411 REFERENCE · Wikipedia
2001 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
Reference material by Wikipedia contributors. This retains its source identity and is not 411 news reporting.
Edition of USA college basketball tournament
August 2023
March 2026
2001 2001FinalFour.png 65 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, Minnesota Duke Blue Devils 3rd 9th 13th Arizona Wildcats 2nd 4th Maryland Terrapins 1st Michigan State Spartans 5th Mike Krzyzewski 3rd Shane Battier Duke 612,089 Jay Williams Duke 154
The 2001 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 65 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball for the 2000–01 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The 63rd annual edition of the tournament began on March 13, 2001, with the play-in game, and ended with the championship game on April 2, 2001, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. This was the last Final Four to be held in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, as it was demolished in 2014. A total of 64 games were played.
This tournament is the first to feature 65 teams, due to the Mountain West Conference receiving an automatic bid for the first time. This meant that 31 conferences would have automatic bids to the tournament. The NCAA decided to maintain 34 at-large bids, which necessitated a play-in game between the #64 and #65 ranked teams, with the winner playing against a #1 seed in the first round. (Another option would have been to reduce the number of at-large bids to 33, which was the option chosen for the women's tournament.) This is also the first tournament to have been broadcast in high-definition, being broadcast on CBS.
This was the last tournament where the first- and second-round sites were tied to specific regionals. The "pod system" was instituted for the 2002 tournament to keep as many teams as possible closer to their campus in the first two rounds.
The Final Four consisted of Duke, making their second appearance in the Final Four in three years, Maryland, making their first appearance, Michigan State, the defending national champions, and Arizona, making their first appearance since winning the national championship in 1997.
Duke defeated Arizona 82–72 in the national championship game to win their third national title and first since 1992. Shane Battier of Duke was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Schedule and venues
USA 450 right 2001 first and second rounds (note: the play-in game was held in Dayton, Ohio)
USA green pog.svg 39.758948 -84.191607 bottom #FFFFFF Dayton University of Dayton Arena
USA green pog.svg 40.700379 -73.592906 left #FFFFFF Uniondale Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
USA green pog.svg 36.072635 -79.791975 right #FFFFFF Greensboro Greensboro Coliseum Complex Greensboro Coliseum
USA green pog.svg 29.951066 -90.071532 left #FFFFFF New Orleans Mercedes-Benz Superdome Superdome
USA green pog.svg 35.149534 -90.048980 right #FFFFFF Memphis Pyramid Arena
USA green pog.svg 39.114053 -94.627464 left #FFFFFF Kansas City Kemper Arena
USA green pog.svg 43.618710 -116.214607 left #FFFFFF Boise Taco Bell Arena
USA green pog.svg 32.715738 -117.161084 right #FFFFFF San Diego Viejas Arena Cox Arena
USA 450 right 2001 Regionals (blue) and Final Four (red) USA blue pog.svg 33.835293 -117.914504 right #FFFFFF Anaheim Honda Center Arrowhead Pond
USA blue pog.svg 29.424122 -98.493628 bottom #FFFFFF San Antonio Alamodome
USA blue pog.svg 33.748995 -84.387982 left #FFFFFF Atlanta Georgia Dome
USA blue pog.svg 39.952584 -75.165222 left #FFFFFF Philadelphia First Union Center
USA red pog.svg 44.983334 -93.266670 left #FFFFFF Minneapolis Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
The following are the sites that were selected to host each round of the 2001 tournament:
Opening Round
March 13
University of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio (Host: University of Dayton)
First and Second Rounds
March 15 and 17
East Region
Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina (Host: Atlantic Coast Conference)
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York (Hosts: Hofstra University, America East Conference)
West Region
BSU Pavilion, Boise, Idaho (Host: Boise State University)
Cox Arena, San Diego, California (Host: San Diego State University)
March 16 and 18
Midwest Region
University of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio (Host: University of Dayton)
Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Missouri (Host: Big 12 Conference)
South Region
Memphis Pyramid, Memphis, Tennessee (Host: University of Memphis)
Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana (Hosts: Sun Belt Conference, University of New Orleans)
Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)
March 22 and 24
East Regional, First Union Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Host: Atlantic 10 Conference)
West Regional, Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim, Anaheim, California (Host: Big West Conference)
March 23 and 25
Midwest Regional, Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas (Host: University of Texas at San Antonio)
South Regional, Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia (Host: Georgia Institute of Technology)
National semifinals and championship (Final Four and championship)
March 31 and April 2
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota (Host: University of Minnesota)
Qualifying teams
2001 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament qualifying teams
Automatic bids
The following teams were automatic qualifiers for the 2001 NCAA field by virtue of winning their conference's tournament (except for the Ivy League and Pac-10, whose regular-season champions received their automatic bids).
ConferenceSchoolAppearanceLast bidACCDuke25th2000America EastHofstra4th2000Atlantic 10Temple25th2000Big 12Oklahoma20th2000Big EastBoston College12th1997Big SkyCal State Northridge1stNeverBig SouthWinthrop3rd2000Big TenIowa20th1999Big WestUtah State14th2000ColonialGeorge Mason3rd1999C-USACharlotte8th1999Ivy LeaguePrinceton22nd1998MAACIona7th2000MACKent State2nd1999MCCButler5th2000MEACHampton1stNeverMid-ConSouthern Utah1stNeverMissouri ValleyIndiana State3rd2000Mountain WestBYU19th1995NortheastMonmouth2nd1996Ohio ValleyEastern Illinois2nd1992Pac-10Stanford10th2000PatriotHoly Cross9th1993SECKentucky43rd2000SouthernUNC Greensboro2nd1996SouthlandNorthwestern State1stNeverSun BeltWestern Kentucky17th1995SWACAlabama State1stNeverTAACGeorgia State2nd1991WACHawaii3rd1994West CoastGonzaga4th2000
Listed by region and seeding
East Regional – PhiladelphiaSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth Type#1 Duke ACC 29–4 Automatic#2 Kentucky SEC 22–9 Automatic#3 Boston College Big East 26–4 Automatic#4 UCLA Pac-10 21–8 At-large#5 Ohio State Big Ten 20–10 At-large#6 USC Pac-10 21–9 At-large#7 Iowa Big Ten 22–11 Automatic#8 Georgia SEC 16–14 At-large#9 Missouri Big 12 19–12 At-large#10 Creighton Missouri Valley 24–7 At-large#11 Oklahoma State Big 12 20–9 At-large#12 Utah State Big West 27–5 Automatic#13 Hofstra America East 26–4 Automatic#14 Southern Utah Mid-Continent 25–5 Automatic#15 Holy Cross Patriot 22–7 Automatic#16 Monmouth NEC 21–9 AutomaticWest Regional – AnaheimSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth Type#1 Stanford Pac-10 28–2 Automatic#2 Iowa State Big 12 25–5 At-large#3 Maryland ACC 21–10 At-large#4 Indiana Big Ten 21–12 At-large#5 Cincinnati C-USA 23–9 At-large#6 Wisconsin Big Ten 18–10 At-large#7 Arkansas SEC 20–10 At-large#8 Georgia Tech ACC 17–12 At-large#9 Saint Joseph's Atlantic 10 25–6 At-large#10 Georgetown Big East 23–7 At-large#11 Georgia State TAAC 28–4 Automatic#12 BYU Mountain West 24–8 Automatic#13 Kent State MAC 23–9 Automatic#14 George Mason Colonial 18–11 Automatic#15 Hampton MEAC 24–6 Automatic#16 UNC Greensboro Southern 19–11 Automatic South Regional – AtlantaSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth Type#1 Michigan State Big Ten 24–4 At-large#2 North Carolina ACC 25–6 At-large#3 Florida SEC 23–6 At-large#4 Oklahoma Big 12 26–6 Automatic#5 Virginia ACC 20–8 At-large#6 Texas Big 12 25–8 At-large#7 Penn State Big Ten 19–11 At-large#8 California Pac-10 20–10 At-large#9 Fresno State WAC 25–6 At-large#10 Providence Big East 21–9 At-large#11 Temple Atlantic 10 21–12 Automatic#12 Gonzaga WCC 24–6 Automatic#13 Indiana State Missouri Valley 21–11 Automatic#14 Western Kentucky Sun Belt 24–6 Automatic#15 Princeton Ivy League 16–10 Automatic#16 Alabama State SWAC 22–8 Automatic Midwest Regional – San AntonioSeedSchoolConferenceRecordBerth Type#1 Illinois Big Ten 24–7 At-large#2 Arizona Pac-10 23–7 At-large#3 Ole Miss SEC 25–7 At-large#4 Kansas Big 12 24–6 At-large#5 Syracuse Big East 24–8 At-large#6 Notre Dame Big East 19–9 At-large#7 Wake Forest ACC 19–10 At-large#8 Tennessee SEC 19–11 At-Large#9 Charlotte C-USA 21–10 Automatic#10 Butler MCC 23–7 Automatic#11 Xavier Atlantic 10 21–7 At-large#12 Hawaii WAC 17–13 Automatic#13 Cal State Northridge Big Sky 22–9 Automatic#14 Iona MAAC 22–10 Automatic#15 Eastern Illinois Ohio Valley 21–9 Automatic#16 Northwestern State Southland 18–12 Automatic Winthrop Big South 18–12 Automatic
Bids by conference
BidsConferenceSchools 7 Big Ten Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin 6 ACC Duke, Georgia Tech, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, Wake Forest Big 12 Iowa State, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas SEC Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Ole Miss, Tennessee 5 Big East Boston College, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Providence, Syracuse Pac-10 Arizona, California, Stanford, UCLA, USC3 Atlantic 10 Saint Joseph's, Temple, Xavier 2 C-USA Charlotte, Cincinnati Missouri Valley Creighton, Indiana State WAC Fresno State, Hawaii 1 21 other conferences
Bids by conference
Bids by ConferenceBidsConference(s) 7 Big Ten 6 ACC, Big 12, SEC 5 Big East, Pac-10 3 Atlantic 10 2C-USA, Missouri Valley, WAC 1 21 others
Final Four
At Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota
National semifinals
March 31, 2001
Duke (E1) 95, Maryland (W3) 84
The fourth meeting of the year between ACC rivals Duke and Maryland – both road teams won during the ACC regular season before Duke won 84–82 in the ACC Tournament semifinals in Atlanta en route to winning the tournament – turned into a classic. Maryland jumped out of the gate to an early 39–17 lead. It appeared the Terps would eliminate Duke, led by senior Shane Battier. However, Duke was able to cut the lead at halftime to 49–38. Duke would take its first lead when Jason Williams drained a three to give Duke the lead 73–72 with 6:48 to play. Duke closed the game with a 23–12 run to stun Gary Williams' Maryland squad.CNN Sports Illustrated CNNSI.com http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/college/men/recaps/2001/03/31/dau_maj/ 2001 NCAA National semifinals: (E1) Duke 95, (W3) Maryland 84 2008-03-06 https://web.archive.org/web/20080321045752/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/college/men/recaps/2001/03/31/dau_maj/ 21 March 2008 dead Referees: David Libbey, Mark Reischling, and Ted Hillary.NCAA On Demand 2001 NCAA Basketball National Semi-Final – Maryland vs Duke 2014-02-27 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEafHCO6NBo 2017-09-27February 2022
Arizona (M2) 80, Michigan State (S1) 61
In an emotional season in which Arizona coach Lute Olson suffered the loss of his wife Bobbi, he would be just 40 minutes away from a second National Championship after his Wildcats destroyed the defending national champion Michigan State Spartans. The game was close at halftime with Arizona leading by just 2. However, Arizona outscored Michigan State 48–31 in the second half en route to the 19-point victory.CNN Sports Illustrated CNNSI.com http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/college/men/recaps/2001/03/31/may_aaq/ https://web.archive.org/web/20010413173317/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/college/men/recaps/2001/03/31/may_aaq/ dead April 13, 2001 2001 NCAA National semifinals: (MW2) Kansas 80, (S4) Michigan State 61 2008-03-06
Championship game
2001 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship Game
April 2, 2001
Duke (E1) 82, Arizona (M2) 72
The second-ranked team coming into the NCAA tournament would leave giving coach Mike Krzyzewski his third National Championship at Duke. Arizona cut Duke's lead to 39–37 early in the second half, but Mike Dunleavy Jr. connected on three three-pointers during an 11–2 Duke run. Dunleavy Jr. led the Duke Blue Devils with 21 points. The Arizona Wildcats would cut the gap to 3 four times, twice inside the four-minute TV timeout. However, Shane Battier proved himself too much for the Wildcats to handle as he hit two critical shots to put the Blue Devils comfortably ahead. Jason Williams, despite a poor shooting night, iced the game with a three-pointer from the top of the key with under 2 minutes to play to give Duke an eight-point lead. The final score was Duke 82 – Arizona 72.
Bracket
Opening Round game – Dayton, Ohio
Winner advances to 16th seed in Midwest Regional vs. (1) Illinois.
Opening Round gameMarch 13 16 Winthrop 67 16 Northwestern State 71
East regional — Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
First roundMarch 15
Second roundMarch 17
Regional semifinalsMarch 22
Regional finalsMarch 24
Greensboro
Greensboro
Uniondale
Uniondale
1
Duke
95
16
Monmouth
52
8
Georgia
68
9
Missouri
70
5
Ohio State
68
12
Utah State
77OT
4
UCLA
61
13
Hofstra
48
6
USC
69
11
Oklahoma State
54
3
Boston College
68
14
Southern Utah
65
7
Iowa
69
10
Creighton
56
2
Kentucky
72
15
Holy Cross
68
1
Duke
94
9
Missouri
81
12
Utah State
50
4
UCLA
75
6
USC
74
3
Boston College
71
7
Iowa
79
2
Kentucky
92
1
Duke
76
4
UCLA
63
6
USC
80
2
Kentucky
76
1
Duke
79
6
USC
69
Ohio State vacated all wins and its NCAA Tournament appearance from the 2000–01 season due to the Jim O’Brien scandal.http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/news/story?id=2362496 OSU gets probation 2006-03-10 ESPN.com 2017-06-05 Unlike forfeiture, a vacated game does not result in the other school being credited with a win, only with Ohio State removing the wins from its own record.
West regional — Anaheim, California
First roundMarch 15
Second roundMarch 17
Regional semifinalsMarch 22
Regional finalsMarch 24
San Diego
San Diego
Boise
Boise
1
Stanford
88
16
UNC-Greensboro
60
8
Georgia Tech
62
9
Saint Joseph's
66
5
Cincinnati
84
12
BYU
59
4
Indiana
73
13
Kent State
77
6
Wisconsin
49
11
Georgia State
50
3
Maryland
83
14
George Mason
80
7
Arkansas
61
10
Georgetown
63
2
Iowa State
57
15
Hampton
58
1
Stanford
90
9
Saint Joseph's
83
5
Cincinnati
66
13
Kent State
43
11
Georgia State
60
3
Maryland
79
10
Georgetown
76
15
Hampton
57
1
Stanford
78
5
Cincinnati
65
3
Maryland
76
10
Georgetown
66
1
Stanford
73
3
Maryland
87
South regional — Atlanta, Georgia
First roundMarch 16
Second roundMarch 18
Regional semifinalsMarch 23
Regional finalsMarch 25
Memphis
Memphis
New Orleans
New Orleans
1
Michigan State
69
16
Alabama State
35
8
California
70
9
Fresno State
82
5
Virginia
85
12
Gonzaga
86
4
Oklahoma
68
13
Indiana State
70OT
6
Texas
65
11
Temple
79
3
Florida
69
14
Western Kentucky
56
7
Penn State
69
10
Providence
59
2
North Carolina
70
15
Princeton
48
1
Michigan State
81
9
Fresno State
65
12
Gonzaga
85
13
Indiana State
68
11
Temple
75
3
Florida
54
7
Penn State
82
2
North Carolina
74
1
Michigan State
77
12
Gonzaga
62
11
Temple
84
7
Penn State
72
1
Michigan State
69
11
Temple
62
Midwest regional — San Antonio, Texas
First roundMarch 16
Second roundMarch 18
Regional semifinalsMarch 23
Regional finalsMarch 25
Dayton
Dayton
Kansas City
Kansas City
1
Illinois
96
16
Northwestern State
54
8
Tennessee
63
9
Charlotte
70
5
Syracuse
79
12
Hawaii
69
4
Kansas
99
13
Cal State Northridge
75
6
Notre Dame
83
11
Xavier
71
3
Ole Miss
72
14
Iona
70
7
Wake Forest
63
10
Butler
79
2
Arizona
101
15
Eastern Illinois
76
1
Illinois
79
9
Charlotte
61
5
Syracuse
58
4
Kansas
87
6
Notre Dame
56
3
Ole Miss
59
10
Butler
52
2
Arizona
73
1
Illinois
80
4
Kansas
64
3
Ole Miss
56
2
Arizona
66
1
Illinois
81
2
Arizona
87
Final Four — Minneapolis, Minnesota
National semifinalsMarch 31
National finalsApril 2
E1
Duke
95
W3
Maryland
84
S1
Michigan State
61
M2
Arizona
80
E1
Duke
82
M2
Arizona
72
Upsets
This tournament featured many upsets in the first two rounds, with pairs of #10, #11, #12, and #13 seeds winning in the first and a #10, #11, and #12 seeds all making it to the Sweet 16. The best remembered and most unexpected occurred when Hampton beat number 2 seed Iowa State 58–57 in the first round. The Pirates were down by as much as 11 in the game and outscored the Cyclones 10–0 in the final seven minutes of the game. Tarvis Williams made the winning shot with 6.9 seconds left. The video of Hampton coach Steve Merfield being lifted in the air by player David Johnson during the celebration has become a classic clip, often played by CBS and ESPN to showcase the excitement of the underdog in the NCAA tournament.
Hampton became only the fourth #15 seed to win a game since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985 and the first since 1997. They went on to lose to Georgetown in the second round, failing to become the first seed that low to make the Round of 16.15th-seeded Pirates stun No. 2 seed Cyclones 58–57 The Pirates were the last #15 seed to advance in the tournament until 2012, in which two #15 seeds beat their #2-seeded opponents.
Temple became just the 3rd #11 seed to make it to the Elite Eight since the tournament had expanded, upsetting #6 Texas and #3 Florida on the way. In the same region, 12-seed Gonzaga made the Sweet 16 for the third year in a row, all as a double digit seed. Both teams would lose to defending champion #1 Michigan State who, along with #7 Penn State, were the only top seeds to make it past the second round in that region (Penn State would lose to Temple in the Sweet 16).
Announcers
Jim Nantz/Billy Packer/Bonnie Bernstein – First and Second Rounds at New Orleans, Louisiana; East Regional at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Final Four and National Championship at Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dick Enberg/Bill Walton/Lesley Visser – First and Second Rounds at San Diego, California; Midwest Regional at San Antonio, Texas
Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery/Armen Keteyian – First and Second Rounds at Kansas City, Missouri; South Regional at Atlanta, Georgia
Gus Johnson/Dan Bonner/Dwayne Ballen – First and Second Rounds at Uniondale, New York; West Regional at Anaheim, California
Kevin Harlan/Jon Sundvold/Charles Davis – First and Second Rounds at Greensboro, North Carolina
Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel/Brett Haber – First and Second Rounds at Memphis, Tennessee
Tim Brando/Rick Pitino/Spencer Tillman – Opening Round Game, First and Second Rounds at Dayton, Ohio
Craig Bolerjack/James Worthy/Bob Wenzel – First and Second Rounds at Boise, Idaho
Greg Gumbel once again served as the studio host, joined by analyst Clark Kellogg.
See also
2001 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament
2001 NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament
2001 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament
2001 NCAA Division II women's basketball tournament
2001 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament
2001 National Invitation Tournament
2001 Women's National Invitation Tournament
2001 NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament
2001 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
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
Category:Basketball in San Antonio