–59 | 7–3 | 16 – H.Cornley | 11 – Zwart | – | Civic Arena (1,981) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 2, 1984 7:30 pm | | at Creighton | W 63–54 | 8–3 (1–0) | 15 – Johnson | 4 – H.Cornley, Stefanovic | 3 – H.Cornley, Johnson, Stefanovic | Omaha Civic Auditorium (5,462) Omaha, NE |
| January 7, 1984 12:30 pm | | Wichita State | W 80–66 | 9–3 (2–0) | 23 – Johnson | 9 – Stefanovic | 3 – Johnson, McKenny, Stefanovic | Horton Field House (7,667) Normal, IL |
| January 10, 1984* 7:30 pm | | U. S. International | W 80–66 | 10–3 | 20 – Duncan | 7 – Zwart, Braksick | – | Horton Field House (6,364) Normal, IL |
| January 14, 1984 7:35 pm | | at Drake | W 67–52 | 11–3 (3–0) | 23 – Stefanovic | 10 – Stefanovic | – | Veterans Memorial Auditorium (5,880) Des Moines, IA |
| January 19, 1984 7:30 pm | | at No. 13 Tulsa | W 79–73 | 12–3 (4–0) | 26 – McKenny | 6 – H.Cornley, Zwart, Johnson, Stafanovic | – | Tulsa Convention Center (9,200) Tulsa, OK |
| January 21, 1984 2:45 pm | | Indiana State | W 87–70 | 13–3 (5–0) | 23 – Stefanovic | 11 – Braksick | – | Horton Field House (7,745) Normal, IL |
| January 26, 1984 8:05 pm | | at Wichita State | L 66–68 | 13–4 (5–1) | 14 – H.Cornley, Johnson | 11 – H.Cornley | 6 – McKenny | Henry Levitt Arena (10,466) Wichita, KS |
| January 28, 1984 2:45 pm | | Southern Illinois | W 90–62 | 14–4 (6–1) | 18 – Duncan, Johnson, Stefanovic | 7 – Zwart, Sanders | – | Horton Field House (7,731) Normal, IL |
| February 4, 1984 7:30 pm | | at West Texas State | W 93–82 | 15–4 (7–1) | 22 – Zwart | 10 – Stefanovic | – | WTSU Fieldhouse (2,475) Canyon, TX |
| February 9, 1984 7:30 pm | | Drake | W 76–41 | 16–4 (8–1) | 11 – H.Cornley | 9 – Braksick | – | Horton Field House (7,747) Normal, IL |
| February 11, 1984 2:45 pm | | Creighton | W 84–65 | 17–4 (9–1) | 22 – H.Cornley | 13 – H.Cornley | – | Horton Field House (7,775) Normal, IL |
| February 13, 1984 7:30 pm | | West Texas State | W 86-72 | 18–4 (10–1) | 24 – H.Cornley | 15 – H.Cornley | – | Horton Field House (7,747) Normal, IL |
| February 18, 1984 8:05 pm, WEEK | | at Bradley | W 56–50 | 19–4 (11–1) | 15 – Johnson | 6 – H.Cornley | – | Carver Arena (10,401) Peoria, IL |
| February 23, 1984 7:30 pm | | at Southern Illinois | L 98–105 | 19–5 (11–2) | 24 – Duncan | 9 – H.Cornley | – | SIU Arena (6,235) Carbondale, IL |
| February 25, 1984 6:30 pm | | at Indiana State | L 47–54 | 19–6 (11–3) | 16 – Duncan | 11 – H.Cornley | – | Hulman Center (7,182) Terre Haute, IN |
| March 1, 1984 7:30 pm | | Bradley | W 55–46 | 20–6 (12–3) | 18 – Duncan | 5 – H.Cornley | – | Horton Field House (7,747) Normal, IL |
| March 3, 1984 12:30 pm | | No. 9 Tulsa | W 91-81 | 21–6 (13–3) | 25 – H.Cornley | 10 – H.Cornley | – | Horton Field House (7,801) Normal, IL |
| Missouri Valley Conference {MVC} tournament |||||||||
| March 8, 1984* | (1) | (8) Drake Quarterfinal | W 91–62 | 22–6 | 21 – Zwart | 8 – H.Cornley | 5 – McKenny | Horton Field House (6,648) Normal, IL |
| March 9, 1984* | (1) | (4) Creighton Semifinal | L 59-69 | 22–7 | 16 – Zwart | 8 – Zwart | 6 – McKenny | Horton Field House (6,372) Normal, IL |
| National Collegiate Athletic Association {NCAA} tournament |||||||||
| March 16, 1984* 7:00 pm, NCAA Productions | (8) | vs. (9) Alabama Midwest Region [First Round] | W 49–48 | 23–7 | 10 – H.Cornley, McKenny | 11 – Zwart | 5 – McKenny | Bob Devaney Sports Center (12,038) Lincoln, NE |
| March 18, 1984* 1:15 pm, CBS | (8) | vs. (1) No. 4 DePaul Midwest Region [Second Round] | L 61–75 | 23–8 | 14 – Johnson | 6 – H.Cornley, Zwart | 3 – Duncan | Bob Devaney Sports Center (13,440) Lincoln, NE |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Standard Time. |||||||||