The 1988 NCAA tournament was the 50th edition of March Madness. Kansas won the national championship, beating Oklahoma 83-79 in the title game. Find the bracket, scores and more below.
Since the tournament's expansion to 64 teams in 1985, the 1988 Jayhawks are the only No. 6 seed to win the title. Senior forward Danny Manning led the tournament in scoring, including 31 points against the Sooners in the championship game to be named Most Outstanding Player.
Oklahoma was one of two No. 1 seeds in the Final Four. No. 1 seed Arizona and No. 2 seed Duke rounded out the 1988 Final Four.
Upsets weren't as frequent in this postseason as six double-digit seeds recorded wins. However, four of those six came from No. 11 Rhode Island and No. 13 Richmond, as both reached the Sweet 16.
1988 NCAA tournament: Bracket
Click or tap here for a closer look at the bracket.
1988 NCAA tournament: Scores
- First Round (Round of 64)
- East Regional
- No. 1 Temple 87, No. 16 Lehigh 73
- No. 2 Duke 85, No. 15 Boston University 69
- No. 3 Syracuse 69, No. 14 North Carolina A&T 55
- No. 13 Richmond 72, No. 4 Indiana 69
- No. 5 Georgia Tech 90, No. 12 Iowa State 78
- No. 11 Rhode Island 87, No. 6 Missouri 80
- No. 7 SMU 83, No. 10 Notre Dame 75
- No. 8 Georgetown 66, No. 9 LSU 63
- West Regional
- No. 1 Arizona 90, No. 16 Cornell 50
- No. 2 North Carolina 83, No. 15 North Texas 65
- No. 3 Michigan 63, No. 14 Boise State 58
- No. 4 UNLV 54, No. 13 Southwest Missouri State 50
- No. 5 Iowa 102, No. 12 Florida State 98
- No. 6 Florida 62, No. 11 St. John's 59
- No. 10 Loyola Marymount 119, No. 7 Wyoming 115
- No. 8 Seton Hall 80, No. 9 UTEP 64
- Southeast Regional
- No. 1 Oklahoma 94, No. 16 Chattanooga 66
- No. 2 Kentucky 99, No. 15 Southern 84
- No. 3 Illinois 81, No. 14 UTSA 72
- No. 4 BYU 98, No. 13 Charlotte 92 (OT)
- No. 5 Louisville 70, No. 12 Oregon State 61
- No. 6 Villanova 82, No. 11 Arkansas 74
- No. 7 Maryland 92, No. 10 UC Santa Barbara 82
- No. 8 Auburn 90, No. 9 Bradley 86
- Midwest Regional
- No. 1 Purdue 94, No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson 79
- No. 2 Pittsburgh 108, No. 15 Eastern Michigan 90
- No. 14 Murray State 78, No. 3 NC State 75
- No. 4 Kansas State 66, No. 13 La Salle 53
- No. 5 DePaul 83, No. 12 Wichita State 62
- No. 6 Kansas 85, No. 11 Xavier 72
- No. 7 Vanderbilt 80, No. 10 Utah State 77
- No. 9 Memphis 75, No. 8 Baylor 60
- East Regional
- Second Round (Round of 32)
- East Regional
- No. 1 Temple 74, No. 8 Georgetown 53
- No. 2 Duke 94, No. 7 SMU 79
- No. 11 Rhode Island 97, No. 3 Syracuse 94
- No. 13 Richmond 59, No. 5 Georgia Tech 55
- West Regional
- No. 1 Arizona 84, No. 8 Seton Hall 55
- No. 2 North Carolina 123, No. 10 Loyola Marymount 97
- No. 3 Michigan 108, No. 6 Florida 85
- No. 5 Iowa 104, No. 4 UNLV 86
- Southeast Regional
- No. 1 Oklahoma 107, No. 8 Auburn 87
- No. 2 Kentucky 90, No. 7 Maryland 81
- No. 6 Villanova 66, No. 3 Illinois 63
- No. 5 Louisville 97, No. 4 BYU 76
- Midwest Regional
- No. 1 Purdue 100, No. 9 Memphis 73
- No. 7 Vanderbilt 80, No. 2 Pittsburgh 74 (OT)
- No. 6 Kansas 61, No. 14 Murray State 58
- No. 4 Kansas State 66, No. 5 DePaul 58
- East Regional
- Sweet 16
- East Regional
- No. 1 Temple 69, No. 13 Richmond 47
- No. 2 Duke 73, No. 11 Rhode Island 72
- West Regional
- No. 1 Arizona 99, No. 5 Iowa 79
- No. 2 North Carolina 78, No. 3 Michigan 69
- Southeast Regional
- No. 1 Oklahoma 108, No. 5 Louisville 98
- No. 6 Villanova 80, No. 2 Kentucky 74
- Midwest Regional
- No. 4 Kansas State 73, No. 1 Purdue 70
- No. 6 Kansas 77, No. 7 Vanderbilt 64
- East Regional
- Elite Eight
- East Regional
- No. 2 Duke 63, No. 1 Temple 53
- West Regional
- No. 1 Arizona 70, No. 2 North Carolina 52
- Southeast Regional
- No. 1 Oklahoma 78, No. 6 Villanova 59
- Midwest Regional
- No. 6 Kansas 71, No. 4 Kansas State 58
- East Regional
- Final Four (Kansas City, Missouri)
- National semifinals
- No. 1 Oklahoma 86, No. 1 Arizona 78
- No. 6 Kansas 66, No. 2 Duke 59
- National championship
- No. 6 Kansas 83, No. 1 Oklahoma 79
- National semifinals
1988 NCAA tournament: Upsets
The following double-digit seeds won games:
TEAM | SCORE | OPPONENT |
---|---|---|
FIRST ROUND (Round of 64) | ||
No. 14 Murray State | 78-75 | No. 3 NC State |
No. 13 Richmond | 72-69 | No. 4 Indiana |
No. 11 Rhode Island | 87-80 | No. 6 Missouri |
No. 10 Loyola Marymount | 119-115 | No. 7 Wyoming |
SECOND ROUND (Round of 32) | ||
No. 13 Richmond | 59-55 | No. 5 Georgia Tech |
No. 11 Rhode Island | 97-94 | No. 3 Syracuse |
1988 NCAA tournament: Stats, records
Here are the tournament leaders, with games in parentheses (minimum three games):
Individual scoring
- Danny Manning, Kansas (6) — 27.2
Individual rebounding
- Pervis Ellison, Louisville (3) — 11.0
Individual assists
- Rumeal Robinson, Michigan (3) — 7.0
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