| National championship game | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Date | April 4, 1983 | ||||||||||||
| Venue | The Pit, Albuquerque, New Mexico | ||||||||||||
| MVP | Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston | ||||||||||||
| Favorite | Houston by 7.5 | ||||||||||||
| Referees | Hank Nichols, Paul Housman, Joe Forte | ||||||||||||
| Attendance | 17,327[1] | ||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||
| Network | CBS | ||||||||||||
| Announcers | Gary Bender (play-by-play) Billy Packer (color) | ||||||||||||
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.[2]
The first half of the national championship game favored NC State. Not only did the Wolfpack lead 33–25, but Houston's Clyde Drexler picked up four first-half fouls. The Cougars opened the second half with a dominating 17–2 run to seize a seven-point lead, 42–35. NC State was able to keep the game close, as Houston's star center Hakeem Olajuwon checked out of the game multiple times to receive oxygen, leading the Cougars to slow the pace of the game in order to protect the lead. Tied at 52 with 44 seconds remaining, NC State held the ball for a final shot attempt. Houston's Benny Anders narrowly missed stealing the ball as the clock ticked down. After gathering the deflected ball nearly 30 feet from the basket, Dereck Whittenburg launched a desperation shot that fell short of the rim. Olajuwon hesitated in fear of a goaltending call, allowing Lorenzo Charles to catch the ball and dunk it for the 54–52 victory. One of the indelible images in tournament history is of winning coach Jim Valvano running onto the court after the game ended looking for Whittenburg.
NC State's magical, improbable postseason run and national championship win, highlighted by Charles' game-winning dunk, remain a legendary representation of March Madness.[3][4][5]
- ^ *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. p. 905. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
- ^ "Midnight Nears for N.C. State". The Washington Post. April 4, 1983. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
- ^ "Dream run". National Collegiate Athletic Association. March 9, 2015. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
- ^ "State of shock: 25 years later, NC State miracle lives on". New York Daily News. March 16, 2008. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
- ^ "Ultimate Tournament Moments: Jim Valvano and N.C. State's upset of Houston in 1983". Sporting News. March 25, 2014. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
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