| National championship game | |||||||||||||
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| Date | March 29, 1982 | ||||||||||||
| Venue | Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana | ||||||||||||
| MVP | James Worthy, North Carolina | ||||||||||||
| Favorite | North Carolina by 1.5[1] | ||||||||||||
| Referees | John Dabrow, Bobby Dibler & Hank Nichols[2] | ||||||||||||
| Attendance | 61,612[3][4] | ||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||
| Network | CBS | ||||||||||||
| Announcers | Gary Bender and Billy Packer | ||||||||||||
| Nielsen Ratings | 21.5 | ||||||||||||
The 1982 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game took place on Monday, March 29, between the North Carolina Tar Heels and Georgetown Hoyas at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The match-up was the final one of the forty-fourth consecutive NCAA tournament organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to crown a national champion for men's basketball at the Division I level.
Head coach John Thompson and the Georgetown Hoyas entered the game ranked sixth in the final AP Poll (released three weeks earlier), with an overall record of 28–6. The Hoyas were led by first-team All-American Eric Floyd and seven-foot (2.13 m) freshman Patrick Ewing. In the midst of a 15-game winning streak, the North Carolina Tar Heels entered the championship game at 31–2 after defeating the Houston Cougars in the national semifinal. The Dean Smith-led North Carolina Tar Heels were anchored by junior and first–team All-American James Worthy.
The game was televised by CBS across the United States, which attracted over 17 million viewers. Georgetown jumped out to an early 12–8 lead, with all eight of North Carolina's points coming from goaltending infractions by Ewing. The Hoyas entered halftime ahead 32–31. The teams traded the lead multiple times in the closing minutes of the second half. Following a turnover by Matt Doherty, Georgetown took the lead 62–61 courtesy of a jump shot from Floyd. During the ensuing possession, North Carolina freshman Michael Jordan hit a go-ahead basket with 15 seconds remaining to give the Tar Heels a one-point advantage.
The Tar Heels won their second NCAA men's basketball national championship, with their first coming in 1957. Worthy was named the Most Outstanding Player for his efforts throughout the tournament. After losing in his first three national title game appearances – something many had openly criticized him over – coach Smith won his first national championship as a head coach. Ewing helped lead the Hoyas back to the national title game in 1984 and 1985, where they won it all in 1984. Both talented freshmen, Ewing and Jordan, went on to become National Players of the Year before leaving college to play professional basketball.
- ^ Donald Huff (March 29, 1982). "Georgetown, N. Carolina: On the Eve of a Dream". Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 29, 2016. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
- ^ "The Final Four" (PDF). 2014 NCAA Men's Final Four Records. NCAA. 2014. p. 20. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 12, 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
- ^ "Great Final Four moments". ESPN Classic. ESPN Internet Ventures. November 19, 2003. Archived from the original on February 5, 2010. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
- ^ "2007–08 Men's Basketball Yearbook" (PDF). University of North Carolina. p. 111. Archived from the original (pdf) on November 27, 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.