1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

Edition of USA college basketball tournament August 2023 March 2026 1998 1998 Final Four logo.png 64 Alamodome San Antonio, Texas Kentucky Wildcats 7th 10th 13th Utah Utes 2nd 4th North Carolina Tar Heels 14th Stanford Cardinal 2nd Tubby Smith 1st Jeff Sheppard Kentucky 663,876 Michael Doleac Utah 115 The 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. The 60th annual edition of the tournament began on March 12, 1998, and ended with the championship game on March 30, at the Alamodome in San Antonio. A total of 63 games were played. The Final Four consisted of Kentucky, making their third consecutive Final Four, Stanford, making their first appearance since their initial Final Four run in 1942, Utah, making their fourth Final Four and first since 1966, and North Carolina, who returned for a fourteenth overall time and third in four seasons. Kentucky won the national title, its second in three seasons and seventh overall, by defeating Utah 78–69 in the championship game. Jeff Sheppard of Kentucky was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Kentucky came back from double-digit deficits in each of its last three games in the tournament, including a 17-point second half comeback against the Duke Blue Devils, leading to the school's fans dubbing the team the "Comeback Cats". This was Kentucky's third straight championship game appearance. Bryce Drew led the 13th-seeded Valparaiso Crusaders to the Sweet Sixteen, including a memorable play that remains part of March Madness lore. https://www.ncaa.com/news/ncaa/marchmadness75/2012-12-10/ncaa-honors-all-time-greats-part-75-years-march-madness-celebrat NCAA December 11, 2012 NCAA honors all-time greats as part of 75 years of March Madness celebration April 4, 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304195928/http://www.ncaa.com/news/ncaa/marchmadness75/2012-12-10/ncaa-honors-all-time-greats-part-75-years-march-madness-celebrat March 4, 2016 dead For the second consecutive season, a #14 seed advanced from the first round; Richmond, coached by John Beilein, upset South Carolina. For the second time in three years, a top seeded team failed to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. That distinction belonged to Midwest Region #1 seed Kansas, who was defeated by #8 seed Rhode Island. Schedule and venues USA 450 right 1998 first and second rounds USA green pog.svg 38.581572 -121.494400 right #FFFFFF Sacramento Sleep Train Arena USA green pog.svg 43.618710 -116.214607 top #FFFFFF Boise Taco Bell Arena USA green pog.svg 35.467560 -97.516428 left #FFFFFF Oklahoma City Cox Convention Center USA green pog.svg 41.878114 -87.629798 top #FFFFFF Chicago United Center USA green pog.svg 38.040584 -84.503716 left #FFFFFF Lexington Rupp Arena USA green pog.svg 33.748995 -84.387982 left #FFFFFF Atlanta Georgia Dome USA green pog.svg 38.907192 -77.036871 right #FFFFFF Washington, D.C. Capital One Arena USA green pog.svg 41.763711 -72.685093 bottom #FFFFFF Hartford XL Center USA 450 right 1998 Regionals (blue) and Final Four (red) USA blue pog.svg 33.835293 -117.914504 top #FFFFFF Anaheim Honda Center USA blue pog.svg 38.627003 -90.199404 right #FFFFFF St. Louis Scottrade Center USA blue pog.svg 27.773056 -82.640000 left #FFFFFF St. Petersburg Tropicana Field USA blue pog.svg 36.072635 -79.791975 bottom #FFFFFF Greensboro Greensboro Coliseum USA red pog.svg 29.424122 -98.493628 left #FFFFFF San Antonio Alamodome The following are the sites that were selected to host each round of the 1998 tournament: First and Second Rounds March 12 and 14 East Region Hartford Civic Center, Hartford, Connecticut (Host: University of Connecticut) MCI Center, Washington, D.C. (Host: George Mason University) West Region BSU Pavilion, Boise, Idaho (Host: Boise State University) ARCO Arena, Sacramento, California (Host: University of the Pacific) March 13 and 15 Midwest Region United Center, Chicago, Illinois (Host: Big Ten Conference) Myriad Convention Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (Host: University of Oklahoma) South Region Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia (Host: Georgia Institute of Technology) Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky (Host: University of Kentucky) Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight) March 19 and 21 East Regional, Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina (Host: Atlantic Coast Conference) West Regional, Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim, Anaheim, California (Host: Big West Conference) March 20 and 22 Midwest Regional, Kiel Center, St. Louis, Missouri (Host: Missouri Valley Conference) South Regional, Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Florida (Host: University of South Florida) National semifinals and championship (Final Four and championship) March 28 and 30 Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas (Host: University of Texas at San Antonio) Teams There were 30 automatic bids awarded to the tournament - of these, 28 were given to the winners of their conference's tournament, while two were awarded to the team with the best regular-season record in their conference (Ivy League and Pac-10). Three conference champions made their first NCAA tournament appearances: Northern Arizona (Big Sky), Radford (Big South), and Prairie View A&M (SWAC). Additionally, UIC received an at-large bid for its first appearance in the NCAA tournament. Automatic qualifiers +Automatic qualifiersConferenceTeamAppearanceLast bidACCNorth Carolina32nd1997America EastDelaware3rd1993Atlantic 10Xavier12th1997Big 12Kansas27th1997Big EastConnecticut19th1995Big SkyNorthern Arizona1st0 NeverBig SouthRadford1st0 NeverBig TenMichigan (vacated)–1995Big WestUtah State12th1988CAARichmond6th1991Conference USACincinnati17th1997Ivy LeaguePrinceton21st1997MAACIona4th1985MACEastern Michigan4th1996MCCButler3rd1997MEACSouth Carolina State3rd1996Mid-ContinentValparaiso3rd1997Missouri ValleyIllinois State6th1997NECFairleigh Dickinson3rd1988Ohio ValleyMurray State9th1997Pac-10Arizona17th1997PatriotNavy11th1997SECKentucky39th1997SouthernDavidson6th1986SouthlandNicholls State2nd1995SWACPrairie View A&M1st0 NeverSun BeltSouth Alabama6th1997TAACCollege of Charleston3rd1997WACUNLV13th1991West CoastSan Francisco16th1982 Tournament seeds +East Regional – Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North CarolinaSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type1North CarolinaACC30–3Automatic2ConnecticutBig East29–4Automatic3South CarolinaSEC22–6At-Large4Michigan StateBig Ten20–7At-Large5PrincetonIvy League26–1Automatic6XavierAtlantic 1022–7Automatic7IndianaBig Ten19–11At-Large8UNC CharlotteConference USA19–10At-Large9UICMCC22–5At-Large10OklahomaBig 1222–10At-Large11WashingtonPac-1018–9At-Large12UNLVWAC20–12Automatic13Eastern MichiganMAC20–9Automatic14RichmondCAA22–7Automatic15Fairleigh DickinsonNEC23–6Automatic16NavyPatriot19–10Automatic+South Regional – Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FloridaSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type1DukeACC29–3At-Large2KentuckySEC29–4Automatic3Michigan (vacated)Big Ten24–8Automatic4New MexicoWAC23–7At-Large5SyracuseBig East24–8At-Large6UCLAPac-1022–8At-Large7UMassAtlantic 1021–10At-Large8Oklahoma StateBig 1221–7At-Large9George WashingtonAtlantic 1024–8At-Large10Saint LouisConference USA21–10At-Large11Miami (FL)Big East18–9At-Large12IonaMAAC27–5Automatic13ButlerMCC22–10Automatic14DavidsonSouthern20–9Automatic15South Carolina StateMEAC22–7Automatic16RadfordBig South20–9Automatic+West Regional – Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim, Anaheim, CaliforniaSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type1ArizonaPac-1027–4Automatic2CincinnatiConference USA26–5Automatic3UtahWAC25–3At-Large4MarylandACC19–10At-Large5IllinoisBig Ten22–9At-Large6ArkansasSEC23–8At-Large7TempleAtlantic 1021–8At-Large8TennesseeSEC20–8At-Large9Illinois StateMissouri Valley24–5Automatic10West VirginiaBig East22–8At-Large11NebraskaBig 1220–11At-Large12South AlabamaSun Belt21–6Automatic13Utah StateBig West25–7Automatic14San FranciscoWest Coast19–10Automatic15Northern ArizonaBig Sky21–7Automatic16Nicholls StateSouthland19–9Automatic+Midwest Regional – Kiel Center, St. Louis, MissouriSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth type1KansasBig 1234–3Automatic2PurdueBig Ten26–7At-Large3StanfordPac-1026–4At-Large4Ole MissSEC22–6At-Large5TCUWAC27–5At-Large6ClemsonACC18–13At-Large7St. John'sBig East22–9At-Large8Rhode IslandAtlantic 1022–8At-Large9Murray StateOhio Valley29–3Automatic10DetroitMCC24–5At-Large11Western MichiganMid-American20–7At-Large12Florida StateACC17–13At-Large13ValparaisoMid-Continent21–9Automatic14College of CharlestonTAAC24–5Automatic15DelawareAmerica East20–9Automatic16Prairie View A&MSWAC13–16Automatic Bids by conference Bids by ConferenceBidsConference(s) 5 Atlantic 10, ACC, Big Ten, Big East, SEC 4 Big 12, Pac-10, WAC 3 C-USA, MCC (Horizon League) 2 MAC 1 19 others Bracket East Regional – Greensboro, North Carolina First round Second Round Regional semifinals Regional Final 1 Hartford Hartford Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. North Carolina 88 16 Navy 52 8 Charlotte 77 9 UIC 62 5 Princeton 69 12 UNLV 57 4 Michigan State 83 13 Eastern Michigan 71 6 Xavier 68 11 Washington 69 3 South Carolina 61 14 Richmond 62 7 Indiana 94OT 10 Oklahoma 87 2 Connecticut 93 15 Fairleigh Dickinson 85 1 North Carolina 93OT 8 Charlotte 83 5 Princeton 56 4 Michigan State 63 11 Washington 81 14 Richmond 66 7 Indiana 68 2 Connecticut 78 1 North Carolina 73 4 Michigan State 58 11 Washington 74 2 Connecticut 75 1 North Carolina 75 2 Connecticut 64 Regional Final Summary #e3e3e3 Saturday, March 21 #1 North Carolina Tar Heels 75 #2 Connecticut Huskies 64 A. Jamison 20 A. Jamison 11 E. Cota 9 K. El-Amin 24 K. Freeman 7 M. Hardnett 4 36–32 39–32 Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC 23,235 Mark Reischling, Eddie Jackson, Dick Cartmell CBS East Regional all-tournament team Antawn Jamison – North Carolina (MOP) Khalid El-Amin – UConn Richard Hamilton – UConn Vince Carter – North Carolina Ed Cota – North Carolina Shammond Williams – North Carolina West Regional – Anaheim, California First round Second Round Regional semifinals Regional Final 1 Sacramento Sacramento Boise Boise Arizona 99 16 Nicholls State 60 8 Tennessee 81 9 Illinois State 82OT 5 Illinois 64 12 South Alabama 51 4 Maryland 82 13 Utah State 68 6 Arkansas 74 11 Nebraska 65 3 Utah 85 14 San Francisco 68 7 Temple 52 10 West Virginia 82 2 Cincinnati 65 15 Northern Arizona 62 1 Arizona 82 9 Illinois State 49 5 Illinois 61 4 Maryland 67 6 Arkansas 69 3 Utah 75 10 West Virginia 75 2 Cincinnati 74 1 Arizona 87 4 Maryland 79 3 Utah 65 10 West Virginia 62 1 Arizona 51 3 Utah 76 Regional Final Summary #e3e3e3 Saturday, March 21 https://archive.today/20140310102609/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/college/men/scoreboards/1998/03/21/finalbox.arizona.utah.html box score #3 Utah Utes 76 #1 Arizona Wildcats 51 A. Miller 18 A. Miller 14 A. Miller 13 J. Terry 16 B. Davison 10 M. Simon 4 29–20 47–31 Arrowhead Pond Anaheim, CA 17,851 Gerald Boudreaux, Tony Greene, Tom Rucker CBS West Regional all-tournament team Andre Miller – Utah (MOP) Mike Bibby – Arizona Michael Doleac – Utah Alex Jensen – Utah Hanno Mottola – Utah South Regional – St. Petersburg, Florida First round Second Round Regional semifinals Regional Final 1 Lexington Lexington Atlanta Atlanta Duke 99 16 Radford 63 8 Oklahoma State 74 9 George Washington 59 5 Syracuse 63 12 Iona 61 4 New Mexico 79 13 Butler 62 6 UCLA 65 11 Miami (FL) 62 3 Michigan 80 14 Davidson 61 7 Massachusetts 46 10 Saint Louis 51 2 Kentucky 82 15 South Carolina State 67 1 Duke 79 8 Oklahoma State 73 5 Syracuse 56 4 New Mexico 46 6 UCLA 85 3 Michigan 82 10 Saint Louis 61 2 Kentucky 88 1 Duke 80 5 Syracuse 67 6 UCLA 68 2 Kentucky 94 1 Duke 84 2 Kentucky 86 All of Michigan's wins from the 1997–98 season were vacated on November 7, 2002, as part of the settlement of the University of Michigan basketball scandal. Unlike forfeiture, a vacated game does not result in the other school being credited with a win, only with the removal of any Michigan wins from all records. Regional Final Summary #e3e3e3 Sunday, March 22 box score #2 Kentucky Wildcats 86 #1 Duke Blue Devils 84 J. Sheppard 18 H. Evans, J. Sheppard 11 W. Turner 8 R. McLeod 19 R. McLeod, S. Battier 8 S. Wojciechowski, T. Langdon 4 39–49 47–35 Tropicana Field St. Petersburg, FL 40,589 Tom Harrington, Mike Sanzere, Curtis Shaw CBS South Regional all-tournament team Wayne Turner – Kentucky (MOP) Trajan Langdon – Duke Roshown McLeod – Duke Scott Padgett – Kentucky Jeff Sheppard – Kentucky Midwest Regional – St. Louis, Missouri First round Second Round Regional semifinals Regional Final 1 Oklahoma City Oklahoma City Chicago Chicago Kansas 110 16 Prairie View A&M 52 8 Rhode Island 97 9 Murray State 74 5 TCU 87 12 Florida State 96 4 Ole Miss 69 13 Valparaiso 70 6 Clemson 72 11 Western Michigan 75 3 Stanford 67 14 College of Charleston 57 7 St. John's 64 10 Detroit 66 2 Purdue 95 15 Delaware 56 1 Kansas 75 8 Rhode Island 80 12 Florida State 77 13 Valparaiso 83OT 11 Western Michigan 65 3 Stanford 83 10 Detroit 65 2 Purdue 80 8 Rhode Island 74 13 Valparaiso 68 3 Stanford 67 2 Purdue 59 8 Rhode Island 77 3 Stanford 79 Regional Final Summary #e3e3e3 Sunday, March 22 box score #3 Stanford Cardinal 79 #8 Rhode Island 77 A. Lee 26 T. Young 12 A. Lee 7 T. Wheeler 24 A. Reynolds-Dean 10 T. Wheeler 5 38–38 41–39 Kiel Center St. Louis, MO 22,172 Frank Scagliotta, Mike Kitts, Larry Rose CBS Midwest Regional all-tournament team Arthur Lee – Stanford (MOP) Cuttino Mobley – Rhode Island Tyson Wheeler – Rhode Island Mark Madsen – Stanford Bryce Drew – Valparaiso Final Four – San Antonio, Texas National semifinals National Championship Game E1 North Carolina 59 W3 Utah 65 S2 Kentucky 86OT MW3 Stanford 85 W3 Utah 69 S2 Kentucky 78 National semifinals #e3e3e3 Saturday, March 28 box score #2 Kentucky Wildcats 86 #3 Stanford Cardinal 85 J. Sheppard 27 J.Sheppard, H. Evans, S. Padgett 6 J. Sheppard, W. Turner 4 A. Lee 26 M. Madsen 16 A. Lee 5 32–37 41–36 13–12 Alamodome San Antonio, TX 40,509https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101800748/fort-worth-star-telegram/ Kentucky 86, Stanford 85 (OT) C13 Fort Worth Star-Telegram March 29, 1998 May 13, 2022 Newspapers.com Tim Higgins, Bob Donato, Larry Rose CBS #ffdead Saturday, March, 28 box score #3 Utah Utes 65 #1 North Carolina Tar Heels 59 M. Doleac, A. Miller 16 A. Miller 14 A. Miller 7 V. Carter 21 A. Jamison 12 E. Cota 7 35–22 30–37 Alamodome San Antonio, TX 40,590https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101800912/fort-worth-star-telegram/ Utah 65, North Carolina 59 C12 Fort Worth Star-Telegram March 29, 1998 May 13, 2022 Newspapers.com John Clougherty, Andre Pattillo, Don Rutledge CBS National Championship 1998 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Game #e3e3e3 Monday, March 30 Box score #2 Kentucky Wildcats 78 #3 Utah Utes 69 S. Padgett 17 H. Evans 6 A. Edwards 5 A. Miller 16 M. Doleac 10 A. Miller 5 31–41 47–28 Alamodome San Antonio, TX 40,509https://www.newspapers.com/clip/101800505/democrat-and-chronicle/ Kentucky 78, Utah 69 2D Democrat and Chronicle April 1, 1998 May 13, 2022 Newspapers.com Jim Burr, Donnie Gray, Mike Sanzere CBS Final Four all-tournament team Jeff Sheppard – Kentucky (MOP) Scott Padgett – Kentucky Arthur Lee – Stanford Andre Miller – Utah Michael Doleac – Utah Announcers Jim Nantz/Billy Packer/Michele Tafoya – First & Second Round at Atlanta, Georgia; South Regional at St. Petersburg, Florida; Final Four at San Antonio, Texas Sean McDonough/Bill Raftery/Andrea Joyce – First & Second Round at Washington, D.C.; East Regional at Greensboro, North Carolina Gus Johnson/Jon Sundvold/Armen Keteyian – First & Second Round at Hartford, Connecticut; West Regional at Anaheim, California Tim Brando/Al McGuire/Craig James – First & Second Round at Lexington, Kentucky; Midwest Regional at St. Louis, Missouri Ted Robinson/Rolando Blackman/Beth Mowins – First & Second Round at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Jim Durham/Greg Kelser/Mike Mayock – First & Second Round at Boise, Idaho Tim Ryan/Dan Bonner/Jimmy Dykes – First & Second Round at Chicago, Illinois Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel/Mike Harris – First & Second Round at Sacramento, California Greg Gumbel rejoined CBS Sports and for the first time served as the studio host, joined by analyst Clark Kellogg and former North Carolina coach Dean Smith. See also 1998 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament 1998 NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament 1998 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament 1998 NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament 1998 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament 1998 National Invitation Tournament 1998 Women's National Invitation Tournament 1998 NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament 1998 NAIA Division II men's basketball tournament References Category:NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Ncaa NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Category:Basketball in San Antonio