1984

The NCAA championship game was scheduled for April Fools night and promised to be a laugher.

Georgetown, after all, was the defending champion, the No.1 team in the country and started Co-Player of the Year Patrick Ewing at center. Villanova, on the other hand, wasn't even ranked and had lost to the Hoyas both times the two teams met in the Big East play.

Nevertheless, the underdog Wildcats shot 78.6 percent (22 for 28) and won, 66–64. Some joke.

		Before NCAAs	Head Coach	Final Record
1	Georgetown	30–2	John Thompson	35–3
2	Michigan	25–3	Bill Frieder	26–4
3	St. John's	27–3	Lou Carnesecca	31–4
4	Oklahoma	28–5	Billy Tubbs	31–6
5	Memphis St.	27–3	Dana Kirk	31–4
6	Georgia Tech	24–7	Bobby Cremins	27–8
7	North Carolina	24–8	Dean Smith	27–9
8	Louisiana Tech	27–2	Andy Russo	29–3
9	UNLV	27–3	Jerry Tarkanian	28–4
10	Duke	22–7	Mike Krzyzewski	23–8
11	Virginia Comm.	25–5	J.D. Barnett	26–6
12	Illinois	24–8	Lou Henson	26–9
13	Kansas	25–7	Larry Brown	26–8
14	Loyola, IL	25–5	Gene Sullivan	27–6
15	Syracuse	21–8	Jim Boeheim	22–9
16	North Carolina St.	20–9	Jim Valvano	23–10
17	Texas Tech	23–7	Gerald Myers	23–8
18	Tulsa	23–7	Nolan Richardson	23–8
19	Georgia	21–8	Hugh Durham	22–9
20	LSU	19–9	Dale Brown	19–10

Note: Unranked Villanova (19–10, Rollie Massimino, 25–10) won the NCAAs.

1. Georgetown
2. Michigan
3. St. John's
4. Oklahoma
5. Memphis State
6. Georgia Tech
7. North Carolina
8. Louisiana Tech
9. Nevada-Las Vegas
10. Duke
13. Kansas

1. Georgetown
2. Michigan
3. St. John's
4. Memphis State
5. Oklahoma
6. Georgia Tech
7. North Carolina
8. Louisiana Tech
9. UNLV
10. Illinois
13. Kansas

First Round
#1 St. John's 83, #16 Southern (La.) 59
#9 Arkansas 63, #8 Iowa 54
#12 Kentucky 66, #5 Washington 58
#4 UNLV 85, #13 San Diego State 80
#11 Texas-El Paso 79, #6 Tulsa 75
#3 North Carolina State 65, #14 Nevada-Reno 56
#7 Alabama 50, #10 Arizona 41
#2 Virginia Commonwealth 81, #15 Marshall 65
#1 Georgetown 68, #16 Lehigh 43
#8 Temple 60, #9 Virginia Tech 57
#5 Southern Methodist 85, #12 Old Dominion 68
#4 Loyola (Ill.) 59, #13 Iona 58
#3 Illinois 76, #14 Northeastern 57
#6 Georgia 67, #11 Wichita State 59
#7 Syracuse 70, #10 DePaul 65
#2 Georgia Tech 65, #15 Mercer 58
#1 Oklahoma 96, #16 North Carolina A&T 83
#9 Illinois State 58, #8 Southern Cal 55
#4 Ohio State 75, #13 Iowa State 64
#5 Louisiana Tech 78, #12 Pittsburgh 54
#11 Boston College 55, #6 Texas Tech 53
#3 Duke 75, #14 Pepperdine 62
#7 UAB 70, #10 Michigan State 68
#2 Memphis State 67, #15 Penn 55
#1 Michigan 59, #16 Fairleigh Dickinson 55
#8 Villanova 51, #9 Dayton 49
#5 Maryland 69, #12 Miami (Ohio) 68 (ot)
#13 Navy 78, #4 Louisiana State 55
#11 Auburn 59, #6 Purdue 58
#3 Kansas 49, #14 Ohio University 38
#7 Notre Dame 79, #10 Oregon State 70
#2 North Carolina 76, #15 Middle Tennessee State 57
Second Round
St. John's 68, Arkansas 65
Kentucky 64, UNLV 61
Alabama 63, Virginia Commonwealth 59
North Carolina State 86, Texas-El Paso 73
Georgetown 63, Temple 46
Loyola (Ill.) 70, Southern Methodist 57
Illinois 74, Georgia 58
Georgia Tech 70, Syracuse 53
Oklahoma 75, Illinois State 69
Louisiana Tech 79, Ohio State 67
Boston College 74, Duke 73
Memphis State 67, UAB 66 (ot)
Villanova 59, Michigan 55
Maryland 64, Navy 59
Auburn 66, Kansas 64
North Carolina 60, Notre Dame 58
Regional Semifinals
North Carolina State 61, Alabama 55
St. John's 86, Kentucky 70
Georgetown 65, Loyola (Ill.) 53
Georgia Tech 61, Illinois 53
Oklahoma 86, Louisiana Tech 84 (ot)
Memphis State 59, Boston College 57
Villanova 46, Maryland 43
North Carolina 62, Auburn 56
Regional Finals
West: St. John's 69, North Carolina State 60
East: Georgetown 60, Georgia Tech 54
Midwest: Memphis State 63, Oklahoma 61
Southeast: Villanova 56, North Carolina 44
National Semifinals
Villanova 52, Memphis State 45
Georgetown 77, St. John's 59

Championship Game
Villanova 66, Georgetown 64

Villanova leaders: Ed Pinckney, Sr., C; Dwayne McClain, Sr., F-G; Harold Pressley, Jr., F; Gary McLain, Sr., G; Dwight Wilbur, Jr., G

Leaders
Team
Offense: Oklahoma, 89.9
Defense: Fresno State, 53.0

Individual Scoring

• Reggie Miller led UCLA (21-12) to victory against Indiana in the championship game of the NIT.

• Marv Harshman retires from Washington to end a 40-year career that included stops at Pacific Lutheran and Washington State.

Feb 23 Indiana college basketball coach Bobby Knight throws a chair during a game.

Jun 20 College basketball coach Rollie Massimino told reporters, “I just can’t leave Villanova.” He turned down a basketball coaching offer of $2.1 million over 10 years to coach the New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association.

The field of teams in the 1985 Final Four was not unlike a Fab Four featuring John, Paul, George and Wayne Newton. One member of the group simply didn't fit.

Rollie Massimino

The sore thumb was Memphis State, the only surviving club in the NCAA Tournament not affiliated with the Big East Conference. Noting the other regional champions -- Georgetown, St. John's and Villanova, all Catholic institutions from the East -- Memphis State coach Dana Kirk claimed a victory of sorts before a shot had been fired.

Ironically, the Tigers needed a last-second basket in the Midwest Regional semifinals to overcome Boston College, thereby depriving the Big East of a possible fourth team and a total monopoly of the Final Four. That achievement would have been all the more remarkable in a year in which the NCAA Tournament field, reflecting the skyrocketing popularity of the event, inflated to 64 teams.

As it was, no conference had advanced as many as three teams to the national semifinals. That this feat was accomplished by the Big East, which had begun competition only five seasons before among schools that never had won an NCAA title, was a tribute to the vision of Big East commissioner Dave Gavitt.

The former Providence coach and athletic director had conceived the idea of a league with ties to the major media markets in the East and sold it to the administrators of the traditionally independent schools.

The prime locations of the institutions enabled Gavitt to put together a lucrative television package, and before long the Big East was a financial success.

With Georgetown's rise to prominence, the league quickly gained stature for its high quality of play, too. And in 1985, one year after the Hoyas had become the first Big East team to win the national title, the conference virtually had swept the board at the Final Four.

There was no question about the favorite in Lexington, Ky. Georgetown had lost only twice in 36 games, and those losses (to conference rivals St. John's and Syracuse) had come by a total of three points.

It was the Hoyas' third Final Four appearance in the career of consensus All-American Patrick Ewing, a 7-foot senior center.

"Georgetown is as good a team as has ever been assembled," Villanova coach Rollie Massimino said on the eve of the semifinals, "and that's only because of Patrick. He's the best to ever play college basketball.

"When it comes time to make the decision to win or lose in the last four minutes, he's involved in every single defensive play. For that reason, Georgetown is a cut above St. John's and Memphis State."

Not to mention Villanova, which had been beaten twice by Georgetown and three times by St. John's that season. But with their constantly changing defenses, experienced lineup and ability to control the tempo, the Wildcats were a difficult opponent.

The absence of a shot clock, which had been utilized during the season but not in the tournament, enhanced Villanova's chances.

Villanova faced a test in Memphis State, the Metro Conference champion. The Tigers had won 31 of 34 games behind the play of 6-10 consensus All-American Keith Lee, 7-foot center William Bedford and 5-10 guard Andre Turner.

Memphis State had greater firepower than Villanova but couldn't solve the Wildcats' defense. And Lee, as he had many times before, spent much of the game in foul trouble and eventually fouled out.

Villanova advanced to the championship game, 52-45, holding an opponent under 50 points for the fourth time in five NCAA Tournament games.

Like Memphis State, St. John's was 31-3 entering the national semifinals. The Redmen had been ranked No. 1 in the country after edging Georgetown in January but were overwhelmed, 85-69 and 92-80, in subsequent games against the Hoyas.

With 7-foot Bill Wennington and 6-8 Walter Berry up front and consensus All-American Chris Mullin shooting from the perimeter, the Redmen had enjoyed the greatest season in coach Lou Carnesecca's long tenure.

"We take great pride in our defense," Georgetown coach John Thompson said, "and Chris Mullin has presented more problems for our defense than any player I've coached against."

But on March 30, before 23,124 fans at Rupp Arena, Georgetown presented one more problem than even Mullin, the college Player of the Year in some quarters, could fathom.

His name was David Wingate, and he chased the St. John's star all over the court in the Hoyas' box-and-one defense.

For long stretches of the game, Mullin didn't even touch the ball. He was limited to eight shots and eight points, ending his streak of consecutive games scoring in double figures at 100. He managed one basket in the second half as Georgetown drew away to a 77-59 victory.

More than ever, it appeared Georgetown was destined to become the tournament's first repeat champion since the final days of the UCLA dynasty.

"I'd have to put them with the great San Francisco teams of Bill Russell and the great Kentucky teams, Alex Groza and that club," Carnesecca said. "I'd also have to put them with the great UCLA clubs and the Indiana team (1976) that had five (future) pros.

"We tried everything, but when a club like Georgetown is performing at that level of proficiency, there's nothing you can do."

Villanova was not convinced. Although the Wildcats had suffered 10 defeats, they had given Georgetown fits before succumbing -- 52-50 in overtime and 57-50. And both of those games were played with a 45-second shot clock.

"Knowing you can take your time is great," said 6-6 Dwayne McClain, the Wildcats' finest marksman. "When you don't have to rush, you can stay fresh.

On the afternoon of the final, before the team's pregame meal, Massimino addressed his players.

"I told all the kids," he said, "to go to their rooms, sit for 15 minutes and tell themselves, 'You're not going to play to lose. You're going to play to win.'

"I told them, 'You can't play tentative; you can't play scared; you can't play not to lose. You're as good as the team you're playing tonight.'"

For one night, at least, Villanova was as good as any team that ever played the game. That fact began to dawn on the crowd late in the first half as the Wildcats, trailing by only one point, held the ball for a final shot.

Thousands of fans rose to applaud the team that had become America's favorite underdog, and they stayed on their feet to celebrate forward Harold Pressley's basket, which boosted Villanova into a 29-28 halftime lead.

The Wildcats had made 13 of their first 18 shots under intense defensive pressure. The obvious question was whether they could maintain that percentage. The answer was no. Instead, they improved upon it.

What followed was 20 minutes of near-perfect basketball, as flawless a half as any team had played in the history of the tournament.

The Wildcats attempted 10 field goals in the second half; they made nine. They shot 14 free throws in the final 2:11; they converted 11. And even those numbers don't begin to tell how superbly the Wildcats performed en route to a stunning 66-64 upset.

They had to. Nothing less would have succeeded. Villanova used a 9-2 run early in the second half to build a 38-32 lead. The Wildcats' defense held guard/forward Reggie Williams, who had 10 points in the first half, scoreless and limited Ewing to six points for a game total of 14.

Still, the Hoyas came back on the strength of their own defense and Wingate's shooting to take leads at 42-41, 44-43, 46-45 and 54-53, the latter occasion with 4:50 left.

In the most crucial stage of the game, Harold Jensen, a 6-5 reserve guard, stepped forward. After the Wildcats had passed the ball around the perimeter for almost 40 seconds, searching for the right man in the right place, Jensen hit an open jump shot from the right wing to reclaim the lead, 55-54, with 2:36 left.

It was the sophomore's fifth basket in as many attempts, and it was the last field goal Villanova would need.

Wingate was charged with an offensive foul on Georgetown's next possession and the Wildcats went into their delay game, forcing the Hoyas to foul.

Ed Pinckney, the senior center who outplayed Ewing in the most important game of his career, hit two free throws to begin Villanova's victory parade. Jensen's four free throws opened a 61-56 lead that Georgetown could not overcome.

Villanova's .786 field-goal percentage was an all-time tournament record -- and one team's solution to combating a superior force.

"They're definitely the better team," Pinckney, who was named the Final Four's outstanding player, said of Georgetown. "If we played 10 times, they'd probably win a majority of them."

But only one game is played for the national championship, and on the night of April 1, 1985, Villanova was the equal of anyone. Pinckney had 16 points and six rebounds, McClain knifed through the Georgetown defense for 17 points and senior point guard Gary McLain not only hit all three shots he took from the field but also turned the ball over just twice against a defense that contested every dribble.

"Any time you shoot that percentage," said Thompson, who had his team stand and applaud the winning players as they mounted the victory stand, "you deserve the praise. You couldn't get much better."

Rank	Team	W-L	Post-Season Result
1.	Georgetown	34-2	NCAA 2nd Place
2.	Michigan	26-4	Lost NCAA regionals
3	St. John’s	31-3	Lost NCAA semifinals
4.	Oklahoma	31-7	Lost NCAA regionals
5.	Memphis State	31-3	Lost NCAA semifinals
6.	Georgia Tech	27-8	Lost NCAA regionals
7.	North Carolina	27-9	Lost NCAA regionals
8.	Louisiana Tech	29-3	Lost NCAA regionals
9.	UNLV	28-4	Lost NCAA regionals
10.	Duke	23-8	Lost NCAA regionals

1. Xavier McDaniel	Wichita State	27.2
2. Alfredrick Hughes	Loyola (Chi.)	26.3
3. Dan Palombizio	Ball State	26.3
4. Joe Dumars	McNeese State	25.8
5. Terry Catledge	South Alabama	25.6
6. Derrick Gervin	UT-San Antonio	25.6

1. Xavier McDaniel	Wichita State	14.8
2. Benoit Benjamin	Creighton	14.1
3. Carey Scurry	Long Island U.	14.1

First Round	Player	College
1. New York	Patrick Ewing	Georgetown
2. Indiana	Wayman Tisdale	Oklahoma
3. LA Clippers	Benoit Benjamin	Creighton
4. Seattle	Xavier McDaniel	Wichita State
5. Atlanta	Jon Koncak	Southern Methodist
6. Sacramento	Joe Kleine	Arkansas
7. Golden State	Chris Mullin	St. John's
8. Dallas (from Cleveland)	Detlef Schrempf	Washington
9. Cleveland (1)	Charles Oakley	Virginia Union
10. Phoenix	Ed Pinckney	Villanova
11. Chicago (1)	Keith Lee	Memphis State
12. Washington	Kenny Green	Wake Forest
13. Utah	Karl Malone	Louisiana Tech
14. San Antonio	Alfredrick Hughes	Loyola (Ill.)
15. Denver (from Portland)	Blair Rasmussen	Oregon
16. Dallas (from New Jersey)	Bill Wennington	St. John's
17. Dallas	Uwe Blab	Indiana
18. Detroit	Joe Dumars	McNeese State
19. Houston	Steve Harris	Tulsa
20. Boston (from Denver)	Sam Vincent	Michigan State
21. Philadelphia	Terry Catledge	South Alabama
22. Milwaukee	Jerry Reynolds	Louisiana State
23. LA Lakers	A.C. Green	Oregon State
24. Portland (from Boston)	Terry Porter	Wisconsin-Stevens Point

Name	Cl.	Pos	Team
Dwayne McClain	Sr.	F-G	Villanova
Patrick Ewing	Sr.	C	Georgetown
Ed Pinckney	Sr.	C	Villanova
Harold Jensen	So.	G	Villanova
Gary McLain	Sr.	G	Villanova