NAIA Men's Basketball Championships

The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Men's Basketball National Championship has been held annually since 1937 (with the exception of 1944 and 2020). The tournament was established by James Naismith to crown a national champion for smaller colleges and universities. Through the 2019–20 season, the NAIA Tournament featured 32 teams, and the entire tournament was contested at one location in one week, rather than multiple locations over a series of weekends. Beginning with the 2021 edition, the tournament will expand to 64 teams, but will start with play at 16 regional sites, with only the winners at these sites playing at the finals venue. From 1992 to 2020, the NAIA sponsored a Division II championship. The Division I tournament is played in Kansas City, Missouri, while in 2020, the Division II tournament was to be held for the last time at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; however, the tournaments were called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

NAIA Men's Basketball Championships

Most recent season or competition: 2019
Formerly	National College Basketball Tournament (1937–1981)
Sport	Basketball
Founded	1937
Founder	James Naismith
Motto	Passion. Tradition. History.
Divisions	1 2 (1992–2020)
No. of teams	32 64 (2021–future)
Venue(s)	Municipal Auditorium; Sanford Pentagon (D-II, 2017–2019)
Most recent champion(s)	DI: Georgetown (KY) DII: Spring Arbor (MI)
Most titles	DI: Oklahoma City (6) DII: Bethel (IN) and Indiana Wesleyan (3 each)
TV partner(s)	CBS College Sports Network (national) ESPN 3 (national) TWC Sports Channel (Kansas City area) Victory Sports Network (national)
Related competitions	NAIA Women's Basketball Championships
Official website	NAIA.org NAIA Division I NAIA Division II

Division I

The Men's Basketball Championship is mostly played at the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri.[1] It has been held in Kansas City every year since the tournament began except from 1994-2001 when it was played in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Kansas City will continue to host until at least 2024. In 2018, the NAIA announced a new format for the 2021 tournament after the merger of D-I and D-II. Under the new format, the men's and women's tournaments will each involve 64 teams. The first two rounds will be played at 16 separate sites, with only the 16 winners at these sites advancing to Kansas City.[2]

The tournament MVP has been presented with the Chuck Taylor Most Valuable Player award since 1939. In 1948 the NAIA became the first national organization to open their intercollegiate postseason to black student-athletes due primarily to the media attention surrounding Manhattan College. Manhattan, who had an all-white team, learned of the NAIA rule that prohibited blacks from participating in the tournament, and after asking the NAIA to rescind the rule, the NAIA refused and Manhattan withdrew from the tournament. “The battle might have ended there but for a man named Harry Henshel, who was a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball committee. One of the reasons that the NAIA tournament was so prestigious was that the champion was invited to compete at the Olympic trials in New York City in late March. (The other teams invited were the two NCAA finalists, three teams from the Amateur Athletic Union, the winner of the National Invitation Tournament, and a YMCA team.)” [3] After reading in the New York papers that blacks could not participate in the tournament, Henshel suggested to the media that the NAIA national champion be eliminated from Olympic consideration. NAIA officials read Hershel’s statement in the papers and quickly took a telegraphic poll amongst its members the following day that rescinded the racial ban. In 1947, Coach John Wooden of Indiana State refused the invitation to the NAIA National Tournament primarily because, Clarence J. Walker, the only black player on his team could not participate. Because of the stance taken by Manhattan College and Harry Hansel, in 1948, Coach Wooden was able to take Walker to the tournament who became the first African-American student-athlete to play in the NAIA tournament. Walker, a vital role player helped the Sycamores finish as the NAIA National Finalist. In 1957, Tennessee State would become the first historically black college to win a national championship, and the first team to win three consecutive tournaments. As of 2017, Kentucky State is the only other school to do so (1970, 1971, 1972). Oklahoma City University holds the record for the most tournament championships with 6. OKCU also holds the record for most national championship titles in NAIA Women's Basketball.

Year	Championship Team	Score	Runner-Up Team	Arena	Location
1937	Central Missouri State	35–24#	Morningside (Iowa)	Municipal Auditorium	Kansas City, Missouri
1938	Central Missouri State	45–30	Roanoke (Va.)
1939	Southwestern (Kan.)	32–31	San Diego State (Calif.)
1940	Tarkio (Mo.)	52–31	San Diego State
1941	San Diego State	36–32	Murray State (Ky.)
1942	Hamline (Minn.)	33–31	Southeast Oklahoma
1943	Southeast Missouri State	34–32	Northwest Missouri State
1944	No Tournament held
1945	Loyola (La.)	49–36	Pepperdine (Calif.)	Municipal Auditorium	Kansas City, Missouri
1946	Southern Illinois	49–40	Indiana State
1947	Marshall (W. Va.)	73–59	Mankato State (Minn.)
1948	Louisville (Ky.)	82–70	Indiana State
1949	Hamline	57–46	Regis (Colo.)
1950	Indiana State	61–47	East Central (Okla.)
1951	Hamline	69–61	Millikin (Ill.)
1952	Southwest Missouri State	73–64	Murray State
1953	Southwest Missouri State	79–71	Hamline
1954	St. Benedict's (Kan.)	62–56	Western Illinois
1955	East Texas State	71–54	Southeast Oklahoma
1956	McNeese State (La.)	60–55	Texas Southern
1957	Tennessee State	92–73	Southeast Oklahoma
1958	Tennessee State	85–73	Western Illinois
1959	Tennessee State	97–87	Pacific Lutheran (Wash.)
1960	Southwest Texas State	66–44	Westminster (Pa.)
1961	Grambling (La.)	95–75	Georgetown (Ky.)
1962	Prairie View A&M (Texas)	62–53	Westminster (Pa.)
1963	Pan American (Texas)	73–62	Western Carolina (N.C.)
1964	Rockhurst (Mo.)	66–56	Pan American
1965	Central State (Ohio)	85–51	Oklahoma Baptist
1966	Oklahoma Baptist	88–59	Georgia Southern
1967	St. Benedict's (Kan.)	71–65	Oklahoma Baptist
1968	Central State	51–48	Fairmont State (W.Va.)
1969	Eastern New Mexico	99–76	Maryland-Eastern Shore
1970	Kentucky State	79–71	Central Washington
1971	Kentucky State	102–82	Eastern Michigan
1972	Kentucky State	71–62	Wisconsin–Eau Claire
1973	Guilford (N.C.)	99–96	Maryland-Eastern Shore
1974	West Georgia	97–79	Alcorn State (Miss.)
1975	Grand Canyon (Ariz.)	65–54	Midwestern State (Texas)	Kemper Arena
1976	Coppin State (Md.)	96–91	Henderson State (Ark.)
1977	Texas Southern	71–44	Campbell (N. C.)
1978	Grand Canyon	79–75	Kearney State (Neb.)
1979	Drury (Mo.)	60–54	Henderson State
1980	Cameron (Okla.)	84–77	Alabama State
1981	Bethany Nazarene (Okla.)	86–85*	Alabama-Huntsville
1982	South Carolina–Spartanburg	51–38	Biola (Calif.)
1983	Charleston (S.C.)	57–53	West Virginia Wesleyan
1984	Fort Hays State (Kan.)	48–46*	Wisconsin–Stevens Point
1985	Fort Hays State	82–80*	Wayland Baptist (Texas)
1986	Lipscomb (Tenn.)	67–54	Arkansas-Monticello
1987	Washburn (Kan.)	79–77	West Virginia State
1988	Grand Canyon	88–86*	Auburn-Montgomery (Ala.)
1989	St. Mary's (Texas)	61–58	East Central
1990	Birmingham-Southern (Ala.)	88–80	Wisconsin–Eau Claire
1991	Oklahoma City	77–74	Central Arkansas
1992	Oklahoma City	82–73*	Central Arkansas
1993	Hawaii Pacific	88–83	Oklahoma Baptist
1994	Oklahoma City	99–81	Life (Ga.)	Mabee Center	Tulsa, Oklahoma
1995	Birmingham-Southern	92–76	Pfeiffer (N.C.)
1996	Oklahoma City	86–80	Georgetown
1997	Life	73–64	Oklahoma Baptist
1998	Georgetown	83–69	Southern Nazarene
1999	Life	63–60	Mobile (Ala.)	Donald W. Reynolds Center
2000	Life	61–59	Georgetown	Tulsa Convention Center
2001	Faulkner	63–59	Science & Arts (Okla.)
2002	Science & Arts	96–79	Oklahoma Baptist	Municipal Auditorium	Kansas City, Missouri
2003	Concordia (Calif.)	88–84*	Mountain State (W. Va.)
2004	Mountain State	74–70	Concordia
2005	John Brown (Ark.)	65–55	Azusa Pacific (Calif.)
2006	Texas Wesleyan	67–65	Oklahoma City
2007	Oklahoma City	79–71	Concordia
2008	Oklahoma City	75–72	Mountain State
2009	Rocky Mountain (Mont.)	77–61	Columbia (Mo.)
2010	Oklahoma Baptist	84–83	Azusa Pacific
2011	Pikeville (Ky.)	83–76*	Mountain State
2012	Concordia	72–69	Oklahoma Baptist
2013	Georgetown	88–62	SAGU (Texas)
2014[4]	Vanguard (Calif.)	70–65	Emmanuel (Ga.)
2015[5]	Dalton State (Ga.)	71–53	Westmont (Calif.)
2016	Mid-America Christian (Okla.)	100–99*†	Georgetown
2017	Texas Wesleyan	86–76	Life
2018	Graceland (Iowa)	83–80*	LSU–Alexandria (La.)
2019	Georgetown	68–48	Carroll (Mont.)
2020	No tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2021**	TBD	TBD	TBD
2022	TBD	TBD	TBD
2023	TBD	TBD	TBD
2024[6]	TBD	TBD	TBD

# – Lowest scoring game. † – Highest scoring game. * – Denotes each overtime. ** – Denotes new tournament format.

Division II

NAIA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship was held until 2017 at Keeter Gymnasium on the campus of College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri near Branson,[7] but moved in 2018 response to the College of the Ozarks's stance on the 2016 national anthem protests at athletic events.[8] In 2018 and 2019, the championship was held at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.[9]

The NAIA announced in April 2018 that it would discontinue its Division II basketball championships for both men and women after the 2019–20 season.[10] The DII men's basketball schools will merge into the DI under a new basketball championship tournament format in 2021.

Bethel (Ind.) and Indiana Wesleyan each had 3 Division II national championships.

Year	Championship Team	Score	Runner-Up Team	Arena	Location
1992	Grace (Ind.)	85–79*	Northwestern (Iowa)	Wisdom Gym	Stephenville, Texas
1993	Willamette (Ore.)	63–56	Northern State (S.D.)	Montgomery Fieldhouse	Nampa, Idaho
1994	Eureka (Ill.)	98–95*	Northern State (S.D.)
1995	Bethel (Ind.)	103–95*	Northwest Nazarene (Idaho)
1996	Albertson College of Idaho	81–72*	Whitworth (Wash.)
1997	Bethel (Ind.)	95–94	Siena Heights (Mich.)
1998	Bethel (Ind.)	89–87	Oregon Tech	Idaho Center
1999	Cornerstone (Mich.)	113–109*†	Bethel (Ind.)
2000	Embry-Riddle (Fla.)	75–63	College of the Ozarks (Mo.)	Keeter Gymnasium	Point Lookout, Missouri
2001	Northwestern (Iowa)	82–78	MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
2002	Evangel (Mo.)	84–61	Robert Morris (Ill.)
2003	Northwestern (Iowa)	77–57	Bethany (Kan.)
2004	Oregon Tech	81–72	Bellevue (Neb.)
2005	Walsh (Ohio)	81–70	Concordia (Neb.)
2006	College of the Ozarks (Mo.)	74–56	Huntington (Ind.)
2007	MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)	78–60	Mayville State (N.D.)
2008	Oregon Tech	63–56	Bellevue (Neb.)
2009	Oklahoma Wesleyan	60–53	College of the Ozarks (Mo.)
2010	Saint Francis (Ind.)	67–66	Walsh (Ohio)
2011	Cornerstone (Mich.)	80–71	Saint Francis (Ind.)
2012	Oregon Tech	63–46	Northwood (Fla.)
2013	Cardinal Stritch (Wis.)	73–59	William Penn (Iowa)
2014	Indiana Wesleyan	78–68	Midland University (Neb.)
2015	Cornerstone (Mich.)	66–45#	Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.)
2016	Indiana Wesleyan	69–66	Saint Francis (Ind.)
2017	Union (Ky.)	72–69	Cornerstone (Mich.)
2018	Indiana Wesleyan	84–71	Saint Francis (Ind.)	Sanford Pentagon	Sioux Falls, South Dakota
2019	Spring Arbor (Mich.)	82–76	Oregon Tech
2020	No tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

# – Lowest scoring game. † – Highest scoring game. * – Denotes each overtime.

References

1. NAIA Men's Division I Championship History
2. "New Basketball Postseason Format Approved" (Press release). NAIA. July 2, 2018. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
3. Davis, Seth (2014). Wooden, A Coach's Life (First ed.). St. Martin's Griffin. p. 93. ISBN 978-1-25006085-3.
4. "Vanguard Wins First National Championship, 70–65". NAIA. March 26, 2014. Retrieved March 26, 2014.
5. "Dalton State Wins First-Ever National Championship". NAIA. March 24, 2015. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
6. "NAIA Men's Basketball National Championship to Remain in Kansas City". NAIA. March 22, 2019. Retrieved March 22, 2019.
7. NAIA Men's Division II Championship History
8. "Anthem protest policy moves NAIA basketball tournament away from College of the Ozarks". Springfield News-Leader. October 27, 2017. Retrieved January 19, 2018.
9. "NAIA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship Awarded to Sioux Falls, S.D." NAIA. November 17, 2017. Retrieved January 19, 2018.
10. "NAIA to Combine Basketball Divisions" (Press release). NAIA. April 16, 2018. Retrieved April 20, 2018.