1980 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament

1980 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament
ClassificationDivision I
Season1979–80
Teams8
SiteCampus Sites; Charlotte Coliseum
Campus Sites; Charlotte, NC
ChampionsVCU (1st title)
Winning coachJ.D. Barnett (1st title)
MVPEdmund Sherod (VCU)
← 1979
1981 →
1979–80 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
South Alabama 12 2   .857 23 6   .793
UAB 10 4   .714 18 12   .600
Jacksonville 10 4   .714 20 9   .690
UNC Charlotte 9 5   .643 15 12   .556
VCU 8 6   .571 18 12   .600
Georgia State 4 10   .286 6 21   .222
New Orleans 2 12   .143 5 21   .192
South Florida 1 13   .071 6 21   .222
1980 Sun Belt Conference tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll


The 1980 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament was held February 23–25 at the Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina.[1]

VCU defeated UAB in the championship game, 105–88, to win their first Sun Belt men's basketball tournament. Both programs were in their first season in the Sun Belt.

The Rams, in turn, received an automatic bid for the 1980 NCAA tournament, where they lost to Iowa in the first round. Top-seeded South Alabama, who lost to VCU in the semifinal round, still received an at-large bid; the Jaguars ultimately lost to Alcorn State in the NCAA tournament's first round.

  1. ^ "1979–80 Sun Belt Conference Season Summary". sports-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. 2016. Retrieved March 23, 2016.