1957–58 NCAA University Division men's basketball season
The 1957–58 NCAA Division I men's basketball season was the highest level of competition for men's college basketball. The 1958 NCAA tournament ran from March 11 to March 22, 1958, and saw the Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team win the national title over the Seattle Redhawks. Elgin Baylor, for Seattle, was named Player of the Year.
Season headlines
- Adolph Rupp won his fourth championship as he led the Kentucky Wildcats to an 84–72 win over the Seattle Chieftains and their star, Elgin Baylor. The starting unit was nicknamed the "Fiddlin' Five," after a quip by Rupp that his team were fiddlers when he really needed violinists. The Wildcats fought back from two 11-point deficits to gain the victory.
- Cincinnati's Oscar Robertson became the first player to lead the nation is scoring in his first varsity season. The sophomore averaged 35.1 points per game for the Bearcats.
- Dom Flora, a senior point guard at Washington and Lee University, finished his college career with 2,310 points and 696 free throws made, both of which were ranked fifth in their respective categories in college basketball history at the end of the 1957–58 season.
- Future Hall of Fame coach Howard Cann of NYU retired at the conclusion of the season, after 35 years at the helm.
Major rule changes
- Offensive goaltending was banned so that no player from either team could touch the ball or basket when the ball was on the basket’s rim or above the cylinder. The only exception was the shooter in the original act of shooting.
- One free throw for each common foul was taken for the first six personal fouls by one team in each half, and the one-and-one was used thereafter.
- On uniforms, the use of the single digit numbers one and two and any digit greater than five was prohibited.
- A ball that passed over the backboard—either front to back or back to front—was considered out of bounds.
Regular season
Conference winners and tournaments
Statistical leaders
Polls
The final top 20 from the AP and Coaches Polls.Post-Season Tournaments
NCAA Tournament
Kentucky Wildcats won their fourth National Championship by defeating the Seattle Chieftains 84–72 on March 22 at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. Seattle's Elgin Baylor led all tournament scorers and was named the tournament Most Outstanding Player.
Final Four
- Third Place – Temple 67, Kansas State 57
National Invitation Tournament
NIT Semifinals and Final
Played at Madison Square Garden in New York City- Third Place – St. Bonaventure 84, St. John's 69
Award winners
Consensus All-American teams
Major player of the year awards
- Helms Foundation Player of the Year: Elgin Baylor, Seattle
- UPI Player of the Year: Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati
- Sporting News Player of the Year: Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati
Major coach of the year awards
- UPI Coach of the Year: Tex Winter, Kansas State
Other major awards
- Robert V. Geasey Trophy : Guy Rodgers, Temple
- NIT/Haggerty Award : Jim Cunningham, Fordham
Coaching changes
| Team | Former Coach | Interim Coach | New Coach | Reason |
| Columbia | Lou Rossini | Archie Oldham | ||
| Drake | John E. Benington | Maury John | ||
| Duquesne | Dudey Moore | Red Manning | ||
| Iowa | Bucky O'Connor | Sharm Scheuerman | O'Connor died in an auto accident on April 22, 1958 | |
| La Salle | Jim Pollard | Dudey Moore | ||
| Marquette | Jack Nagle | Eddie Hickey | ||
| Memphis State | Eugene Lambert | Bob Vanatta | ||
| New Mexico | Bill Stockton | Bob Sweeney | ||
| NYU | Howard Cann | Lou Rossini | ||
| Ohio State | Floyd Stahl | Fred Taylor | ||
| Saint Louis | Eddie Hickey | John E. Benington | ||
| Seattle | John Castellani | Vincent Cazzetta | After taking the Chieftains to the NCAA title game, Castellani resigned amid recruiting violations that resulted in a two-year post-season ban for the University. | |
| South Carolina | Frank Johnson | Walt Hambrick | ||
| Vanderbilt | Bob Polk | Roy Skinner | Assistant coach Skinner served as interim for the season as Polk suffered a heart attack in the Fall | |
| Western Michigan | Joe Hoy | Don Boven |