tion in basketball by annexing league crowns in 1972 and 1973. Visschers first edition went 10-4 in league play and the 1973 team posted a 13-1 league mark, with only a single loss to Northern Arizona preventing them from matching the perfect mark posted earlier by the 1969 team. Both teams also participated in NCAA play. In 1971-1972 the Wildcats defeated the University of Hawaii 91-64 in first round play but lost in the Far West Regional to a John Wooden-coached UCLA team and the University of San Francisco. In 1973 Weber was eliminated again in first round play by Long Beach State 88-75. For a school and community long-accustomed by this time to basketball success, the middle 1970s were locust years as Weber struggled in a period of relative basketball poverty. After a third place finish in 1973-1974, Visscher resigned as Webers head basketball coach mid-way through the 1975 season. His assistant, Neil McCarthy, was promoted to replace him. The team finished in fifth place in the conference but McCarthy pushed Weber back into Big Sky title contention with two second place finishes in 1976 and 1977. In the meantime McCarthy began to build the nucleus for Webers next basketball dynasty. Webers first game of the 1977-1978 season was a memorable one for many reasons. Webers 99-96 overtime win against Long Beach State was the opening game in Webers new basketball home, the Dee Events Center. It also marked the advent of McCarthys Kids a team built on the skills of juniors Kurt Moore and Ben Howland, and four sophomores, Bruce Collins, Richard Smith, David Johnson, and Mark Mattos. The Wildcats placed third during the regular season,defeated Idaho State in the first round of the conference tournament, and shocked Montana in the finals 62-55 after being down 28-20 at halftime. In many ways the game personified Weber basketball under McCarthy as the Wildcats played tough defense, rebounded and shot free throws well, and committed only nine turnovers. By virtue of its tournament win, Weber received the conferences bid to the NCAA tournament, losing to a Sidney Moncrief-led Arkansas team, 73-52. Webers 1979 team posted a 25-9 overall record and a 10-4 slate in the conference as Todd Harper and Gerald Mattinson joined an already talented squad. Having won the regular season title, Weber hosted the postseason conference tournament and won it handily by defeating Montana 98-91 and then Northern Arizona 92-70. Bruce Collins was named the tournament MVP for the second consecutive year. In NCAA play Weber defeated New Mexico State 81-78 but then lost again to Arkansas, 74-63. The 1979-1980 season was a banner year for the Weber basketball program. The Wildcats were an experienced team of seniors and juniors supported by newcomer Royal Edwards. Weber was shocked in its opening game of the season, dropping an overtime struggle 91-84 to Utah State in Logan. Thereafter, the Wildcats suffered only one other regular season loss, a 51-45 conference defeat at Idaho, and fashioned a 26-3 overall record and were 13-1 in conference play. The Wildcats were ranked in the top twenty by pollsters consistently throughout the season, finishing sixteenth. In addition to their conference victories, Weber also secured a split with Utah State by winning the game in Ogden 74-73 and notched wins against Utah, New Mexico, and Rhode Island. One of their chief accomplishments, however, was to win the Las Vegas Holiday Classic by defeating Michigan State 63-61 and UNLV 79-78. Weber again annexed the title to the conference tournament, held for a second time consecutively in the Dee Events Center, by beating Montana State 93-70 and Montana 50-42. Not only did Weber State thereby secure a bid to the NCAA Tournament but also received a big boost to its hopes because they were to play first round action in the Dee Events Center. But their NCAA dreams were shattered when they were upset by little-known Lamar 88-87. Coached by Billy Tubbs, the present coach at Oklahoma, the Cardinals with their run-and-gun offense stunned the Wildcats and their fans by building up a second-half 25-point lead. A rally by the Wildcats late in the second half literally fell one point short and a very special basketball season came to an end. Bruce Collins was honored by selection to two post-season all-star games, the Basketball Coaches East-West All-Star Game and the Coaches All-American Game. Collins was a four-year starter for the Wildcats starting all 120 games that Weber played during his career, averaging 20.9 points per game and grabbing 873 career rebounds. Weber repeated as conference champions in 1983, finishing 23-8 overall and 10-4 in the conference. Weber also won the conference post-season tournament but were beaten by Washington State 62-52 in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Although losing Royal Edwards and Tom Heywood through graduation, the 1983-1984 team won the conference with a 12-2 record through the play of Randy Wor-ster, John Price, Shawn Campbell, Charles Carradine, Kent Hagan, Martin Nish, Greg Jones, and Aaron McCarthy. Eliminated in the conference tournament semi-finals, Weber was invited for the first time to participate in the NIT tournament. They defeated Fordham in first round play at the Dee Events Center 75-63 but dropped a close 74-72 contest to Southwest Louisiana to end the season. After a 20-9 season with the Wildcats in 1985, Neil McCarthy accepted the position as head basketball coach at New Mexico State University. Soon afterward, ex-UCLA player and coach Larry Farmer was hired to replace McCarthy. Weber struggled during Farmers three seasons as his teams posted season records of 18-11, 7-22, and 9-21. A number of factors may have contributed to this decline. Farmer was unable to resolve the severe recruiting needs facing the program upon his arrival at the college. Moreover, Webers non-conference schedule became increasingly demanding because of Farmers willingness to meet stronger competition than before, such as DePaul, Oregon, Wyoming, and New Mexico in the first round of the 1987-1988 Pre-Season NIT. Webers overall record of excellence in basketball is reflected in many ways. Willie Sojourner and Bruce Collins were both chosen as honorable mention Ail-Americans. They and Jimmie Watts were all selected to the Silver Anniversary Big Sky All-Conference team in the fall of 1987. Thirty-six Wildcats have received first or second team All-Conference honors during the Big Skys 25 years of existence. Sojourner, Watts, and Collins were selected to All-Conference teams three times during