1981 NCAA Division I basketball championship game explained

See also: 1981 NCAA Division I basketball tournament.

1981 NCAA Tournament Championship Game
Type:ncg
Date:March 30, 1981
Year:1980–81
Visitor School:University of North Carolina
Visitor Name Short:North Carolina
Visitor Nickname:Tar Heels
Visitor Record:29–7
Visitor Conference:ACC
Visitor Ap:6
Visitor Coaches:6
Visitor Coach:Dean Smith
Visitor Per1:26
Visitor Per2:24
Home School:Indiana
Home Name Short:Indiana
Home Nickname:Hoosiers
Home Record:25–9
Home Conference:Big Ten
Home Ap:9
Home Coaches:7
Home Coach:Bob Knight
Home Per1:27
Home Per2:36
Arena:The Spectrum
City:Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Us Network:NBC
Us Announcers:Dick Enberg, Billy Packer, and Al McGuire
Referee:Ken Lauderdale, Lou Moser, & Booker Turner[1]
Previous:1980
Next:1982

The 1981 NCAA Division I Basketball Championship Game took place on March 30, 1981, between the North Carolina Tar Heels and Indiana Hoosiers at The Spectrum in Philadelphia. The matchup was the final one of the forty-third consecutive NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship single-elimination tournament — commonly referred to as the NCAA Tournament — organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is used to crown a national champion for men's basketball at the Division I level.

Because of the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan by John Hinckley, there was talk of postponing or cancelling the title game; but once NCAA officials learned that Reagan had made it through surgery and would survive his injuries, the game was played as scheduled.[2] Howard Cosell criticized the NCAA for not postponing the game due to the Reagan assassination attempt.

Indiana defeated North Carolina by a 63–50 score to win their second national title in six years and fourth overall. As of 2024, this remains the only time a team from the Big Ten defeated an ACC team in the championship game.

The 1980–81 season was the last before the NCAA began sponsoring a championship for Division I women's basketball. All future NCAA men's tournaments and championship games would include "Men's" in their official titles.

Participants

It was the first national championship game between the schools. Indiana was seeking its fourth national championship (1940, 1953, 1976) while North Carolina was looking for its second, having last won in 1957.

Indiana Hoosiers

See main article: 1980–81 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team.

North Carolina Tar Heels

See main article: 1980–81 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team.

Starting lineups

Indiana Position North Carolina
Isiah Thomas 1 G Jimmy Black
G Mike Pepper
F James Worthy
F Al Wood 1
Ray Tolbert 1 C Sam Perkins
[3]

Game summary

Source:[4] [5]

valign=top align=right width=33%
Indiana StatisticsNorth Carolina
23/48 (48%) Field goals 20/47 (43%)
17/22 (77%) Free throws 10/16 (63%)
31 Total rebounds 29
14 Assists 12
14 Turnovers 19
8 Steals 9
1 Blocks 2
17 Fouls 23

References

Citations
Bibliography

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The Final Four . 2014 . December 9, 2014 . 20 . 2014 NCAA Men's Final Four Records . NCAA .
  2. Web site: Indiana, UNC meet 35 years after Reagan shooting jeopardized title game . 2016 . May 24, 2017 . FoxSports.com.
  3. Web site: North Carolina vs. Indiana Box Score, March 30, 1981 . . March 30, 1981 . January 16, 2023.
  4. Web site: 1981 Men's NCAA basketball tournament . Jeff Borzello . CBSSports.com . CBS Broadcasting Inc. . December 9, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160409035520/http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/ncaa-tournament/history/yearbyyear/1981 . April 9, 2016 . live .
  5. Web site: North Carolina vs. Indiana Box Score, March 30, 1981 . sports-reference.com . Sports Reference LLC . 2010 . December 9, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160305231154/http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/boxscores/1981-03-30-indiana.html . March 5, 2016 . live .