1985 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament

The 1985 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. This was the first year the field was expanded to 64 teams, from 53 in the previous year's tournament. It began on March 14, 1985, and ended with the championship game on April 1 in Lexington, Kentucky. A total of 63 games were played.

1985 NCAA Division I
Men's Basketball Tournament

Season	1984–85
Teams	64
Finals site	Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky
Champions	Villanova Wildcats (1st title, 1st title game, 2nd Final Four)
Runner-up	Georgetown Hoyas (3rd title game, 4th Final Four)
Semifinalists	Memphis State Tigers (Vacated) (2nd Final Four) St. John's Redmen (2nd Final Four)
Winning coach	Rollie Massimino (1st title)
MOP	Ed Pinckney (Villanova)
Attendance	422,519
Top scorer	Chris Mullin St. John's (110 points)
NCAA Division I Men's Tournaments «1984 1986»

Eighth-seed Villanova, coached by Rollie Massimino, won their first national title with a 66–64 victory in the final game over Georgetown, coached by John Thompson. Ed Pinckney of Villanova was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. The game, often cited as "The Perfect Game", is widely considered among the greatest upsets in college basketball history, and is the second biggest point-spread upset in Championship Game history.[1][2] This Villanova team remains the lowest-seeded team to win the tournament. The Wildcats are also notable as the last Division I men's national champion to date to represent a school that did not sponsor varsity football at the time of its title (Villanova had dropped football after the 1980 season and did not reinstate the sport until the 1985 season, the first after the championship game). The game is also notable as the last played without a shot clock.

This year's Final Four saw an unprecedented and unmatched three teams from the same conference, with Big East members Villanova and Georgetown joined by St. John's. The only "interloper" in the Big East party was Memphis State, then of the Metro Conference. (Memphis State's 1985 Final Four appearance was vacated due to using ineligible players, as were all of its tournament appearances from 1982–1986.)

This was also the first year that one of the regionals was named "Southeast", replacing "Mideast." This name was used until 1998, when the regional was renamed "South." This was also the last tournament until 2010 to feature two private schools in the title game. This tournament was also the last until 2012 to feature no teams in the Sweet 16 from the Mountain or Pacific Time Zones.

This tournament's East Region is the only one in NCAA Tournament history in which the higher-seeded team won every game.

Locations

Atlanta

Dayton

Albuquerque

Hartford

Houston

South Bend

Tulsa

Salt Lake City

1985 first and second rounds

Dallas

Providence

Birmingham

Denver

Lexington

1985 Regionals (blue) and Final Four (red)

First & Second Rounds

Region	Site	Venue	Host
East	Atlanta, Georgia	Omni Coliseum	Georgia Tech
	Hartford, Connecticut	Hartford Civic Center	Connecticut
Southeast	Dayton, Ohio	University of Dayton Arena	Dayton
	South Bend, Indiana	Athletic & Convocation Center	Notre Dame
Midwest	Houston, Texas	Hofheinz Pavilion	Houston
	Tulsa, Oklahoma	Mabee Center	Oral Roberts/Tulsa
West	Albuquerque, New Mexico	University Arena ("The Pit")	New Mexico
	Salt Lake City, Utah	Special Events Center	Utah

Regional Sites and Final Four

Region	Site	Venue	Host
East	Providence, Rhode Island	Providence Civic Center	Providence College
Midwest	Dallas, Texas	Reunion Arena	Southwest Conference
Southeast	Birmingham, Alabama	BJCC Coliseum	Southeastern Conference
West	Denver, Colorado	McNichols Sports Arena	Colorado
Final Four	Lexington, Kentucky	Rupp Arena	Kentucky

Lexington became the 21st host city, and Rupp Arena the 23rd host venue, for the Final Four. Lexington is the smallest metropolitan area to host a Final Four, and due to the use of domed football stadiums, it is unlikely to host a Final Four again despite the size of Rupp Arena. The 1985 tournament was the last time an off-campus arena (or, for that matter, any arena) whose primary tenant was a college team was used for a tournament. (The Continental Airlines Arena (in 1996) was the main arena for Seton Hall, but they were not the primary tenants.) This tournament also marks the last time a domed stadium was not used for any tournament games; before 1985, the four previous tournaments and the 1971 tournament were the only tournaments to include them. The other implication of this is that it was the only tournament between 1984 and 1993 to not feature an NFL stadium. Denver was the only new city or venue host games in 1985. At the time, the city did not host a NCAA Division I institution, making it just one of a handful of host cities all-time to do so. 1985 would be the last time the Providence Civic Center would host the regional rounds; all subsequent tournaments would be early rounds. The tournament would also mark the last time the University of Tulsa's Mabee Center would host games; the tournament would not return to the city until 2011, when the BOK Center hosted.

Teams

Region	Seed	Team	Coach	Finished	Final Opponent	Score
East
East	1	Georgetown	John Thompson	Runner Up	8 Villanova	L 66–64
East	2	Georgia Tech	Bobby Cremins	Regional Runner-up	1 Georgetown	L 60–54
East	3	Illinois	Lou Henson	Sweet Sixteen	2 Georgia Tech	L 61–53
East	4	Loyola–Chicago	Gene Sullivan	Sweet Sixteen	1 Georgetown	L 65–53
East	5	SMU	Dave Bliss	Round of 32	4 Loyola–Chicago	L 70–57
East	6	Georgia	Hugh Durham	Round of 32	3 Illinois	L 74–58
East	7	Syracuse	Jim Boeheim	Round of 32	2 Georgia Tech	L 70–53
East	8	Temple	John Chaney	Round of 32	1 Georgetown	L 63–46
East	9	Virginia Tech	Charles Moir	Round of 64	8 Temple	L 60–57
East	10	DePaul	Joey Meyer	Round of 64	7 Syracuse	L 70–65
East	11	Wichita State	Gene Smithson	Round of 64	6 Georgia	L 67–59
East	12	Old Dominion	Paul Webb	Round of 64	5 SMU	L 85–68
East	13	Iona	Pat Kennedy	Round of 64	4 Loyola–Chicago	L 59–58
East	14	Northeastern	Jim Calhoun	Round of 64	3 Illinois	L 76–57
East	15	Mercer	Bill Bibb	Round of 64	2 Georgia Tech	L 65–58
East	16	Lehigh	Tom Schneider	Round of 64	1 Georgetown	L 68–43
Midwest
Midwest	1	Oklahoma	Billy Tubbs	Regional Runner-up	2 Memphis State	L 63–61
Midwest	2	Memphis State	Dana Kirk	National Semifinals	8 Villanova	L 52–45
Midwest	3	Duke	Mike Krzyzewski	Round of 32	11 Boston College	L 74–73
Midwest	4	Ohio State	Eldon Miller	Round of 32	5 Louisiana Tech	L 79–67
Midwest	5	Louisiana Tech	Andy Russo	Sweet Sixteen	1 Oklahoma	L 86–84
Midwest	6	Texas Tech	Gerald Myers	Round of 64	11 Boston College	L 55–53
Midwest	7	UAB	Gene Bartow	Round of 32	2 Memphis State	L 67–66
Midwest	8	USC	Stan Morrison	Round of 64	9 Illinois State	L 58–55
Midwest	9	Illinois State	Bob Donewald	Round of 32	1 Oklahoma	L 75–69
Midwest	10	Michigan State	Jud Heathcote	Round of 64	7 UAB	L 70–68
Midwest	11	Boston College	Gary Williams	Sweet Sixteen	2 Memphis State	L 59–57
Midwest	12	Pittsburgh	Roy Chipman	Round of 64	5 Louisiana Tech	L 78–54
Midwest	13	Iowa State	Johnny Orr	Round of 64	4 Ohio State	L 75–64
Midwest	14	Pepperdine	Jim Harrick	Round of 64	3 Duke	L 75–62
Midwest	15	Penn	Craig Littlepage	Round of 64	2 Memphis State	L 67–55
Midwest	16	North Carolina A&T	Don Corbett	Round of 64	1 Oklahoma	L 96–83
Southeast
Southeast	1	Michigan	Bill Frieder	Round of 32	8 Villanova	L 59–55
Southeast	2	North Carolina	Dean Smith	Regional Runner-up	8 Villanova	L 56–44
Southeast	3	Kansas	Larry Brown	Round of 32	11 Auburn	L 66–64
Southeast	4	LSU	Dale Brown	Round of 64	13 Navy	L 78–55
Southeast	5	Maryland	Lefty Driesell	Sweet Sixteen	8 Villanova	L 46–43
Southeast	6	Purdue	Gene Keady	Round of 64	11 Auburn	L 59–58
Southeast	7	Notre Dame	Digger Phelps	Round of 32	2 North Carolina	L 60–58
Southeast	8	Villanova	Rollie Massimino	Champion	1 Georgetown	W 66–64
Southeast	9	Dayton	Don Donoher	Round of 64	8 Villanova	L 51–49
Southeast	10	Oregon State	Ralph Miller	Round of 64	7 Notre Dame	L 79–70
Southeast	11	Auburn	Sonny Smith	Sweet Sixteen	2 North Carolina	L 62–56
Southeast	12	Miami (OH)	Jerry Peirson	Round of 64	5 Maryland	L 69–68
Southeast	13	Navy	Paul Evans	Round of 32	5 Maryland	L 64–59
Southeast	14	Ohio	Danny Nee	Round of 64	3 Kansas	L 49–38
Southeast	15	Middle Tennessee State	Bruce Stewart	Round of 64	2 North Carolina	L 76–57
Southeast	16	Fairleigh Dickinson	Tom Green	Round of 64	1 Michigan	L 59–55
West
West	1	St. John's	Lou Carnesecca	National Semifinals	1 Georgetown	L 77–59
West	2	VCU	J. D. Barnett	Round of 32	7 Alabama	L 63–59
West	3	NC State	Jim Valvano	Regional Runner-up	1 St. John's	L 69–60
West	4	UNLV	Jerry Tarkanian	Round of 32	12 Kentucky	L 64–61
West	5	Washington	Marv Harshman	Round of 64	12 Kentucky	L 66–58
West	6	Tulsa	Nolan Richardson	Round of 64	11 UTEP	L 79–75
West	7	Alabama	Wimp Sanderson	Sweet Sixteen	3 NC State	L 61–55
West	8	Iowa	George Raveling	Round of 64	9 Arkansas	L 63–54
West	9	Arkansas	Eddie Sutton	Round of 32	1 St. John's	L 68–65
West	10	Arizona	Lute Olson	Round of 64	7 Alabama	L 50–41
West	11	UTEP	Don Haskins	Round of 32	3 NC State	L 86–73
West	12	Kentucky	Joe B. Hall	Sweet Sixteen	1 St. John's	L 86–70
West	13	San Diego State	Smokey Gaines	Round of 64	4 UNLV	L 85–80
West	14	Nevada	Sonny Allen	Round of 64	3 NC State	L 65–56
West	15	Marshall	Rick Huckabay	Round of 64	2 VCU	L 81–65
West	16	Southern	Robert Hopkins	Round of 64	1 St. John's	L 83–59

Bracket

* – Denotes overtime period

East Regional – Providence, Rhode Island

	First round					Second round					Regional Semifinals					Regional Finals
	1	Georgetown	68
	16	Lehigh	43
						1	Georgetown	63
	Hartford
						8	Temple	46
	8	Temple	60
	9	Virginia Tech	57
											1	Georgetown	65
											4	Loyola–Chicago	53
	5	SMU	85
	12	Old Dominion	68
						5	SMU	57
	Hartford
						4	Loyola–Chicago	70
	4	Loyola–Chicago	59
	13	Iona	58
																1	Georgetown	60
																2	Georgia Tech	54
	6	Georgia	67
	11	Wichita State	59
						6	Georgia	58
	Atlanta
						3	Illinois	74
	3	Illinois	76
	14	Northeastern	57
											3	Illinois	53
											2	Georgia Tech	61
	7	Syracuse	70
	10	DePaul	65
						7	Syracuse	53
	Atlanta
						2	Georgia Tech	70
	2	Georgia Tech	65
	15	Mercer	58

Regional Final Summary

CBS

Saturday, March 23

box score

#1 Georgetown Hoyas 60, #2 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 54
Pts: P. Ewing – 14 Rebs: R. Dalton – 6 Asts: M. Jackson – 5		Pts: J. Salley – 15 Rebs: J. Salley – 5 Asts: S. Petway – 4 Halftime Score: 29–29

Providence Civic Center – Providence, Rhode Island

West Regional – Denver, Colorado

	First round					Second round					Regional Semifinals					Regional Finals
	1	St John's	83
	16	Southern	59
						1	St John's	68
	Salt Lake City
						9	Arkansas	65
	8	Iowa	54
	9	Arkansas	63
											1	St John's	86
											12	Kentucky	70
	5	Washington	58
	12	Kentucky	66
						12	Kentucky	64
	Salt Lake City
						4	UNLV	61
	4	UNLV	85
	13	San Diego State	80
																1	St John's	69
																3	NC State	60
	6	Tulsa	75
	11	UTEP	79
						11	UTEP	73
	Albuquerque
						3	NC State	86
	3	NC State	65
	14	Nevada	56
											3	NC State	61
											7	Alabama	55
	7	Alabama	50
	10	Arizona	41
						7	Alabama	63
	Albuquerque
						2	VCU	59
	2	VCU	81
	15	Marshall	65

First Round Summary

NCAA Productions ESPN

Thursday, March 14 12:07 PM MST/2:07 PM EST

box score

#1 St. John's Redmen 83, #16 Southern Jaguars 59
Pts: W. Berry – 24 Rebs: W. Berry – 13 Asts: C. Mullin – 6		Halftime Score: St. John's, 34–18

Special Events Center – Salt Lake City, Utah Attendance: 6,928

Second Round Summary

CBS

Saturday, March 16 2:30 PM MST/4:30 PM EST

box score

#1 St. John's Redmen 68, #9 Arkansas Razorbacks 65

Special Events Center – Salt Lake City, Utah Attendance: 9,226

Regional Semifinal Summary

CBS

Friday, March 22 8:09 PM MST/10:09 PM EST

box score

#1 St. John's Redmen 86, #12 Kentucky Wildcats 70
Pts: C. Mullin – 30 Rebs: W. Berry – 7 Asts: C. Mullin – 7		Pts: K. Walker – 23 Rebs: K. Walker – 8 Asts: R. Harden – 7 Halftime Score: St. John's, 39–38

McNichols Sports Arena – Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,022 Referees: John Clougherty, Bobby Dibler, Willis McJunkin

Regional Final Summary

CBS

Sunday, March 24 2:03 PM MST/4:03 PM EST

box score

#1 St. John's Redmen 69, #3 NC State Wolfpack 60
Pts: C. Mullin – 25 Rebs: B. Wennington – 10 Asts: M. Moses, M. Jackson – 5		Pts: L. Charles – 15 Rebs: L. Charles, C. McQueen – 11 Asts: S. Webb – 9 Halftime Score: St. John's, 30–29

McNichols Sports Arena – Denver, Colorado Attendance: 17,022 Referees: John Clougherty, Bobby Dibler, Willis McJunkin

Southeast Regional – Birmingham, Alabama

	First round					Second round					Regional Semifinals					Regional Finals
	1	Michigan	59
	16	Fairleigh Dickinson	55
						1	Michigan	55
	Dayton
						8	Villanova	59
	8	Villanova	51
	9	Dayton	49
											8	Villanova	46
											5	Maryland	43
	5	Maryland	69
	12	Miami (OH)	68*
						5	Maryland	64
	Dayton
						13	Navy	59
	4	LSU	55
	13	Navy	78
																8	Villanova	56
																2	North Carolina	44
	6	Purdue	58
	11	Auburn	59
						11	Auburn	66
	South Bend
						3	Kansas	64
	3	Kansas	49
	14	Ohio	38
											11	Auburn	56
											2	North Carolina	62
	7	Notre Dame	79
	10	Oregon State	70
						7	Notre Dame	58
	South Bend
						2	North Carolina	60
	2	North Carolina	76
	15	Middle Tennessee State	57

Regional Final Summary

CBS

Sunday, March 24

box score

#8 Villanova Wildcats 56, #2 North Carolina Tar Heels 44
Pts: H. Pressley – 15 Rebs: E. Pinckney – 7 Asts: E. Pinckney, H. Jensen – 3		Pts: B. Daugherty – 17 Rebs: B. Daugherty – 12 Asts: J. Wolf, K. Smith – 5 Halftime Score: North Carolina, 22–17

BJCC Coliseum – Birmingham, Alabama

Midwest Regional – Dallas, Texas

	First round					Second round					Regional Semifinals					Regional Finals
	1	Oklahoma	96
	16	North Carolina A&T	83
						1	Oklahoma	75
	Tulsa
						9	Illinois State	69
	8	Southern California	55
	9	Illinois State	58
											1	Oklahoma	86
											5	Louisiana Tech	84*
	5	Louisiana Tech	78
	12	Pittsburgh	54
						5	Louisiana Tech	79
	Tulsa
						4	Ohio State	67
	4	Ohio State	75
	13	Iowa State	64
																1	Oklahoma	61
																2	Memphis State	63
	6	Texas Tech	53
	11	Boston College	55
						11	Boston College	74
	Houston
						3	Duke	73
	3	Duke	75
	14	Pepperdine	62
											11	Boston College	57
											2	Memphis State	59
	7	UAB	70
	10	Michigan State	68
						7	UAB	66*
	Houston
						2	Memphis State	67
	2	Memphis State	67
	15	Penn	55

Regional Final Summary

CBS

Saturday, March 23

box score

#2 Memphis State Tigers 63, #1 Oklahoma Sooners 61
Pts: D. Kennedy – 16 Rebs: W. Tisdale – 12 Asts: T. McCalister, A. Bowie – 5		Pts: K. Lee – 23 Rebs: K. Lee – 11 Asts: A. Turner – 12 Halftime Score: 33–33

Reunion Arena – Dallas, Texas

Final Four – Lexington, Kentucky

	National Semifinals					National Championship Game
	E1	Georgetown	77
	W1	St John's	59
						E1	Georgetown	64
						S8	Villanova	66
	S8	Villanova	52
	M2	Memphis State	45

Game Summaries

CBS

Saturday, March 30

box score

#8 Villanova Wildcats 52, #2 Memphis State Tigers 45
Pts: D. McClain – 19 Rebs: E. Pinckney – 9 Asts: M. Plansky, G. McLain, D. McClain – 2		Pts: A. Turner – 11 Rebs: Vincent Askew, W. Bedford, K. Lee – 7 Asts: V. Askew – 7 Halftime Score: 23–23

Rupp Arena – Lexington, Kentucky

CBS

Saturday, March, 30

box score

#1 Georgetown Hoyas 77, #1 St. John's Redmen 59
Pts: R. Williams – 20 Rebs: D. Wingate – 6 Asts: M. Jackson – 11		Pts: W. Glass – 13 Rebs: W. Berry – 6 Asts: M. Jackson – 5 Halftime Score: Georgetown, 32–28

Rupp Arena – Lexington, Kentucky

National Championship

Main article: 1985 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Game

CBS

Monday, April 1

Box score

#8 Villanova Wildcats 66, #1 Georgetown Hoyas 64
Pts: D. McClain – 17 Rebs: E. Pinckney – 6 Asts: E. Pinckney – 5		Pts: D. Wingate – 16 Rebs: B. Martin, P. Ewing – 5 Asts: M. Jackson – 9 Halftime Score: Villanova, 29–28

Rupp Arena – Lexington, Kentucky

Announcers

Television

CBS Sports

• Brent Musburger First Round (Kentucky–Washington), (Arizona–Alabama), Second Round & Dick Stockton Regional, Final Four served as studio hosts and Bill Raftery Regional, Final Four served as studio analyst.
• Dick Stockton/Brent Musburger and Billy Packer – Stockton/Packer, First Round (Kentucky–Washington), Second Round at Salt Lake City, Utah & Houston, Texas; Musburger/Packer, East Regionals at Providence, Rhode Island, Southeast Regional Finals at Birmingham, Alabama, Final Four at Lexington, Kentucky
• Gary Bender and Doug Collins – Second Round at South Bend, Indiana & Dayton, Ohio, West Regionals at Denver, Colorado
• Frank Glieber and James Brown – Second Round at Hartford, Connecticut, Midwest Regionals at Dallas, Texas
• Pat Summerall/Verne Lundquist and Larry Conley – Summerall/Conley, Second Round at Atlanta, Georgia; Lundquist/Conley, Southeast Regional Semifinals (Auburn–North Carolina) at Birmingham, Alabama
• Verne Lundquist and Steve Grote – First Round (Arizona–Alabama) & Second Round at Albuquerque, New Mexico
• Tim Ryan and Bill Raftery – Second Round at Tulsa, Oklahoma

ESPN and NCAA Productions

• Bob Ley (NCAA Tournament Today/NCAA Tournament Tonight) served as studio host and Dick Vitale served as studio analyst.
• – First Round (Lehigh–Georgetown) & (Old Dominion–SMU) at Hartford, Connecticut
• – First Round (Virginia Tech–Temple) & (Iona–Loyola-Chicago) at Hartford, Connecticut
• Mike Patrick and Larry Conley – First Round (Northeastern–Illinois) & (Mercer–Georgia Tech) at Atlanta, Georgia
• – First Round (Wichita State–Georgia) & (DePaul–Syracuse) at Atlanta, Georgia
• – First Round (Iowa State–Ohio State) & (Illinois State–Southern California) at Tulsa, Oklahoma
• – First Round (Pittsburgh–Louisiana Tech) & (North Carolina A&T–Oklahoma) at Tulsa, Oklahoma
• – First Round (Penn–Memphis State) & (Pepperdine–Duke) at Houston, Texas
• – First Round (Michigan State–UAB) & (Boston College–Texas Tech) at Houston, Texas
• – First Round (Navy–Louisiana State) & (Dayton–Villanova) at Dayton, Ohio
• Frank Herzog/Ralph Hacker and Joe Dean– First Round (Miami (OH)–Maryland) & (Fairleigh Dickinson–Michigan) at Dayton, Ohio
• – First Round (Ohio–Kansas) & (Oregon State–Notre Dame) at South Bend, Indiana
• Tom Hammond and Jack Givens – First Round (Auburn–Purdue) & (Middle Tennessee–North Carolina) at South Bend, Indiana
• – First Round (Southern–St. John's) at Salt Lake City, Utah
• – First Round (Arkansas–Iowa) & (San Diego State–UNLV) at Salt Lake City, Utah
• Larry Zimmer and Ted Owens – First Round (Nevada–NC State) at Albuquerque, New Mexico
• – First Round (UTEP–Tulsa) & (Marshall–VCU) at Albuquerque, New Mexico
• Frank Fallon and Gary Thompson- Midwest Regional Semifinals (Louisiana Tech–Oklahoma) at Dallas, Texas
• Mike Patrick and Larry Conley – Southeast Regional Semifinals (Villanova–Maryland) at Birmingham, Alabama

Radio

Regionals

CBS Radio

• – East Regionals at Providence, Rhode Island
• – Midwest Regionals at Dallas, Texas
• – Southeast Regionals at Birmingham, Alabama
• – West Regionals at Denver, Colorado

Final Four

• – at Lexington, Kentucky

Further reading

• Pinckney, Ed; Gordon, Robert (2004). Ed Pinckney's Tales from the Villanova Hardwood: The Story of the 1985 NCAA champs. Champaign: Sports Publishing. ISBN 1-58261-809-7.

See also

• 1985 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament
• 1985 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament
• 1985 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament
• 1985 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Tournament
• 1985 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Tournament
• 1985 National Invitation Tournament
• 1985 National Women's Invitation Tournament
• 1985 NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament
• 1985 NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament

References

1. Sports Illustrated
2. USA Today