# 2017–18 Abilene Christian Wildcats men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Abilene Christian Wildcats men's basketball team represented Abilene Christian University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Wildcats were led by seventh-year head coach Joe Golding and played their home games at the Moody Coliseum in Abilene, Texas as members of the Southland Conference. They finished the season 16–16, 8–10 in Southland play to finish in a three-way tie for eighth place. They failed to qualify for the Southland tournament. They received an invitation to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they lost in the first round to Drake.
The season marked the Wildcats' first full season as a Division I school after a four-year transition period from Division II to Division I.

## Previous season

The Wildcats finished the 2016–17 season 13–16, 7–11 in Southland play to finish in a five-way tie for eighth place.
The Wildcats, in their final year of a four-year transition from Division II to Division I, were not eligible for a postseason tournament including the Southland tournament, but were considered a Division I team for scheduling purposes and a Division I RPI member.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Opponent | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||
| Nov 10, 2017* 7:30 pm | Randall | W 86–68 | 1–0 | Moody Coliseum (1,117) Abilene, TX |
| Nov 13, 2017* 7:00 pm | at Arkansas State | L 69–83 | 1–1 | First National Bank Arena (2,730) Jonesboro, AR |
| Nov 16, 2017* 7:00 pm | Howard Payne | W 112–62 | 2–1 | Moody Coliseum (1,016) Abilene, TX |
| Nov 20, 2017* 7:00 pm | Lipscomb | W 75–67 | 2–2 | Moody Coliseum (1,075) Abilene, TX |
| Nov 25, 2017* 1:00 pm | at Campbell Campbell Tournament | W 85–80 | 3–2 | Gore Arena (1,083) Buies Creek, NC |
| Nov 25, 2017* 4:00 pm | vs. USC Upstate Campbell Tournament | L 78–88 | 3–3 | Gore Arena (1,208) Buies Creek, NC |
| Nov 26, 2017* 1:00 pm | vs. Bowling Green Campbell Tournament | W 88–83 | 4–3 | Gore Arena (450) Buies Creek, NC |
| Dec 2, 2017* 4:00 pm | Schreiner | W 71–43 | 5–3 | Moody Coliseum (1,202) Abilene, TX |
| Dec 6, 2017* 8:00 pm | at Air Force | W 62–58 | 6–3 | Clune Arena (1,602) Colorado Springs, CO |
| Dec 9, 2017* 4:00 pm | Texas State | W 72–68 | 7–3 | Moody Coliseum (1,356) Abilene, TX |
| Dec 17, 2017* 12:00 pm, ESPN3 | at Lipscomb | L 65–67 | 7–4 | Allen Arena (1,205) Nashville, TN |
| Dec 19, 2017* 7:00 pm | Arlington Baptist | W 109–60 | 8–4 | Moody Coliseum (1,219) Abilene, TX |
| Dec 22, 2017* 2:00 pm, FSSW+ | at No. 21 Texas Tech | L 47–74 | 8–5 | United Supermarkets Arena (7,907) Lubbock, TX |
| Southland regular season |||||
| Dec 28, 2017 7:00 pm | at New Orleans | L 74–77 | 8–6 (0–1) | Lakefront Arena (528) New Orleans, LA |
| Dec 30, 2017 7:30 pm | Sam Houston State | W 75–72 | 9–6 (1–1) | Moody Coliseum (1,125) Abilene, TX |
| Jan 3, 2018 7:00 pm | McNeese State | W 79–74 | 10–6 (2–1) | Moody Coliseum (1,183) Abilene, TX |
| Jan 6, 2018 4:00 pm | Southeastern Louisiana | L 70–72 | 10–7 (2–2) | Moody Coliseum (1,106) Abilene, TX |
| Jan 10, 2018 7:00 pm | at Houston Baptist | W 82–74 | 11–7 (3–2) | Sharp Gymnasium (576) Houston, TX |
| Jan 13, 2018 3:00 pm | at Northwestern State | W 69–58 | 12–7 (4–2) | Prather Coliseum (820) Natchitoches, LA |
| Jan 17, 2018 7:00 pm, ELVN | Stephen F. Austin | L 66–76 | 12–8 (4–3) | Moody Coliseum (1,972) Abilene, TX |
| Jan 20, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN3 | at Central Arkansas | W 80–63 | 13–8 (5–3) | Farris Center (1,317) Conway, AR |
| Jan 24, 2018 7:00 pm | at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | L 66–80 | 13–9 (5–4) | American Bank Center (700) Corpus Christi, TX |
| Jan 31, 2018 7:00 pm | Lamar | W 74–69 | 14–9 (6–4) | Moody Coliseum (1,131) Abilene, TX |
| Feb 3, 2018 6:15 pm, ESPN3 | at Sam Houston State | W 84–77 | 14–10 (6–5) | Bernard Johnson Coliseum (1,078) Huntsville, TX |
| Feb 7, 2018 7:00 pm | Nicholls State | L 65–69 | 14–11 (6–6) | Moody Coliseum (1,207) Abilene, TX |
| Feb 10, 2018 4:00 pm | Incarnate Word | W 80–69 | 15–11 (7–6) | Moody Coliseum (1,210) Abilene, TX |
| Feb 17, 2018 5:00 pm | at Southeastern Louisiana | L 54–68 | 15–12 (7–7) | University Center (1,011) Hammond, LA |
| Feb 21, 2018 7:00 pm | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi Postponed (inclement weather), Make-up Feb. 22 | | | Moody Coliseum Abilene, TX |
| Feb 22, 2018 7:00 pm | Texas A&M–Corpus Christi | L 67–76 | 15–13 (7–8) | Moody Coliseum (1,221) Abilene, TX |
| Feb 24, 2018 4:00 pm | Central Arkansas | L 72–74 | 15–14 (7–9) | Moody Coliseum (1,450) Abilene, TX |
| Feb 28, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | at Stephen F. Austin | L 56–76 | 15–15 (7–10) | William R. Johnson Coliseum (2,912) Nacogdoches, TX |
| Mar 3, 2018 3:00 pm | at Incarnate Word | W 69–59 | 16–15 (8–10) | McDermott Center (1,256) San Antonio, TX |
| CIT |||||
| Mar 12, 2018* 1:00 pm, CBSSN | at Drake First Round – Lou Henson Classic | L 73–80 $^{OT}$ | 16–16 | Knapp Center (3,565) Des Moines, IA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||