# 1968–69 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

The 1968–69 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 1968–69 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as members of the Big Ten Conference. They played their home games at Jenison Fieldhouse in East Lansing, Michigan and were coached by John E. Benington in his fourth year as head coach of the Spartans. The Spartans finished the season 11–12, 6–8 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for fifth place.
The season marked the final season for head coach John Benington. Prior to the next season, on September 10, 1969, Benington suffered a heart attack and died after jogging at Jenison Fieldhouse at the age of 47. Ganakas, an assistant under Benington, was promoted to head coach for the season.

## Previous season

The Spartans finished the 1967–68 season 12–12, 6–8 in Big Ten play to finish in a three-way tie for sixth place.

## Roster and statistics

1968–69 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team :
| No | Name | Pos | Year | Height | Pts | Reb |
| 11 | Lloyd Ward | G | JR | 5–10 | 4.3 | 1.3 |
| 12 | Tim Bograkos | G | SO | 6–1 | 5.8 | 1.7 |
| 14 | Eddie Humphrey | G | SO | 6–2 | | 0.7 |
| 15 | Steve Sizemore | F | SO | 6–2 | | 0.2 |
| 21 | Rudy Benjamin | G | SO | 6–3 | 7.7 | 2.6 |
| 24 | John Holms | F | SR | 6–4 | 3.1 | 2.0 |
| 25 | Robert Gale | F | JR | 6–5 | 3.1 | 2.4 |
| 31 | Harrison Stepter | G | SR | 6–3 | 9.2 | 4.0 |
| 32 | Steve Kirkpatrick | G | JR | 6–2 | | 1.2 |
| 33 | Paul Dean | G | SO | 6–1 | 1.6 | 1.1 |
| 34 | Tom Lick | C | SR | 6–10 | 3.7 | 3.0 |
| 35 | Lee Lafayette | C | SR | 6–6 | 18.7 | 10.3 |
| 41 | James Gibbons | F | JR | 6–5 | 10.7 | 5.7 |
| 44 | Ron Binge | F | JR | 6–5 | 1.3 | 0.9 |
| 45 | Bernie Copeland | F | SR | 6–6 | 10.3 | 6.9 |
Source

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Dec 3, 1968* | Southwestern Louisiana | W 90–84 | 1–0 | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Dec 6, 1968* | Western Michigan | W 86–71 | 2–0 | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Dec 7, 1969* | at Toledo | W 81–80 | 3–0 | The Field House Toledo, OH |
| Dec 13, 1960* | Butler | W 70–60 | 4–0 | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Dec 14, 1968* | vs. No. 15 Western Kentucky | L 63–67 | 4–1 | Chicago Stadium Chicago, IL |
| Dec 16, 1968* | at Nebraska | L 59–73 | 4–2 | Nebraska Coliseum Lincoln, NE |
| Dec 27, 1968* | at St. John's ECAC Holiday Festival | L 51–61 | 4–3 | Madison Square Garden New York, NY |
| Dec 28, 1968* | vs. No. 5 Villanova ECAC Holiday Festival | L 66–75 | 4–4 | Madison Square Garden New York, NY |
| Jan 4, 1969 | Northwestern | L 71–85 | 4–5 (0–1) | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Jan 7, 1969 | Wisconsin | W 77–67 | 5–5 (1–1) | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Jan 14, 1969 | at Iowa | L 76–77 | 5–6 (1–2) | Iowa Field House Iowa City, IA |
| Jan 18, 1969 | at No. 19 Northwestern | W 89–75 | 6–6 (2–2) | Welsh-Ryan Arena Evanston, IL |
| Jan 25, 1968 | Michigan Rivalry | L 70–75 | 6–7 (2–3) | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Feb 1, 1969 | at Indiana | L 76–79 | 6–8 (2–4) | Assembly Hall Bloomington, IN |
| Feb 8, 1969 | at Michigan Rivlary | W 86–82 | 7–8 (3–4) | Crisler Arena Ann Arbor, MI |
| Feb 11, 1969* | at Notre Dame | W 71–59 | 8–8 | Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center South Bend, IN |
| Feb 15, 1969 | No. 8 Illinois | W 75–70 | 9–8 (4–4) | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Feb 18, 1969 | Iowa | W 78–60 | 10–8 (5–4) | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Feb 22, 1969 | at Wisconsin | L 64–76 | 10–9 (5–5) | Wisconsin Field House Madison, WI |
| Feb 25, 1969 | No. 9 Purdue | L 72–74 | 10–10 (5–6) | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Mar 1, 1969 | No. 14 Ohio State | W 85–72 | 11–10 (6–6) | Jenison Fieldhouse East Lansing, MI |
| Mar 4, 1969 | at No. 20 Illinois | L 57–71 | 11–11 (6–7) | Assembly Hall Champaign, IL |
| Mar 8, 1969 | at Minnesota | L 65–78 | 11–12 (6–8) | Williams Arena Minneapolis, MN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. Source ||||||