2017–18 Central Michigan Chippewas men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Central Michigan Chippewas men's basketball team represented Central Michigan University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Chippewas, led by sixth-year head coach Keno Davis, played their home games at McGuirk Arena as members of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference. They finished the season 21–14, 7–11 in MAC play to finish in fifth place in the West Division. They defeated Bowling Green in the first round of the MAC tournament before losing in the quarterfinals to Buffalo. They were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they defeated Fort Wayne and Wofford to advance to the quarterfinals where they lost to Liberty.

2017–18 Central Michigan Chippewas men's basketball
Great Alaska Shootout champions Hugh Durham Classic champions
CIT, Quarterfinals
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Division	West Division
Record	21–15 (7–11 MAC)
Head coach	Keno Davis (6th season)
Assistant coaches	Kevin Gamble Kyle Gerdeman Jeff Smith
Home arena	McGuirk Arena

2017–18 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
East
Buffalo †	15	–	3		.833			27	–	9		.750
Kent State	9	–	9		.500			17	–	17		.500
Miami (OH)	8	–	10		.444			16	–	18		.471
Bowling Green	7	–	11		.389			16	–	16		.500
Ohio	7	–	11		.389			14	–	17		.452
Akron	6	–	12		.333			14	–	18		.438
West
Toledo	13	–	5		.722			23	–	11		.676
Eastern Michigan	11	–	7		.611			22	–	13		.629
Ball State	10	–	8		.556			19	–	13		.594
Western Michigan	9	–	9		.500			17	–	15		.531
Central Michigan	7	–	11		.389			21	–	15		.583
Northern Illinois	6	–	12		.333			13	–	19		.406
† 2018 MAC tournament winner

Previous season

The Chippewas finished the 2016–17 season 16–16, 6–12 in MAC play to finish in last place in the West Division. As the No. 11 seed in the MAC tournament, they lost in the first round to Kent State.

Offseason

Recruiting class of 2017

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
A.J. Bullard PF	The Woodlands, TX	The Woodlands High School	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Oct 3, 2016
	Star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 4, 2016.

Recruiting class of 2018

College recruiting information (2018)
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
P.J. Mitchell PG	Detroit, MI	Loyola High School	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	N/A
	Star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 4, 2016.

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
November 5, 2017* 1:00 pm		Northwood	W 81–71		McGuirk Arena (1,768) Mount Pleasant, MI
Non-conference regular season
November 10, 2017* 3:00 pm, CSN		Siena Heights	W 108–48	1–0	McGuirk Arena (2,142) Mount Pleasant, MI
November 13, 2017* 7:00 pm, BTN		at Michigan	L 65–72	1–1	Crisler Center (8,951) Ann Arbor, MI
November 18, 2017* 1:00 pm, CSN		Eureka	W 103–68	2–1	McGuirk Arena (1,880) Mount Pleasant, MI
November 22, 2017* 6:30 pm		vs. Sam Houston State Great Alaska Shootout quarterfinal	W 71–60	3–1	Alaska Airlines Center (1,579) Anchorage, AK
November 24, 2017* 9:30 pm		vs. Cal Poly Great Alaska Shootout semifinal	W 56–53	4–1	Alaska Airlines Center (2,653) Anchorage, AK
November 25, 2017* 11:59 pm		vs. Cal State Bakersfield Great Alaska Shootout championship	W 75–72	5–1	Alaska Airlines Arena (3,962) Seattle, WA
December 1, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Jackson State	W 70–63	6–1	McGuirk Arena (2,444) Mount Pleasant, MI
December 5, 2017* 7:00, ESPN3		Montana State	W 75–48	7–1	McGuirk Arena (2,092) Mount Pleasant, MI
December 9, 2017* 1:00 pm, ESPN3		Tennessee Tech	W 74–69	8–1	McGuirk Arena (1,956) Mount Pleasant, MI
December 16, 2017* 2:30 pm		at Southern Utah	L 80–86	8–2	America First Events Center (1,406) Cedar City, UT
December 19, 2017* 8:00 pm		at UMKC	W 92–86 OT	9–2	Municipal Auditorium (1,158) Kansas City, MO
December 22, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		SIU Edwardsville	W 70–52	10–2	McGuirk Arena (1,664) Mount Pleasant, MI
December 29, 2017* 7:00 pm, CSN		Lawrence Tech	W 91–73	11–2	McGuirk Arena (1,947) Mount Pleasant, MI
MAC regular season
January 2, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Ohio	W 75–50	12–2 (1–0)	McGuirk Arena (1,655) Mount Pleasant, MI
January 6, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		at Kent State	L 69–85	12–3 (1–1)	Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center (2,217) Kent, OH
January 9, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		at Eastern Michigan	L 74–79	12–4 (1–2)	Convocation Center (1,623) Ypsilanti, MI
January 13, 2018 4:30 pm, ESPN3		Toledo	L 82–93	12–5 (1–3)	McGuirk Arena (2,819) Mount Pleasant, MI
January 16, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		at Ball State	L 76–82	12–6 (1–4)	Worthen Arena (3,702) Muncie, IN
January 20, 2018 3:30 pm, ESPN3		at Bowling Green	W 84–75	13–6 (2–4)	Stroh Center (3,103) Bowling Green, OH
January 23, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Miami (OH)	L 61–70	13–7 (2–5)	McGuirk Arena (2,125) Mount Pleasant, MI
January 27, 2018 4:30 pm, ESPN3		Kent State	L 76–84	13–8 (2–6)	McGuirk Arena (2,967) Mount Pleasant, MI
January 30, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Northern Illinois	W 81–67	14–8 (3–6)	McGuirk Arena (1,820) Mount Pleasant, MI
February 3, 2018 3:30 pm, ESPN3		at Ohio	W 101–98 OT	15–8 (4–6)	Convocation Center (8,027) Athens, OH
February 6, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Buffalo	L 82–88	15–9 (4–7)	McGuirk Arena (1,979) Mount Pleasant, MI
February 10, 2018 2:00 pm, ESPN3		at Akron	L 63–69	15–10 (4–8)	James A. Rhodes Arena (2,564) Akron, OH
February 13, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN3		at Northern Illinois	W 80–72	16–10 (5–8)	Convocation Center (799) DeKalb, IL
February 17, 2018 4:30 pm, ESPN3		Eastern Michigan	L 67–72	16–11 (5–9)	McGuirk Arena (2,795) Mount Pleasant, MI
February 20, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		at Western Michigan	L 81–83 OT	16–12 (5–10)	University Arena (2,895) Kalamazoo, MI
February 23, 2018 6:30 pm, ESPN3		at Toledo	L 76–89	16–13 (5–11)	Savage Arena (4,883) Toledo, OH
February 27, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Ball State	W 75–51	17–13 (6–11)	McGuirk Arena (1,913) Mount Pleasant, MI
March 3, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Western Michigan	W 84–71	18–13 (7–11)	Riepma Arena (150) Midland, MI
MAC tournament
March 5, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3	(8)	(9) Bowling Green First Round	W 81–77 OT	19–13	McGuirk Arena (1,910) Mount Pleasant, MI
March 7, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3	(8)	vs. (1) Buffalo Quarterfinals	L 74–89	19–14	Quicken Loans Arena (2,023) Cleveland, OH
CIT
March 12, 2018* 12:00 pm, CBSSN		at Fort Wayne First Round – Hugh Durham Classic	W 94–89	20–14	Memorial Coliseum (1,234) Fort Wayne, IN
March 16, 2018* 7:00 pm		at Wofford Second Round	W 98–94	21–14	Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium (1,448) Spartanburg, SC
March 24, 2018* 2:00 pm		at Liberty Quarterfinals	L 71–84	21–15	Vines Center (476) Lynchburg, VA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

See also

• 2017–18 Central Michigan Chippewas women's basketball team
  • The March 3 game against Western Michigan was originally scheduled for March 2, but was rescheduled for the next day and relocated to Northwood University due to the Central Michigan shooting. As a result, this game was closed off to the public.