1946 NCAA Basketball Tournament


The 1946 NCAA Basketball Tournament involved 8 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.
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. 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

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

Regionals

;March 21 and 23
;March 22 and 23

Championship Game

;March 26:

Teams

Bracket

* – Denotes overtime period

Regional Third Place Games