In 1978, Kentucky won its fifth national championship, denying Duke its first title in the national final. The Wildcats were led by Jack Givens, who won Most Outstanding Player after scoring 41 points in the title game.
This was college basketball's first postseason to feature seeding of any kind and the final tournament to have 32 teams in it. By 1979, the entire bracket was seeded and the field expanded to 40 teams before increasing again to 48 in 1980.
The 1978 NCAA tournament marked Notre Dame's first trip to the Final Four. Arkansas was the fourth national semifinalist.
1978 NCAA tournament: Bracket
Click or tap here for a closer look at the bracket.
1978 NCAA tournament: Scores
- Regional Quarterfinals
- East Region
- No. 1Q Duke 63, No. 3L Rhode Island 62
- No. 2Q Villanova 103, No. 4L La Salle 97
- No. 1L Indiana 63, No. 3Q Furman 62
- No. 4Q Pennsylvania 92, No. 2L St. Bonaventure 83
- West Region
- No. 1Q UCLA 83, No. 3L Kansas 76
- No. 4L Cal State Fullerton 90, No. 2Q New Mexico 85
- No. 3Q San Francisco 68, No. 1L North Carolina 64
- No. 2L Arkansas 73, No. 4Q Weber State 52
- Mideast Region
- No. 1Q Michigan State 77, No. 3L Providence 63
- No. 2Q Kentucky 85, No. 4L Florida State 76
- No. 3Q Miami (OH) 84, No. 1L Marquette 81 (OT)
- No. 4Q Western Kentucky 87, No. 2L Syracuse 86 (OT)
- Midwest Region
- No. 3L Utah 86, No. 1Q Missouri 79 (2OT)
- No. 2Q Louisville 76, No. 4L St. John's 68
- No. 1L DePaul 80, No. 3Q Creighton 78
- No. 2L Notre Dame 100, No. 4Q Houston 77
- East Region
- Regional Semifinals
- East Region
- No. 1Q Duke 84, No. 4Q Penn 80
- No. 2Q Villanova 61, No. 1L Indiana 60
- West Region
- No. 2L Arkansas 74, No. 1Q UCLA 70
- No. 4L Cal State Fullerton 75, No. 3Q San Francisco 72
- Mideast Region
- No. 1Q Michigan State 90, No. 4Q Western Kentucky 69
- No. 2Q Kentucky 91, No. 3Q Miami (OH) 69
- Midwest Region
- No. 2L Notre Dame 69, No. 3L Utah 56
- No. 1L DePaul 90, No. 2Q Louisville 89 (2OT)
- East Region
- Regional Finals
- East Region
- No. 1Q Duke 90, No. 2Q Villanova 72
- West Region
- No. 2L Arkansas 61, No 4L Cal State Fullerton 58
- Mideast Region
- No. 2Q Kentucky 52, No. 1Q Michigan State 49
- Midwest Region
- No. 2L Notre Dame 84, No. 1L DePaul 64
- East Region
- Final Four (St. Louis, Missouri)
- National semifinals
- No. 1Q Duke 90, No. 2L Notre Dame 86
- No. 2Q Kentucky 64, No. 2L Arkansas 59
- National championship
- No. 2Q Kentucky 94, No. 1Q Duke 88
- Third-place game
- No. 2L Arkansas 71, No. 2L Notre Dame 69
- National semifinals
1978 NCAA tournament: Stats, records
Here are the tournament leaders, with games in parentheses (minimum three games):
Individual scoring
- Dave Corzine, DePaul (3) — 27.3
Individual rebounding
- Greg Kelser, Michigan State (3) — 12.3
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