1971–72 Carolina Cougars season

1971–72 Carolina Cougars season
Head coach	Tom Meschery
Arena	Greensboro Coliseum Charlotte Coliseum Dorton Arena
Results
Record	35–49 (.417)
Place	Division: 5th

The 1971–72 Carolina Cougars season was the 3rd season of the Cougars in the ABA. The team was 14–28 after one half of the season, with a six-game losing streak (the longest of the season) contributing to the start. They went 21–21 (with two instances of three game winning streaks) in the second half, but they lost the final spot in the playoffs by one game to The Floridians. The two teams had met up for their final match-up of the season on March 24 in Greensboro, with the Cougars having two games to play afterwards and the Floridians four, respectively. The Floridians won the game 116–115 in overtime, making their record 35–45 and the Cougars record at 33–49, which meant that it was all but assured the Cougars were eliminated, due to the Floridians clinching the playoff spot four days later with their 36th win (if they had lost all of their four games, the two teams would have been tied at 35–49, which would've necessitated a playoff). The Cougars had missed the playoffs for the 2nd straight year in a row. The team was 5th in points scored at 114.8 per game, but 10th in points allowed at 118.1 per game.

During the regular season, the Cougars played 19 games in Greensboro, 14 in Charlotte, 6 in Raleigh, 3 in Winston-Salem, and one at Fort Bragg.

Roster

1971–72 Carolina Cougars roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From SF 27 Joe Caldwell 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) November 1, 1941 Arizona State SF 13 Frank Card 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) December 28, 1944 South Carolina State SF George Carter 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1944-01-10 St. Bonaventure PF 32 Warren Davis 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 212 lb (96 kg) 1943-06-30 North Carolina A&T C 54 Randy Denton 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) February 18, 1949 Duke F 4 Ron Dorsey 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) October 10, 1948 Tennessee State PF 35 Wayne Hightower 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 192 lb (87 kg) January 14, 1940 Kansas PF 13 Stew Johnson 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) August 19, 1944 Murray State SF 33 Wendell Ladner 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1948-10-06 Southern Miss PG 21 George Lehmann 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) May 1, 1941 Campbell PG 23 Gene Littles 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) June 29, 1943 High Point PF 22 Ed Manning 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) January 2, 1944 Jackson State SG 24 Ted McClain 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) August 30, 1946 Tennessee State C 1 Jim McDaniels 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 228 lb (103 kg) April 2, 1948 Western Kentucky SG 44 Larry Miller 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1946-04-04 North Carolina C 52 Tom Owens 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 215 lb (98 kg) June 28, 1949 South Carolina SF 33 George Stone 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) February 9, 1946 Marshall SG 11 Bob Verga 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) September 7, 1945 Duke SG 21 Bob Warren 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) July 17, 1946 Vanderbilt

Head coach Tom Meschery Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster

Final standings

Eastern Division

Team	W	L	%	GB
Kentucky Colonels	68	16	.810	-
Virginia Squires	45	39	.536	23
New York Nets	44	40	.524	24
The Floridians	36	48	.429	32
Carolina Cougars	35	49	.417	33
Pittsburgh Condors	25	59	.298	43

Awards, records, and honors

1972 ABA All-Star Game selection (game played on January 29, 1972)

• Jim McDaniels

References

• Cougars on Basketball Reference