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 |
| ||||
Winning coach | Jim Valvano (1st title) | ||||
MOP | Akeem Olajuwon (Houston) | ||||
Attendance | 364,356 | ||||
Top scorer | Dereck Whittenburg NC State (120 points) | ||||
|
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.
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.
In the final game, played in Albuquerque, New Mexico, NC State led at halftime by a score of 33–25. Houston was hampered by foul trouble that plagued star Clyde Drexler, who picked up four first half fouls. In the second half, the Cougars came out with a second wind and established control of the game, eventually taking a seven-point lead.
However, things were not all good for Houston. Since the game was played in Albuquerque, players had to deal with the city's mile-high altitude. The Cougars' star center, Akeem Olajuwon, had problems adjusting to the environment and tired quickly, needing to check out of the game multiple times so he could put on an oxygen mask and recover. With Olajuwon on the bench, Houston head coach Guy Lewis decided that in order to protect the lead and the health of his big man at the same time, the Cougars needed to start slowing the game down.
Once again, this enabled the Wolfpack to return to their standby strategy of extending the game. Houston's free throw shooting was very suspect entering the game, which worked greatly in NC State's favor as they were able to rally back and even the score at 52 in the final two minutes. On what would be the last Houston possession, Valvano called for his players to back off and let freshman guard Alvin Franklin bring the ball up the court. The Wolfpack defenders would let the Cougars employ their slowdown strategy of passing it around. Once the ball got back to Franklin he was to be fouled immediately. With 1:05 left, the freshman was fouled and sent to the line for a one-and-one. The idea to foul Franklin sprung from the enormity of the moment; NC State believed that the relatively inexperienced Franklin could not withstand the pressure of going to the line with the championship at stake and knowing that fifty million viewers were tuned in to watch the game. The theory proved correct as Franklin failed to convert and the Wolfpack grabbed the rebound. Valvano called timeout with 44 seconds left and drew up a play for senior guard Dereck Whittenburg during the timeout, which called for the team to pass him the ball with ten seconds left on the clock so he could take the final shot.
Houston needed a defensive stop so they could get another chance to close out the game. Lewis decided to move from the man-to-man defense his team had been running the whole game to a half court zone trap defense. The Wolfpack, who were not expecting the defensive adjustment, were forced to deviate and began passing the ball around just to keep the Cougars from stealing it. Houston nearly got the turnover it was looking for when Whittenburg made an errant pass to Gannon that Drexler nearly came away with before the sophomore regained control of the ball. The ball eventually wound up in the hands of guard Sidney Lowe, who gave it to forward and fellow senior Thurl Bailey in the corner.
Trying to keep the ball moving, as he had been double teamed as soon as he received the pass, Bailey looked back toward Whittenburg, who was approximately thirty feet away from the hoop near midcourt. Bailey threw what Whittenburg would later call a "poor fundamental" overhanded pass which Houston's Benny Anders, guarding Whittenburg on the play, was in position to steal. At this point, Whittenburg hearkened back to his high school days with Morgan Wootten at DeMatha Catholic High School, where he was taught to always catch the basketball with both hands. If Whittenburg had not attempted to do so in this case, Anders may have gotten the steal and a game-winning breakaway layup. In college basketball at the time, the game clock continued to run after a made field goal, and the Wolfpack likely would not have had time even to inbound the ball. As it was, Anders knocked the ball out of Whittenburg's hands, but Whittenburg quickly regained control.
The clock, meanwhile, had ticked down to five seconds and Whittenburg was still standing a significant distance from the goal. Once he regained control, Whittenburg turned and launched a desperation shot, later claimed by Whittenburg to be a pass, to try and win the game for NC State. The shot's trajectory took it to the front of the basket where Olajuwon was covering Wolfpack center Lorenzo Charles. As he watched the shot, Olajuwon said he knew the shot was going to come up short but he also did not want to go for the ball too early because of the potential for goaltending. Charles took advantage of the indecision by Olajuwon and went up for the air ball, and, in one motion, he scored the go-ahead points with a two-handed dunk. The final second ticked off the clock before Houston could inbound the ball, and with that, the game ended, and the Wolfpack were the national champions.
The following are the sites that were selected to host each round of the 1983 tournament:
Opening Round
First and Second Rounds
Regional Semifinals and Finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)
National Semifinals and Championship (Final Four and Championship)
Albuquerque became the 20th host city, and The Pit the 21st host venue, for the Final Four. Albuquerque was the third smallest metropolitan area to host a Final Four, ahead of only Lexington and Greensboro. While it is not on the main campus of the University of New Mexico, the arena is part of the south campus of the school (which includes Dreamstyle Stadium, Santa Ana Star Field, and most other campus athletics facilities, as well as neighboring Isotopes Park), making this the last Final Four held on a campus of any kind. The 1983 tournament saw five new host cities - Boise, Evansville, Hartford, Syracuse and Tampa. Of the five, only Evansville has not repeated as a host city yet. The tournament also saw two venues returning after long absences, with Kansas City (first time since 1964) and Corvallis, Oregon (first time since 1967). While Kansas City, Kemper Arena and its successor venue the Sprint Center have continued to host tournament games, this would be the last time Corvallis has hosted since. Any future tournament games to be played in Tampa would be at the Amalie Arena or Tropicana Field; in Knoxville, the Thompson-Boling Arena.
Region | Seed | Team | Coach | Conference | Finished | Final Opponent | Score |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
East | |||||||
East | 1 | St. John's | Lou Carnesecca | Big East | Sweet Sixteen | 4 Georgia | L 70–67 |
East | 2 | North Carolina | Dean Smith | Atlantic Coast | Regional Runner-up | 4 Georgia | L 82–77 |
East | 3 | Ohio State | Eldon Miller | Big Ten | Sweet Sixteen | 2 North Carolina | L 64–51 |
East | 4 | Georgia | Hugh Durham | Southeastern | Final Four | 6 NC State | L 67–60 |
East | 5 | VCU | J.D. Barnett | Sun Belt | Second Round | 4 Georgia | L 56–54 |
East | 6 | Syracuse | Jim Boeheim | Big East | Second Round | 3 Ohio State | L 79–74 |
East | 7 | West Virginia | Gale Catlett | Atlantic 10 | First Round | 10 James Madison | L 57–50 |
East | 8 | Southwestern Louisiana | Bobby Paschal | Independent | First Round | 9 Rutgers | L 60–53 |
East | 9 | Rutgers | Tom Young | Atlantic 10 | Second Round | 1 St. John's | L 66–55 |
East | 10 | James Madison | Lou Campanelli | ECAC South | Second Round | 2 North Carolina | L 68–49 |
East | 11 | Morehead State | Wayne Martin | Ohio Valley | First Round | 6 Syracuse | L 74–59 |
East | 12 | Boston University | Rick Pitino | ECAC North | Preliminary Round | 12 La Salle | L 70–58 |
East | 12 | La Salle | Lefty Ervin | East Coast | First Round | 5 VCU | L 76–67 |
Mideast | |||||||
Mideast | 1 | Louisville | Denny Crum | Metro | Final Four | 1 Houston | L 94–81 |
Mideast | 2 | Indiana | Bob Knight | Big Ten | Sweet Sixteen | 3 Kentucky | L 64–59 |
Mideast | 3 | Kentucky | Joe B. Hall | Southeastern | Regional Runner-up | 1 Louisville | L 80–68 |
Mideast | 4 | Arkansas | Eddie Sutton | Southwest | Sweet Sixteen | 1 Louisville | L 65–63 |
Mideast | 5 | Purdue | Gene Keady | Big Ten | Second Round | 4 Arkansas | L 78–68 |
Mideast | 6 | Illinois State | Bob Donewald | Missouri Valley | First Round | 11 Ohio | L 51–49 |
Mideast | 7 | Oklahoma | Billy Tubbs | Big Eight | Second Round | 2 Indiana | L 63–49 |
Mideast | 8 | Tennessee | Don DeVoe | Southeastern | Second Round | 1 Louisville | L 70–57 |
Mideast | 9 | Marquette | Hank Raymonds | Independent | First Round | 8 Tennessee | L 57–56 |
Mideast | 10 | UAB | Gene Bartow | Sun Belt | First Round | 7 Oklahoma | L 71–63 |
Mideast | 11 | Ohio | Danny Nee | Mid-American | Second Round | 3 Kentucky | L 57–40 |
Mideast | 12 | Georgia Southern | Frank Kerns | Trans America | Preliminary Round | 12 Robert Morris | L 64–54 |
Mideast | 12 | Robert Morris | Matt Furjanic | ECAC Metro | First Round | 5 Purdue | L 55–53 |
Midwest | |||||||
Midwest | 1 | Houston | Guy Lewis | Southwest | Runner Up | 6 NC State | L 54–52 |
Midwest | 2 | Missouri | Norm Stewart | Big Eight | Second Round | 7 Iowa | L 77–63 |
Midwest | 3 | Villanova | Rollie Massimino | Big East | Regional Runner-up | 1 Houston | L 89–71 |
Midwest | 4 | Memphis State (vacated) | Dana Kirk | Metro | Sweet Sixteen | 1 Houston | L 70–63 |
Midwest | 5 | Georgetown | John Thompson | Big East | Second Round | 4 Memphis State | L 66–57 |
Midwest | 6 | Alabama | Wimp Sanderson | Southeastern | First Round | 11 Lamar | L 73–50 |
Midwest | 7 | Iowa | Lute Olson | Big Ten | Sweet Sixteen | 3 Villanova | L 55–54 |
Midwest | 8 | Maryland | Lefty Driesell | Atlantic Coast | Second Round | 1 Houston | L 60–50 |
Midwest | 9 | Chattanooga | Murray Arnold | Southern | First Round | 8 Maryland | L 52–51 |
Midwest | 10 | Utah State | Rod Tueller | Pacific Coast | First Round | 7 Iowa | L 64–59 |
Midwest | 11 | Lamar | Pat Foster | Southland | Second Round | 3 Villanova | L 60–58 |
Midwest | 12 | Alcorn State | Davey Whitney | Southwest Athletic | First Round | 5 Georgetown | L 68–63 |
Midwest | 12 | Xavier | Bob Staak | Midwestern City | Preliminary Round | 12 Alcorn State | L 81–75 |
West | |||||||
West | 1 | Virginia | Terry Holland | Atlantic Coast | Regional Runner-up | 6 NC State | L 63–62 |
West | 2 | UCLA | Larry Farmer | Pacific-10 | Second Round | 10 Utah | L 67–61 |
West | 3 | UNLV | Jerry Tarkanian | Pacific Coast | Second Round | 6 NC State | L 71–70 |
West | 4 | Boston College | Gary Williams | Big East | Sweet Sixteen | 1 Virginia | L 95–92 |
West | 5 | Oklahoma State | Paul Hansen | Big Eight | First Round | 12 Princeton | L 56–53 |
West | 6 | NC State | Jim Valvano | Atlantic Coast | Champion | 1 Houston | W 54–52 |
West | 7 | Illinois | Lou Henson | Big Ten | First Round | 10 Utah | L 52–49 |
West | 8 | Washington State | George Raveling | Pacific-10 | Second Round | 1 Virginia | L 54–49 |
West | 9 | Weber State | Neil McCarthy | Big Sky | First Round | 8 Washington State | L 62–52 |
West | 10 | Utah | Jerry Pimm | Western Athletic | Sweet Sixteen | 6 NC State | L 75–56 |
West | 11 | Pepperdine | Jim Harrick | West Coast | First Round | 6 NC State | L 69–67 |
West | 12 | North Carolina A&T | Don Corbett | Mid-Eastern | Preliminary Round | 12 Princeton | L 53–41 |
West | 12 | Princeton | Pete Carril | Ivy League | Second Round | 4 Boston College | L 51–42 |
* – Denotes overtime period
East #12 Seed Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||||
12 | La Salle | 70 | ||
12 | Boston University | 58 |
Mideast #12 Seed Dayton, Ohio | ||||
12 | Robert Morris | 64 | ||
12 | Georgia Southern | 54 |
Midwest #12 Seed Dayton, Ohio | ||||
12 | Alcorn State | 81 | ||
12 | Xavier | 75 |
West #12 Seed Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | ||||
12 | Princeton | 51 | ||
12 | North Carolina A&T | 42 |
First round | Second round | Regional Semifinals | Regional Finals | ||||||||||||||||
8 | Southwest Louisiana | 53 | |||||||||||||||||
9 | Rutgers | 60 | |||||||||||||||||
9 | Rutgers | 55 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | St. John's | 66 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | St. John's | 67 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Georgia | 70 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Georgia | 56 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | VCU | 54 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | VCU | 76 | |||||||||||||||||
12 | La Salle | 67 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Georgia | 82 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | North Carolina | 77 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | Syracuse | 74 | |||||||||||||||||
11 | Morehead State | 59 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | Syracuse | 74 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Ohio State | 79 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Ohio State | 51 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | North Carolina | 64 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | North Carolina | 68 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | James Madison | 49 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | West Virginia | 50 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | James Madison | 57 |
First round | Second round | Regional Semifinals | Regional Finals | ||||||||||||||||
8 | Washington State | 62 | |||||||||||||||||
9 | Weber State | 52 | |||||||||||||||||
8 | Washington State | 49 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Virginia | 54 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Virginia | 95 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Boston College | 92 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Boston College | 51 | |||||||||||||||||
12 | Princeton | 42 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Oklahoma State | 53 | |||||||||||||||||
12 | Princeton | 56 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Virginia | 62 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | NC State | 63 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | NC State | 69 | |||||||||||||||||
11 | Pepperdine | 67** | |||||||||||||||||
6 | NC State | 71 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | UNLV | 70 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | NC State | 75 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | Utah | 56 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | UCLA | 61 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | Utah | 67 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Illinois | 49 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | Utah | 52 |
First round | Second round | Regional Semifinals | Regional Finals | ||||||||||||||||
8 | Tennessee | 57 | |||||||||||||||||
9 | Marquette | 56 | |||||||||||||||||
8 | Tennessee | 57 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Louisville | 70 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Louisville | 65 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Arkansas | 63 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Arkansas | 78 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Purdue | 68 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Purdue | 55 | |||||||||||||||||
12 | Robert Morris | 53 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Louisville | 80 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Kentucky | 68* | |||||||||||||||||
6 | Illinois State | 49 | |||||||||||||||||
11 | Ohio | 51 | |||||||||||||||||
11 | Ohio | 40 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Kentucky | 57 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Kentucky | 64 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Indiana | 59 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Indiana | 63 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Oklahoma | 49 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Oklahoma | 71 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | UAB | 63 |
First round | Second round | Regional Semifinals | Regional Finals | ||||||||||||||||
8 | Maryland | 52 | |||||||||||||||||
9 | Chattanooga | 51 | |||||||||||||||||
8 | Maryland | 50 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Houston | 60 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Houston | 70 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Memphis State | 63 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Memphis State | 66 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Georgetown | 57 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Georgetown | 68 | |||||||||||||||||
12 | Alcorn State | 63 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Houston | 89 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Villanova | 71 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | Alabama | 50 | |||||||||||||||||
11 | Lamar | 73 | |||||||||||||||||
11 | Lamar | 58 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Villanova | 60 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Villanova | 55 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Iowa | 54 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Missouri | 63 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Iowa | 77 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Iowa | 64 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | Utah State | 59 |
National Semifinals | National Championship Game | ||||||||
E4 | Georgia | 60 | |||||||
W6 | NC State | 67 | |||||||
W6 | NC State | 54 | |||||||
MW1 | Houston | 52 | |||||||
ME1 | Louisville | 81 | |||||||
MW1 | Houston | 94 |
The Louisville vs. Houston semi-final was a matchup of the #1 vs. #2 team. [2] [3] The #1 ranked Houston Cougars (nicknamed Phi Slama Jama) vs. #2 the Louisville Cardinals (nicknamed "The Doctors of Dunk") was considered likely to produce the national champion. It featured two strong offensive teams that specialized in the slam dunk. [4] Both teams put on a show of offense, with Houston winning out over Louisville 94-81. This would have been the biggest game of the tournament[ clarification needed ] had it not been eclipsed by the North Carolina State win over Houston in the championship game.
Another historically significant game in this tournament was the Mideast Regional final between Kentucky and Louisville, in-state rivals that had not played one another in basketball since the 1959 NCAA tournament, and had not played in the regular season since 1922. After regulation time ended with Kentucky tying the game at the buzzer, Louisville dominated the overtime to advance to the Final Four. This result directly led to the start of the Battle for the Bluegrass annual basketball series between the two schools that November. [4]
A historically significant run in the tournament was that of Georgia, who became the last team to date to advance to the Final Four in its first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. But the N.C. State team led by Jim Valvano became the archetype of the "Cinderella team", the underdog that many fans look to as a possible spoiler over top-ranked teams. This label has, since then, been applied to many programs, including Villanova in 1985, Gonzaga in 1999, George Mason in 2006, Butler in 2010 and 2011, VCU in 2011, Wichita State in 2013, and Loyola in 2018. Not only did N.C. State beat Houston to win the championship, but they also beat #1 seeded Virginia on their way to the Final Four. The Wolfpack did not assure themselves of a tournament bid until they upset Virginia in the championship game of the ACC tournament. North Carolina State became the first team in tournament history to win six games en route to the title (the tournament being 32 teams or fewer prior to 1979, and all champions from 1979 to 1982 had first-round byes).
Christopher Cross' "All Right" accompanied the highlight montage at the end of CBS' broadcast of the championship game.
Phi Slama Jama was a name given to the men's college basketball teams of the Houston Cougars from 1982 to 1984. Coined by former Houston Post sportswriter Thomas Bonk, the nickname was quickly adopted by the players and even appeared on team warmup suits by the middle of the 1982–83 season. The teams were coached by Guy V. Lewis and featured future Hall of Fame and NBA Top 50 players Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. "Texas' Tallest Fraternity" was especially known for its slam dunking and explosive, fast-breaking style of play. The teams advanced to 3 consecutive NCAA Final Fours, 1982, 1983, and 1984. The 1983 NCAA semi-final of #1 Houston vs. #2 Louisville, "The Doctors of Dunk", was recognized as one of the 100 greatest basketball moments at the end of the 20th century. The name is trademarked by the University of Houston.
The 1971 NCAA University Division Basketball Tournament involved 25 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 13, 1971, and ended with the championship game on March 27 in Houston, Texas. A total of 29 games were played, including a third place game in each region and a national third place game.
The 1973 NCAA University Division Basketball Tournament involved 25 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA University Division college basketball. It began on Saturday, March 10, and ended with the championship game on Monday, March 26, in St. Louis, Missouri. A total of 29 games were played, including a third place game in each region and a national third place game.
The 1974 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament involved 25 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It was the first tournament to be designated as a Division I championship—previously, NCAA member schools had been divided into the "University Division" and "College Division". The NCAA created its current three-division setup, effective with the 1973–74 academic year, by moving all of its University Division schools to Division I and splitting the College Division members into Division II and Division III. Previous tournaments would retroactively be considered Division I championships.
The 1976 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament involved 32 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 13, 1976, and ended with the championship game on March 29 in Philadelphia. A total of 32 games were played, including a national third place game.
The 1978 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament involved 32 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 11, 1978, and ended with the championship game on March 27 in St. Louis, Missouri. A total of 32 games were played, including a national third place game.
The 1979 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament involved 40 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 9 and ended with the championship game on March 26 in Salt Lake City. A total of 40 games were played, including a national third-place game. This was the tournament's only edition with forty teams; the previous year's had 32, and it expanded to 48 in 1980. The 1979 Indiana State team was the most recent squad to reach a national title game with an undefeated record, holding that distinction for 42 years until the 2021 Gonzaga Bulldogs team won a 93-90 OT national semifinal over UCLA to reach the 2021 title contest vs. Baylor with a 31-0 record.
The 1980 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament involved 48 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 6th, 1980, and ended with the championship game on March 24th at Market Square Arena in Indianapolis. A total of 48 games were played, including a national third-place game.
The 1981 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament involved 48 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 12, 1981, and ended with the championship game on March 30 in Philadelphia. A total of 48 games were played, including a national third place game. It was also the last tournament to be televised on NBC, before CBS took over the following year. Additionally, it was the last season in which the NCAA sponsored championships only in men's sports; the first Division I Women's Tournament would be played the following year.
Lorenzo Emile Charles was an American college and professional basketball player. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Charles played basketball for North Carolina State University and scored the game-winning points in the championship game of the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. He played briefly in the National Basketball Association and for several professional teams in Europe. Charles died in a bus accident on June 27, 2011, at age 47.
The NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team represents North Carolina State University in NCAA Division I men's basketball competition. N.C. State is one of the seven founding members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Prior to joining the ACC in 1954, the Wolfpack was a member of the Southern Conference, where they won seven conference championships. As a member of the ACC, the Wolfpack has won ten conference championships, as well as two national championships in 1974 and 1983. State's unexpected 1983 title was one of the most memorable in NCAA history.
The 1982–83 Houston Cougars men's basketball team represented the University of Houston. The team was led by head coach Guy Lewis, played their home games in the Hofheinz Pavilion in Houston, Texas, and was then a member of the Southwest Conference.
The 1982–83 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team represented North Carolina State University. The Wolfpack were a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The team went 26–10 on the year, winning the ACC Tournament and the NCAA National Championship.
The 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Game was the final game of the 1983 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. It determined the national champion for the 1982–83 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The game was played on April 4, 1983, at The Pit in Albuquerque, New Mexico and paired top-ranked, #1 seed Midwest Regional Champions, the Houston Cougars, and sixteenth-ranked, #6 seed West Regional Champions, the NC State Wolfpack.