Oklahoma_City_Stars_men's_basketball
Oklahoma City Stars men's basketball
College basketball team
The Oklahoma City Stars men's basketball team is the basketball team that represents Oklahoma City University (OCU) in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. The school's team currently competes in the Sooner Athletic Conference.
| Oklahoma City Stars | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| University | Oklahoma City University | ||
| Head coach | Mark Berokoff (1st season) | ||
| Conference | Sooner Athletic Conference | ||
| Location | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | ||
| Arena | Abe Lemons Arena (Capacity: 3,500) | ||
| Nickname | Stars | ||
| Colors | Blue and white[1] | ||
| NCAA tournament Elite Eight | |||
| 1956, 1957 | |||
| NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen | |||
| 1952, 1953, 1956, 1957, 1963, 1965 | |||
| NCAA tournament appearances | |||
| 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1973 | |||
| NAIA tournament champions | |||
| 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 2007, 2008 | |||
| Conference tournament champions | |||
| Midwestern City Conference 1981[2] Sooner Athletic Conference 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2013, 2019[3] | |||
Oklahoma City competed in NCAA Division I for many years, and the program was especially noted for its success under coaches Doyle Parrack (1950–1955) and his successor Abe Lemons (1955–1973 and 1984–1990).[4] OCU appeared in eleven NCAA Men's Division I Basketball tournaments.
In 1985, the school moved from the NCAA to the NAIA citing the number of required NCAA sports, the Midwestern City Conference's insistence that teams host their games in arenas with seating capacities greater than 7,500, and MCC member's concerns of the lack of geographic proximity to their institutions as reasons for the move.[5] Since the move to the NAIA, OCU has won six national championships.[6]
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NCAA tournament results
The Chiefs appeared in 11 NCAA Division I basketball tournaments from 1952 to 1973, making them the most prolific tournament team that is no longer in Division I. Their record in tournaments was 8-13, giving them the second most wins of non-DI teams after New York University.[7]
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | Sweet Sixteen Regional Third Place | Wyoming UCLA | L 48–54 W 55–53 | |
| 1953 | Sweet Sixteen Regional Third Place | Kansas TCU | L 65–73 L 56–58 | |
| 1954 | First Round | Bradley | L 55–61 | |
| 1955 | First Round | Bradley | L 65–69 | |
| 1956 | First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight | Memphis State Kansas State SMU | W 97–81 W 97–93 L 63–84 | |
| 1957 | First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight | Loyola (LA) Saint Louis Kansas | W 76–55 W 75–66 L 61–81 | |
| 1963 | First Round Sweet Sixteen Regional Third Place | Colorado State Colorado Texas | W 70–67 L 72–78 L 83–90 | |
| 1964 | First Round | Creighton | L 78–89 | |
| 1965 | First Round Sweet Sixteen Regional Third Place | Colorado State San Francisco BYU | W 70–68 L 67–91 W 112–102 | |
| 1966 | First Round | Texas Western | L 74–89 | |
| 1973 | First Round | Arizona State | L 78–103 |
NIT results
The Chiefs played in the National Invitation Tournament twice.[8]
NAIA results
| Year | Seed | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 1 | First Round Second Round | Northwood (16) Georgetown (KY) | W 101–66 L 64–67 |
| 1991 | 2 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight Fab Four National Championship | Concordia (NE) (15) Concord St. Mary’s (MI) (6) Pfeiffer (5) Central Arkansas | W 80–77 W 107–85 W 112–94 W 100–83 W 77–74 |
| 1992 | 1 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight Fab Four National Championship | Columbia Union (16) Urbana Cumberlands (5) Pfeiffer (7) Central Arkansas | W 107–73 W 96–89 W 97–63 W 102–92 W 82–73 |
| 1993 | 6 | First Round Second Round | Spring Hill Lenoir–Rhyne | W 84–79 L 67–85 |
| 1994 | 5 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight Fab Four National Championship | Siena Heights St. Mary's (TX) (4) Drury (16) Oklahoma Baptist Life | W 104–99 W 86–75 W 90–70 W 86–85 W 99–81 |
| 1995 | 3 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight | Iowa Wesleyan (14) Transylvania (11) Pfeiffer | W 107–75 W 98–67 L 78–92 |
| 1996 | 14 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight Fab Four National Championship | St. Xavier (3) The Master’s (6) Birmingham–Southern Belmont (1) Georgetown (KY) | W 94–58 W 108–85 W 82–66 W 80–77 W 86–80 |
| 1998 | 8 | First Round Second Round | The Master’s (9) Incarnate Word | W 84–73 L 52–63 |
| 1999 | 6 | First Round Second Round | Houston Baptist Life | W 61–59 L 74–87 |
| 2000 | 5 | First Round Second Round | Westmont (12) Spring Hill | W 70–62 L 67–77 |
| 2001 | – | First Round Second Round | (15) Xavier (LA) (2) Azusa Pacific | W 91–69 L 54–94 |
| 2002 | 16 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight | Houston Baptist (1) Georgetown (KY) (9) Azusa Pacific | W 88–82 W 74–59 L 72–80 |
| 2003 | – | First Round | (9) St. Xavier | L 56–82 |
| 2004 | – | First Round Second Round Elite Eight | (7) Columbia (MO) (10) Lewis–Clark State (15) Mobile | W 81–48 W 79–65 L 62–75 |
| 2005 | – | First Round Second Round | (6) Mobile Carroll (MT) | W 77–74 L 65–66 |
| 2006 | 7 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight Fab Four National Championship | Columbia (MO) (10) Houston Baptist Lindsey Wilson (3) Robert Morris (IL) Texas Wesleyan | W 91–64 W 99–77 W 77–67 W 94–92 L 65–67 |
| 2007 | 2 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight Fab Four National Championship | Wiley (15) Illinois–Springfield (10) Azusa Pacific Faulkner (4) Concordia (CA) | W 90–74 W 90–78 W 84–68 W 76–61 W 79–71 |
| 2008 | 7 | First Round Second Round Elite Eight Fab Four National Championship | Cumberland (10) California Baptist (2) Lee Campbellsville (5) Mountain State | W 81–64 W 69–63 W 86–66 W 78–64 W 75–72 |
| 2010 | 16 | First Round | Southern Poly | L 70–78 |
| 2013 | – | First Round | (1) Columbia (MO) | L 37–68 |
| 2015 | – | First Round | (10) Concordia (CA) | L 62–74 |
| 2016 | 6 | First Round | (3) MidAmerica Nazarene | L 82–87 (OT) |
| 2017 | 7 | First Round | (2) Dillard | L 65–86 |
| 2018 | 2 | First Round Second Round | (7) Xavier (LA) (3) Georgetown (KY) | W 65–50 L 83–91 |
| 2019 | 7 | First Round Second Round | (2) Stillman (3) Carroll (MT) | W 101–84 L 69–80 |
Note: The NAIA shifted from national to regional seeds in 2016.[9]
Frederickson Fieldhouse was an athletics facility on the campus of Oklahoma City University. It was built in honor of a major OCU benefactor George Frederickson of Oklahoma City. It was built by the John Henry Frederickson Jr. Construction company, also of Oklahoma City. John Frederickson was the General Contractor, and his son, Chris Frederickson, also worked on the job as a laborer. George Frederickson was the uncle of John Henry Frederickson Jr. In his gift to OCU, George stipulated that the building should be built by his nephew, John Henry.
Frederickson Field House 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m2) facility was at the time of its construction (1959) the largest hyperbolic paraboloid structure on earth. The Frederickson construction company was in fact a pioneering company in the design and building of extremely thin-shell concrete buildings, of which Frederickson Field House was one. Another famous thin-shell concrete structure built by John Henry Frederickson was the First Christian Church, also in Oklahoma City. That building has an "eggshell" shaped roof that is actually thinner (in proportion) than that of a real eggshell.
The Frederickson Field house venue held 3,400 for basketball. Asked why the scoreboard at the Field House was the first one to have a three digit placement for the team scores, Abe Lemons, the coach at the time, said come to the first game and you will find out. Teams rarely scored in the 100s at the time (late 1950s) but in the first game at the Field House OCU beat Florida State Univ by scoring 129 points in the game. The Chiefs (now the STARS) were to be one of the highest scoring teams in the country, scoring over 100 points a game on many occasions. As a Division I team OCU was an Independent team until joining the Midwestern City Conference, now known as the Horizon League. OCU dropped to NAIA status in 1985. It was replaced with the more modern Henry J. Freede Wellness and Activities Center in 2000, and torn down in 2005.
- "Colors – Oklahoma City University". Retrieved July 16, 2018.
- "History: Team Achievements". OCU Sports. August 8, 2011. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
- ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game (Random House LLC, 2009), ISBN 978-0345513922, p. 315. Excerpts available at Google Books.
- Kensler, Tom (April 4, 1985). "OCU Drops Affiliation With NCAA, MCC". The Oklahoman. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
- "2023 MEN'S FINAL FOUR RECORDS BOOK" (PDF). p. 127. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
- "2018 National Invitation Postseason Records" (PDF). p. 121. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
- "Men's Basketball Championship Records" (PDF). NAIA. Retrieved September 6, 2020.