# 2019–20 Western Illinois Leathernecks men's basketball team

The 2019–20 Western Illinois Leathernecks men's basketball team represented Western Illinois University in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Leathernecks, led by sixth-year head coach Billy Wright, played their home games at Western Hall in Macomb, Illinois, as members of the Summit League. They finished the season 5–21, 2–14 in Summit League play to finish in last place. They failed to qualify for the Summit League tournament.
On March 3, 2020, the school announced that head coach Billy Wright's contract would not be renewed. He finished at Western Illinois with a six-year record of 53–115. On March 30, the school announced former Milwaukee head coach Rob Jeter would be hired as the new head coach.

## Previous season

The Leathernecks finished the 2018–19 season 10–21, 4–12 in Summit League play to finish in 8th place. They upset top-seeded South Dakota State in the quarterfinals of the Summit League tournament, before losing to North Dakota State in the semifinals.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||
| November 5, 2019* 6:00 pm | at Indiana | L 65–98 | 0–1 | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| November 9, 2019* 7:00 pm | Stetson | L 75–77 | 0–2 | Western Hall (340) Macomb, IL |
| November 13, 2019* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | UT Martin | L 91–98 | 0–3 | Western Hall (610) Macomb, IL |
| November 20, 2019* 7:30 pm | Northern Illinois | L 81–86 | 0–4 | Western Hall (684) Macomb, IL |
| November 23, 2019* 7:00 pm | Central Christian | W 113–62 | 1–4 | Western Hall (381) Macomb, IL |
| November 26, 2019* 5:00 pm, ESPN3 | at Ball State | W 69–62 | 2–4 | Worthen Arena (3,088) Muncie, IN |
| November 30, 2019* 7:00 pm | at Kansas City Summit League/WAC Challenge | L 67–68 | 2–5 | Swinney Recreation Center (1,009) Kansas City, MO |
| December 4, 2019* 6:00 pm, ESPN3 | at Evansville | L 86–90 | 2–6 | Ford Center (4,509) Evansville, IN |
| December 16, 2019* 7:00 pm | Eastern Illinois | L 47–85 | 2–7 | Western Hall (347) Macomb, IL |
| December 19, 2019* 7:00 pm | Holy Family | W 91–64 | 3–7 | Western Hall (299) Macomb, IL |
| Summit League regular season |||||
| December 29, 2019 4:30 pm | South Dakota | W 82–75 | 4–7 (1–0) | Western Hall Macomb, IL |
| January 2, 2020 8:00 pm, ESPN+ | at North Dakota State | L 74–94 | 4–8 (1–1) | Scheels Center (1,929) Fargo, ND |
| January 4, 2020 4:15 pm, ESPN3 | at South Dakota State | L 56–91 | 4–9 (1–2) | Frost Arena (2,407) Brookings, SD |
| January 8, 2020 7:00 pm | Purdue Fort Wayne | L 69–77 | 4–10 (1–3) | Western Hall (498) Macomb, IL |
| January 11, 2020 2:00 pm | Denver | W 86–80 | 5–10 (2–3) | Western Hall (347) Macomb, IL |
| January 16, 2020 7:00 pm | Oral Roberts | L 70–87 | 5–11 (2–4) | Western Hall (746) Macomb, IL |
| January 23, 2020 7:00 pm | at Omaha | L 82–87 $^{OT}$ | 5–12 (2–5) | Baxter Arena (1,775) Omaha, NE |
| January 25, 2020 7:00 pm | at North Dakota | L 77–83 | 5–13 (2–6) | Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (1,585) Grand Forks, ND |
| January 30, 2020 7:30 pm, ESPN3 | North Dakota State | L 49–70 | 5–14 (2–7) | Western Hall (624) Macomb, IL |
| February 1, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | South Dakota State | L 61–71 | 5–15 (2–8) | Western Hall (772) Macomb, IL |
| February 5, 2020 6:00 pm | at Purdue Fort Wayne | L 69–75 | 5–16 (2–9) | Memorial Coliseum (1,108) Fort Wayne, IN |
| February 12, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | at South Dakota | L 72–85 | 5–17 (2–10) | Sanford Coyote Sports Center (1,823) Vermillion, SD |
| February 15, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | North Dakota | L 83–86 $^{OT}$ | 5–18 (2–11) | Western Hall (1,138) Macomb, IL |
| February 22, 2020 2:00 pm | Omaha | L 86–93 | 5–19 (2–12) | Western Hall Macomb, IL |
| February 27, 2020 7:30 pm | at Oral Roberts | L 70–113 | 5–20 (2–13) | Mabee Center (3,463) Tulsa, OK |
| February 29, 2020 2:00 pm | at Denver | L 63–69 | 5–21 (2–14) | Magness Arena (1,390) Denver, CO |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central. |||||
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