Global Information1939 NCAA basketball tournament information
| Teams | 8 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finals site | Patten Gymnasium Evanston, Illinois | ||||
| Champions | Oregon Webfoots (1st title, 1st title game, 1st Final Four) | ||||
| Runner-up | Ohio State Buckeyes (1st title game, 1st Final Four) | ||||
| Semifinalists |
| ||||
| Winning coach | Howard Hobson (1st title) | ||||
| MOP | Jimmy Hull, (Ohio State) | ||||
| Attendance | 15,025 | ||||
| Top scorer | Jimmy Hull, (Ohio State) (58 points) | ||||
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The 1939 NCAA basketball tournament involved eight schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship. It was the first NCAA basketball national championship tournament, although it was operated by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) at the time.
The tournament began on March 17 and ended with the championship game on March 27 on Northwestern University's campus in Evanston, Illinois.[1][2][3][4] A total of eight games were played, including a single third-place game in the West region. The East region did not hold a third-place game until 1941, and there was no national third-place game until 1946.
Oregon, coached by Howard Hobson, won the national title with a 46–33 victory in the final game over Ohio State, coached by Harold Olsen. Jimmy Hull of Ohio State was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Despite its success in this first tournament, Oregon would not make another Final Four until 2017.
- ^ "Giant Oregon five defeats Ohio for U.S. title, 46–33". Milwaukee Sentinel. Associated Press. March 28, 1939. p. 12.
- ^ Kuechle, Oliver (March 28, 1939). "Oregon beats Ohio State easily for national title". Milwaukee Journal. p. 12, part 2.
- ^ "Oregon tops Bucks, 46–33". Toledo Blade. Ohio. United Press. March 28, 1939. p. 11.
- ^ Strite, Dick (March 28, 1939). "Mighty Oregons scramble Ohio State to take hoop title of all America". Eugene Register-Guard. Oregon. p. 1.