1972 NCAA University Division Basketball Tournament

1972 NCAA University Division
Basketball Tournament

NCAA logo from 1971 to 1979
Teams	25
Finals site	Memorial Sports Arena Los Angeles, California
Champions	UCLA Bruins (8th title, 8th title game, 9th Final Four)
Runner-up	Florida State Seminoles (1st title game, 1st Final Four)
Semifinalists	Louisville Cardinals (2nd Final Four) North Carolina Tar Heels (6th Final Four)
Winning coach	John Wooden (8th title)
MOP	Bill Walton (UCLA)
Attendance	147,304
Top scorer	Jim Price Louisville (103 points)
NCAA Division I Men's Tournaments «1971 1973»

The 1972 NCAA University Division Basketball Tournament involved 25 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of NCAA University Division (now Division I) college basketball. It began on Saturday, March 11, and ended with the championship game in Los Angeles on Saturday, March 25. A total of 29 games were played, including a third place game in each region and a national third place game.

Led by longtime head coach John Wooden, the undefeated UCLA Bruins won the national title with an 81–76 victory in the final game over Florida State, coached by Hugh Durham. Sophomore center Bill Walton of UCLA was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player;^[1][2][3] the first of two consecutive.

In a historically significant note, the Southwestern Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns made the tournament in their first season of eligibility for postseason play; the next to achieve this feat was North Dakota State in 2009.^[4] SW Louisiana also made the tournament in 1973, but due to major infractions that resulted in the basketball program receiving the NCAA death penalty (and very nearly expelled from the NCAA altogether), both appearances have since been vacated and the records expunged.

This was the last year in which the championship game was played on Saturday; it moved to Monday night in 1973.

Schedule and venues[edit]

The following are the sites that were selected to host each round of the 1972 tournament:

First Round

• March 11
  • East Region
    • Alumni Hall, Jamaica, New York
    • Jadwin Gymnasium, Princeton, New Jersey
    • William & Mary Hall, Williamsburg, Virginia
  • Mideast Region
    • Stokely Athletic Center, Knoxville, Tennessee
  • Midwest Region
    • Pan American Center, Las Cruces, New Mexico
  • West Region
    • ASISU Minidome, Pocatello, Idaho

Regional Semifinals, 3rd Place Games, and Finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)

• March 16 and 18
  • East Regional, WVU Coliseum, Morgantown, West Virginia
  • Mideast Regional, University of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio
  • Midwest Regional, Hilton Coliseum, Ames, Iowa
  • West Regional, Marriott Center, Provo, Utah

National Semifinals, 3rd Place Game, and Championship (Final Four and Championship)

• March 23 and 25
  • Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California

For the second time, the city of Los Angeles and the LA Memorial Sports Arena hosted the Final Four. To date, this is the last Final Four to be held in the city, although the city and region continue to host games to this day. The tournament saw five new venues and three new host cities used for the first time. For the first time, the tournament came to the campus of Iowa State University and the Hilton Coliseum, then in its first year of operation. The first games held in the state of Tennessee were held this year at the Stokely Athletic Center on the campus of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. For the third time, games were held in the state of Virginia, this time at William & Mary Hall on the campus of the College of William & Mary.

Games were held at the brand-new Marriott Center, then the largest basketball arena in the country, on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, replacing the Smith Fieldhouse. And at Idaho State University in Pocatello, games were held in the two-year-old Minidome, having previously been played at Reed Gym in 1957. To date, this is the last time games were held at either the Hilton Coliseum or at Jadwin Gymnasium on the campus of Princeton University, the only Ivy League gymnasium other than the Palestra used in the tournament.

Teams[edit]

Bracket[edit]

* – Denotes overtime period

East region[edit]

Mideast region[edit]

Midwest region[edit]

West region[edit]

Final Four[edit]

See also[edit]

• 1972 NCAA College Division Basketball Tournament
• 1972 National Invitation Tournament
• 1972 NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament
• 1972 National Women's Invitation Tournament

References[edit]