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1946 NCAA basketball tournament

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1946 NCAA basketball tournament
Teams8
Finals siteMadison Square Garden
New York City
ChampionsOklahoma A&M Aggies (2nd title, 2nd title game,
2nd Final Four)
Runner-upNorth Carolina Tar Heels (1st title game,
1st Final Four)
Semifinalists
Winning coachHenry Iba (2nd title)
MOPBob Kurland (Oklahoma A&M)
Attendance73,116
Top scorerBob Kurland (Oklahoma A&M)
(72 points)
NCAA Division I men's tournaments
«1945 1947»

The 1946 NCAA basketball tournament involved eight schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 21, 1946, and ended with the championship game on March 26 in New York City. A total of 10 games were played, including a third-place game in each region and a national third-place game.

Oklahoma A&M, coached by Henry Iba, won the national title with a 43–40 victory in the final game over North Carolina, coached by Ben Carnevale. Bob Kurland of Oklahoma A&M was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. The Aggies were the first team to win a second NCAA championship, the first to repeat as champions, and the first of two teams (San Francisco being the other) to win the title in their first two NCAA appearances.

This was the first tournament to have four teams advance to the final site, though not the first to have a true "Final Four" format (that would not occur until 1952). The two regional losers played in the national third-place game, while the two winners played for the championship. The third-place game would continue through the 1981 tournament.

Locations

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The following were the sites which hosted each round of the 1946 tournament:

Regionals

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March 21 and 23
East Regional, Madison Square Garden, New York, New York (Host: Metropolitan New York Conference)
March 22 and 23
West Regional, Municipal Auditorium, Kansas City, Missouri (Host: Missouri Valley Conference)

Championship Game

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March 26
Madison Square Garden, New York, New York (Host: Metropolitan New York Conference)

Teams

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Region Team Coach Conference Finished Final Opponent Score
East
East Harvard Floyd Stahl EIBL Regional Fourth Place NYU L 67–61
East NYU Howard Cann Middle Atlantic Regional third place Harvard W 67–61
East North Carolina Ben Carnevale Southern Conference Runner Up Oklahoma A&M L 43–40
East Ohio State Harold Olsen Big Ten Third Place California W 63–45
West
West Baylor Bill Henderson Southwest Regional Fourth Place Colorado L 59–44
West California Nibs Price Pacific Coast Fourth Place Ohio State L 63–45
West Colorado Frosty Cox Skyline Regional third place Baylor W 59–44
West Oklahoma A&M Henry Iba Missouri Valley Champion North Carolina W 43–40

Bracket

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* – Denotes overtime period

Regional third placeQuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinal
 Ohio State46
 Harvard38
Harvard61 Ohio State57*
NYU67 North Carolina60
 North Carolina57
 NYU49
 North Carolina40
 Oklahoma A&M43
 Oklahoma A&M44
 Baylor29
Baylor44 Oklahoma A&M52Third place
Colorado59 California35
 California50Ohio State63
 Colorado44California45

[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "1946 NCAA basketball tournament". College Basketball Reference. Retrieved April 4, 2018.