| Year: | 1965 |
| Preseason Ap: | UCLA[1] [2] |
| Tourney Start: | March 7–19, 1966 |
| Champ Stad: | Cole Field House |
| Champ City: | College Park, Maryland |
| Champ: | Texas Western |
| Helmschamp: | Texas Western |
| Nit Champ: | BYU |
| Helmspoy: | Cazzie Russell, Michigan |
The 1965–66 NCAA University Division men's basketball season began in December 1965, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1966 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 19, 1966, at Cole Field House in College Park, Maryland. The Texas Western Miners won their first NCAA national championship with a 72–65 victory over the Kentucky Wildcats.
See main article: 1965–66 NCAA University Division men's basketball rankings.
The Top 10 from the AP Poll and Top 20 from the Coaches Poll during the pre-season.[5] [6]
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| Conference | Regular season winner[7] | Conference player of the year | Conference tournament | Tournament venue (City) | Tournament winner | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| None selected | No Tournament | |||||
| Steve Vacendak, Duke[8] | Reynolds Coliseum (Raleigh, North Carolina) | Duke | ||||
| None selected | No Tournament | |||||
| Gonzaga & | None selected | No Tournament | ||||
| None selected | No Tournament | |||||
| None selected | No Tournament | |||||
| No Tournament | ||||||
| None selected | No Tournament | |||||
| No Tournament | ||||||
| None selected | No Tournament | |||||
| Clem Haskins, | Jefferson County Armory (Louisville, Kentucky) | Western Kentucky State | ||||
| Clyde Lee, Vanderbilt &<br/>Pat Riley, Kentucky [9] | No Tournament | |||||
| Dick Snyder, Davidson[10] | Charlotte Coliseum (Charlotte, North Carolina) | Davidson[11] | ||||
| John Beasley, | No Tournament | |||||
| No Tournament | ||||||
| None selected | No Tournament | |||||
| Connecticut & | None selected | No Tournament | ||||
A total of 49 college teams played as University Division independents. Among them, Texas Western (28–1) had both the best winning percentage (.966) and the most wins.[12]
See main article: 1966 NCAA University Division basketball tournament and 1966 NCAA University Division Basketball Championship Game.
See main article: 1966 National Invitation Tournament.
See main article: 1966 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans.
| Player | Position | Class | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave Bing | G | Senior | Syracuse | |
| Clyde Lee | F | Senior | Vanderbilt | |
| Cazzie Russell | F | Senior | Michigan | |
| Dave Schellhase | G/F | Senior | Purdue | |
| Jimmy Walker | G | Junior | Providence |
| Player | Position | Class | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louie Dampier | G | Junior | Kentucky | |
| Matt Guokas | G | Junior | St. Joseph's | |
| Jack Marin | F | Senior | Duke | |
| Dick Snyder | F | Senior | Davidson | |
| Bob Verga | G | Senior | Duke | |
| Walt Wesley | C | Senior | Kansas |
A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.
| Team | Former Coach | Interim Coach | New Coach | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgetown | Tommy O'Keefe | Jack Magee | Able to sustain himself financially only by working outside of basketball to supplement the low salary of Georgetown's head coaching position, and lacking the time to recruit players properly while coaching only part-time, O'Keefe — Georgetown's head coach for six seasons — resigned after the season to devote himself full-time to his business concerns. His resignation prompted Georgetown to commit to hiring a full-time coach beginning with the following season.[13] [14] | |
| Hardin–Simmons | Lou Henson | Paul Lambert | ||
| Loyola (LA) | Bill Gardiner | Ron Greene | ||
| New Mexico State | Lou Henson | Jim McGregor | ||