| Mode: | Basketball |
| Year: | 1975–76 |
| Prev Year: | 1974–75 |
| Next Year: | 1976–77 |
| Team: | Western Michigan Broncos |
| Conference: | Mid-American Conference |
| Short Conf: | MAC |
| Coachrank: | 19 |
| Aprank: | 10 |
| Record: | 25–3 |
| Conf Record: | 15–1 |
| Head Coach: | Eldon Miller |
| Asst Coach1: | Dick Shilts |
| Asst Coach2: | Rich Walker |
| Stadium: | University Arena |
| Champion: | Mid-American Conference Champions |
| Bowl: | NCAA tournament |
| Bowl Result: | Sweet Sixteen |
The 1975–76 Western Michigan Broncos men's basketball team was a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college basketball team that played in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The Broncos, representing Western Michigan University (WMU), finished the season 25–3 overall and 15–1 in the conference, won the MAC championship and reached the Sweet Sixteen of the 1976 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. They finished the season ranked No. 10 in the AP Poll and No. 19 in the UPI Poll.[1]
The Broncos were featured in a Sports Illustrated article in the February 9, 1976, issue.[2] After starting the season 16–0, the Broncos entered the AP Poll as the No. 17-ranked team.[3] In the MAC showdown against Miami in Kalamazoo, a Western Michigan University (WMU) record 10,519 fans attended the game.[2]
In an early-season game, WMU beat (UWGB) 51–50 on a put-back by Jeff Tyson with one second left on the clock. The Broncos led by 10 points early in the second half, but UWGB took the lead by one point with 10 seconds remaining. After a timeout, WMU missed a long 25-foot field goal, but Tyson was able to get the rebound and score.[4]
In the NCAA tournament, Western Michigan defeated 77–67 in overtime. They lost to No. 2-ranked Marquette in the Sweet Sixteen by 5 points, 62–57.[5]
The following players were on the 1975–76 team:[6]
The team was coached by Eldon Miller, along with assistant coaches Dick Shilts and Rich Walker.[7]
The Broncos finished the season 25–3 and first place in the MAC with a 15–1 record.[8]
The following table lists the individual player statistics for the season.[9]
| Player | GP | GS | Pts | Avg | FG | FGA | Pct | FT | FTA | Pct | Reb | Avg | PF | FO | A | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeff Tyson | 28 | 28 | 501 | 17.9 | 212 | 425 | .499 | 77 | 109 | .706 | 132 | 4.7 | 83 | 3 | 63 | |
| Tom Cutter | 28 | 28 | 362 | 12.9 | 140 | 217 | .645 | 82 | 108 | .759 | 298 | 10.6 | 84 | 2 | 57 | |
| Jimmie Harvey | 28 | 28 | 356 | 12.7 | 163 | 323 | .505 | 30 | 44 | .682 | 100 | 3.6 | 73 | 1 | 42 | |
| 28 | 28 | 303 | 10.8 | 115 | 192 | .599 | 73 | 100 | .730 | 277 | 9.9 | 82 | 5 | 84 | ||
| Marty Murray | 28 | 0 | 248 | 8.9 | 85 | 218 | .390 | 78 | 108 | .722 | 41 | 1.5 | 64 | 2 | 50 | |
| Jim Kurzen | 28 | 28 | 198 | 7.1 | 79 | 170 | .465 | 40 | 51 | .784 | 44 | 1.6 | 53 | 0 | 72 | |
| Dave Carnegie | 24 | 0 | 63 | 2.6 | 27 | 50 | .540 | 9 | 17 | .529 | 61 | 2.5 | 29 | 0 | 2 | |
| Dale DeBruin | 19 | 0 | 48 | 2.5 | 17 | 33 | .515 | 14 | 27 | .519 | 40 | 2.1 | 25 | 0 | 7 | |
| S. L. Sales | 18 | 0 | 42 | 2.3 | 18 | 40 | .450 | 6 | 15 | .400 | 19 | 1.1 | 15 | 0 | 0 | |
| Mike Reardon | 21 | 0 | 40 | 1.9 | 17 | 36 | .472 | 6 | 11 | .545 | 9 | 0.4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
| Herman Randle | 21 | 0 | 38 | 1.8 | 15 | 50 | .300 | 8 | 14 | .571 | 9 | 0.4 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marc Throop | 12 | 0 | 10 | 0.8 | 2 | 8 | .250 | 6 | 13 | .462 | 15 | 1.3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bob Pyykkonen | 5 | 0 | 4 | 0.8 | 2 | 6 | .333 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 3 | 0.6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Dave Roland | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 5 | .000 | 3 | 7 | .429 | 1 | 0.2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| Rod Curry | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0.4 | 1 | 6 | .167 | 0 | 0 | – | 5 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Mark Rayner | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 2 | 2.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| WMU totals | 28 | 2218 | 79.2 | 893 | 1779 | .502 | 432 | 625 | .691 | 1176 | 42.0 | 536 | 14 | 392 | ||
| Opp. totals | 28 | 1898 | 67.8 | 776 | 1817 | .427 | 346 | 484 | .715 | – | – | 581 | – | 330 | ||
See main article: 1975–76 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings.