The Mastodons' first season was 1973–74. Two-time All-American and conference player of the year
Sean Gibson (1993) is the current all-time leading rebounder and Hall of Fame member. In 2013,
Frank Gaines passed Gibson to be the Mastodons all-time leading scorer. Their first season in
Division I was
2001–02. In 2007, the Mastadons joined the
Summit League. Before joining NCAA Division I athletics, IPFW competed in
NCAA Division II's
Great Lakes Valley Conference. In
2014,
IPFW reach their first
Summit League tournament championship before losing to
North Dakota State. Beginning in 2016, the school rebranded itself from IPFW to Fort Wayne to build a stronger tie to the Fort Wayne community. The transition only affected the athletic department's branding efforts. The university's IPFW academic brand remained unchanged. On November 22, 2016, the
Mastodons defeated the then No. 3-ranked
Indiana Hoosiers 71–68 in overtime in front of 11,076 in attendance at
Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. This defeat of Indiana was the Mastodons first victory over an
AP Top 25 ranked team in program history. ==Conference affiliation==