| Teams | 16 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finals site | Municipal Auditorium Kansas City, Missouri | ||||
| Champions | Loyola New Orleans (1st title, 1st title game, 1st Final Four) | ||||
| Runner-up | Pepperdine (1st title game, 1st Final Four) | ||||
| Semifinalists |
| ||||
| MVP | Fred Lewis (Eastern Kentucky) | ||||
| |||||
The 1945 NAIA basketball tournament was held in March at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The 8th annual NAIA basketball tournament featured 16 teams playing in a single-elimination format,[1] instead of the normal 32. It is the only tournament to feature only 16 teams.
The NAIA semifinals featured four new teams for the first time since the inaugural year, 1937.
The championship game featured Loyola New Orleans defeating Pepperdine 49–35. Loyola New Orleans would not go on to win another NAIA national title until 2022, 77 years later.