The 1979–80 San Jose State Spartans men's basketball team represented

San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...

during the 1979–80 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Spartans were led by first-year head coach

Bill Berry William Thomas Berry (born July 31, 1958) is an American musician who was the drummer for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Although best known for his economical drumming style, Berry also played other instruments, including guitar, bass guita ...

and played their home games at the

San Jose Civic Auditorium The San Jose Civic (formerly known as the San Jose Civic Auditorium and City National Civic) is a former arena, currently operating as a theatre and concert venue, located in downtown San Jose, California. The venue is owned by the City of San Jos ...

. SJSU was a member of the

Pacific Coast Athletic Association The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The conference was originally formed on July 1, 1969, as the Pacific ...

. The Spartans finished 17–12 overall, and 7–6 in the conference. During the season, San José State was invited and participated in the Cable Car Classic in

Santa Clara, California Santa Clara ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Clare of Assisi, Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities and towns i ...

. San José State defeated

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and Santa Clara to earn 1st place. San José State also lost to

North Texas North Texas is a term used primarily by residents of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex to refer to a geographic area of Texas, generally considered to include the area south of Oklahoma, east of Abilene, Texas, Abilene, west of Paris, Texas, Par ...

and

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but won against St. Francis Brooklyn to earn 7th place in the

All-College Basketball Classic The All-College Basketball Classic was a college basketball event that was played during the winter holidays in Oklahoma City from 1935 to 2016. The final events were held at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. The All-College followed a tournament forma ...

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

. In the postseason, San José State defeated

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, Utah State, and

Long Beach State California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

in the 1980 PCAA Conference men's basketball tournament in

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. The Spartans were invited and participated in the

1980 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 1980 NCAA Division I basketball tournament involved 48 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 6, 1980, and ended with the championship ...

, where they lost to

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

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in the first round.

Roster

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

alumnus, was the Spartans' head coach in 1979–80.

Schedule

, - !colspan=12 style=, Non-conference regular season , - !colspan=12 style=, PCAA regular season , - !colspan=12 style=, PCAA tournament , - , - !colspan=12 style=, NCAA tournament

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1979-80 San Jose State Spartans men's basketball team San Jose State Spartans men's basketball seasons

San Jose State San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...