The 1976–77 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team represented Illinois State University during the

1976–77 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 1976–77 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began in November 1976, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1977 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Championship Game on March 27 ...

. The Redbirds, led by second year head coach

Gene Smithson In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...

, played their home games at

Horton Field House Horton may refer to: Places Antarctica * Horton Glacier, Adelaide Island, Antarctica * Horton Ledge, Queen Elizabeth Land, Antarctica Australia * Horton, Queensland, a town and locality in the Bundaberg Region * Horton River (Australia), i ...

and competed as an independent (not a member of a conference). They finished the season 22–7. The Redbirds received an invitation to the

1977 National Invitation Tournament The 1977 National Invitation Tournament was the 1977 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. Selected teams Below is a list of the 16 teams selected for the tournament.

. It was their first postseason appearance as an NCAA Division I member. They defeated Creighton University in the regional round and lost to the University of Houston in the quarterfinal round.

Roster

Schedule

, - !colspan=9 style=, Regular Season , - !colspan=9 style=, National Invitation Tournament

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1976-77 Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball team Illinois State Redbirds men's basketball seasons

Illinois State Illinois State University (ISU) is a Public university, public university in Normal, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University, it is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is reco ...