The Davidson Wildcats basketball team is the basketball team that represents Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina, in the NCAA. The school's team currently competes in the Atlantic 10 Conference. The team last played in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament in 2022. The Wildcats are currently coached by Matt McKillop, in his third season after succeeding his father Bob after the 2021–22 season. Davidson plays its home games at the Belk Arena in Baker Sports Complex on the school's campus.

Conference affiliations 1907–08 to 1935–36: Independent 1936–37 to 1987–88: Southern Conference 1988–89 to 1989–90: NCAA Division I independent 1990–91 to 1991–92: Big South Conference 1992–93 to 2013–14: Southern Conference 2014–15 to present: Atlantic 10 Conference

Postseason

NCAA tournament results The Wildcats have appeared in 15 NCAA Tournaments. Their combined record is 8–16.

1966 First RoundSweet SixteenRegional third place Game Rhode IslandSyracuseSaint Joseph's W 95–68L 78–94L 76–92 1968 First RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight St. John'sColumbiaNorth Carolina W 79–70W 61–59OTL 66–70 1969 First RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight VillanovaSt. John'sNorth Carolina W 75–61W 79–69L 85–87 1970 First Round St. Bonaventure L 72–85 1986 First Round Kentucky L 55–75 1998 First Round Michigan L 61–80 2002 First Round Ohio State L 64–69 2006 First Round Ohio State L 62–70 2007 First Round Maryland L 70–82 2008 First RoundSecond RoundSweet SixteenElite Eight GonzagaGeorgetownWisconsinKansas W 82–76W 74–70W 73–56L 57–59 2012 Second Round Louisville L 62–69 2013 Second Round Marquette L 58–59 2015 Second Round Iowa L 52–83 2018 First Round Kentucky L 73–78 2022 First Round Michigan State L 73–74

2008 NCAA tournament In 2008, Davidson defeated the Gonzaga Bulldogs, Georgetown Hoyas, and Wisconsin Badgers to advance to the Elite Eight. The Wildcats nearly made the Final Four, but lost to the eventual champion Kansas Jayhawks 59–57. Prior to their Sweet Sixteen matchup, the college's board of trustees supplied students with tickets, transportation and lodging for the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games. Following the tournament, the Wildcats earned a number 9 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today poll. Stephen Curry, who has since become a two-time NBA MVP with the Golden State Warriors, was the leading scorer of this team.

NIT results The Wildcats have appeared in ten National Invitation Tournaments. Their combined record is 3–10.

1972 First Round Syracuse L 77–81 1994 First Round West Virginia L 69–85 1996 First Round South Carolina L 73–100 2005 Opening RoundFirst RoundSecond Round VCUSW Missouri StateMaryland W 77–62W 82–71L 63–78 2009 First RoundSecond Round South CarolinaSaint Mary's W 70–63L 68–80 2014 First Round Missouri L 77–85 2016 First Round Florida State L 74–84 2019 First Round Lipscomb L 81–89 2021 First Round NC State L 61–75 2026 First Round Oklahoma State L 80–84

CBI results The Wildcats have appeared in one College Basketball Invitational. Their record is 1–1.

2011 First RoundQuarterfinals James MadisonCreighton W 85–65L 92–102

ESPN basketball ranking In a system ranked by ESPN, Davidson was listed as the #44 Basketball Program of the last 50 years (1962–2012) based on its on the court accomplishments during that period. (out of 309 Division I programs that qualified)

"Positives: Under Lefty Driesell, the Wildcats were a powerhouse in the 1960s, racking up seven 20-win seasons in an eight-year span. The ’64–65 team was AP preseason No. 4 and boasted future NBA No. 1 pick Fred Hetzel. Nine combined conference titles (Regular season & Conference Tournaments) since 2005."

Players

Retired numbers

Per athletic department policy, number and/or jersey retirement is reserved for players who have earned bachelor's degrees at Davidson. While six players have had jerseys retired, Stephen Curry is the first to have his number retired. Curry qualified after completing his bachelor's degree in May 2022. During the retirement ceremony held on August 31, 2022, Curry not only had his number retired, but also entered Davidson's athletic hall of fame and physically received his Davidson diploma.

Davidson Wildcats retired numbers No.PlayerPos.TenureNo. ret.Ref. Stephen Curry PG 2006–2009 2022 Davidson College will retire Steph Curry's No. 30 jersey by Cydney Henderson at USA TODAY, 17 Jun 2022

Retired jerseys Honored, but numbers are still active: Dick Snyder 1963–1966 Derek Rucker 1984–1988 Hobby Cobb 1952–1956 John Gerdy 1975–1979 Terry Holland 1961–1964 Fred Hetzel 1962–1965

All-Americans Fred Hetzel 1964 Consensus Second Team – AP (2nd), NABC (2nd), UPI (3rd) 1965 Consensus First Team – AP (1st), USBWA (1st), NABC (1st), UPI (1st) Dick Snyder 1966 Consensus Second Team – AP (2nd), USBWA (1st), UPI (2nd) Mike Maloy 1969 Consensus Second Team – AP (2nd), USBWA (1st), NABC (3rd), UPI (3rd) 1970 AP (3rd), NABC (3rd), UPI (3rd) Stephen Curry 2008 Consensus Second Team – AP (2nd), Sporting News (2nd) 2009 Consensus First Team – AP (1st), USBWA (1st), NABC (1st), Sporting News (1st)

Wildcats in the NBA/ABA Stephen Curry 2009–present Golden State Warriors 4× NBA champion (2015, 2017, 2018, 2022); 2× NBA Most Valuable Player (, ); NBA Finals MVP (2022); 2× NBA All-Star Game MVP (, ); NBA Western Conference finals MVP (); NBA Clutch Player of the Year (); 11× NBA All-Star (–, –); 11× All-NBA (first team: , , , ; second team: , , , , ; third team: , ); Olympic gold medalist (2024) Fred Hetzel 1965–1971 San Francisco Warriors, Milwaukee Bucks, Cincinnati Royals, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers Top overall pick in the 1965 NBA draft Rod Knowles 1968–1969 Phoenix Suns, New York Nets Mike Maloy 1970–1973 Virginia Squires, Dallas Chaparrals Dick Snyder 1966–1979 St. Louis Hawks, Phoenix Suns, Seattle SuperSonics, Cleveland Cavaliers NBA champion (1979) Brandon Williams 1997–2003 Golden State Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, Atlanta Hawks

Wildcats playing in international leagues Tyler Kalinoski (born 1992), American player for Unicaja of Spanish Liga ACB Luka Brajkovic (born 1999), Austrian player for Rio Breogan of Liga ACB Jake Cohen (born 1990), American-Israeli player for Maccabi Tel Aviv and the Israeli national basketball team Jón Axel Guðmundsson (born 1996), Icelandic guard for Victoria Libertas Pesaro of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A Lee Hyun-jung (born 2000), South Korean player for Illawarra Hawks of the Australian NBL Sam Mennenga (born 2001), New Zealander player for New Zealand Breakers of the Australian NBL

Players in Davidson Athletics Hall of Fame

John Belk ’43 Hobby Cobb ‘56 Stephen Curry (played 2006–2009; inducted in 2022) Fred Hetzel ’65 Rodney Knowles ’68 Jerry Kroll ‘70 Doug Cook ‘70 Mike Maloy (played 1965-1969; inducted 2020) Derek Rucker ’88 Richard Snyder ’66 John Gerdy ’79 Brandon Williams '96 Brendan Winters '06

Coaches in Davidson Athletics Hall of Fame Charles "Lefty" Driesell

References

External links