 | |||||
| Season | 1982–83 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teams | 52 | ||||
| Finals site | The Pit Albuquerque, New Mexico | ||||
| Champions | NC State Wolfpack (2nd title, 2nd title game, 3rd Final Four) | ||||
| Runner-up | Houston Cougars (1st title game, 4th Final Four) | ||||
| Semifinalists |
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| Winning coach | Jim Valvano (1st title) | ||||
| MOP | Akeem Olajuwon (Houston) | ||||
| Attendance | 364,356 | ||||
| Top scorer | Dereck Whittenburg (NC State) (120 points) | ||||
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The 1983 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 52 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 17, 1983, and ended with the championship game on April 4 at The Pit, then officially known as University Arena, on the campus of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.[1] A total of 51 games were played.
North Carolina State, coached by Jim Valvano, won the national title with a 54–52 victory in the final game over Houston, coached by Guy Lewis. The ending of the final game is one of the most famous in college basketball history, with a buzzer-beating dunk by Lorenzo Charles off a desperation shot from 30 feet out by Dereck Whittenburg. This would also be NC State's last appearance in the Final Four until 2024.
Both Charles's dunk and Valvano's running around the court in celebration immediately after the game have been staples of NCAA tournament coverage ever since. North Carolina State's victory has often been considered one of the greatest upsets in college basketball history, and is the fourth biggest point-spread upset in Championship Game history.
Akeem Olajuwon of Houston was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, becoming the last player to date to earn this award while playing for a team that failed to win the national title.