The 1983 NCAA tournament ended with . The No. 6 seeded Wolfpack, led by coach Jim Valvano, won on Lorenzo Charles' buzzer-beating dunk after a missed desperation shot.
Even though NC State won the championship, Houston's Akeem Olajuwon was named the Most Outstanding Player.
1983 NCAA tournament: Bracket
Click or tap here for a closer look at the 1983 March Madness bracket.
1983 NCAA tournament: Scores
- Preliminary Round
- East No. 12 seed
- La Salle 70, Boston University 58
- Mideast No. 12 seed
- Robert Morris 64, Georgia Southern 54
- Midwest No. 12 seed
- Alcorn State 81, Xavier 75
- West No. 12 seed
- Princeton 51, North Carolina A&T 42
- East No. 12 seed
- First Round
- East Region
- No. 9 Rutgers 60, No. 8 Southwest Louisiana 53
- No. 5 VCU 76, No. 12 La Salle 67
- No. 6 Syracuse 74, No. 11 Morehead State 59
- No. 10 James Madison 57, No. 7 West Virginia 50
- West Region
- No. 8 Washington State 62, No. 9 Weber State 52
- No. 12 Princeton 56, No. 5 Oklahoma State 53
- No. 6 NC State 69, No. 11 Pepperdine 67 (2OT)
- No. 10 Utah 52, No. 7 Illinois 49
- Mideast Region
- No. 8 Tennessee 57, No. 9 Marquette 56
- No. 5 Purdue 55, No. 12 Robert Morris 53
- No. 11 Ohio 51, No. 6 Illinois State 49
- No. 7 Oklahoma 71, No. 10 UAB 63
- Midwest Region
- No. 8 Maryland 52, No. 9 Chattanooga 51
- No. 5 Georgetown 68, No. 12 Alcorn State 63
- No. 11 Lamar 73, No. 6 Alabama 50
- No. 7 Iowa 64, No. 10 Utah State 59
- East Region
- Second Round
- East Region
- No. 1 St. John's 66, No. 9 Rutgers 55
- No. 4 Georgia 56, No. 5 VCU 54
- No. 3 Ohio State 79, No. 6 Syracuse 74
- No. 2 North Carolina 68, No. 10 James Madison 49
- West Region
- No. 1 Virginia 54, No. 8 Washington State 49
- No. 4 Boston College 51, No. 12 Princeton 42
- No. 6 NC State 71, No. 3 UNLV 70
- No. 10 Utah 67, No. 2 UCLA 61
- Mideast Region
- No. 1 Louisville 70, No. 8 Tennessee 57
- No. 4 Arkansas 78, No. 5 Purdue 68
- No. 3 Kentucky 57, No. 11 Ohio 40
- No. 2 Indiana 63, No. 7 Oklahoma 49
- Midwest Region
- No. 1 Houston 60, No. 8 Maryland 50
- No. 4 Memphis State 66, No. 5 Georgetown 57
- No. 3 Villanova 60, No. 11 Lamar 58
- No. 7 Iowa 77, No. 2 Missouri 63
- East Region
- Regional Semifinals
- East Region
- No. 4 Georgia 70, No. 1 St. John's 67
- No. 2 North Carolina 64, No. 3 Ohio State 51
- West Region
- No. 1 Virginia 95, No. 4 Boston College 92
- No. 6 NC State 75, No. 10 Utah 56
- Mideast Region
- No. 1 Louisville 65, No. 4 Arkansas 63
- No. 3 Kentucky 64, No. 2 Indiana 59
- Midwest Region
- No. 1 Houston 70, No. 4 Memphis State 63
- No. 3 Villanova 55, No. 7 Iowa 54
- East Region
- Regional Finals
- East Region
- No. 4 Georgia 82, No. 2 North Carolina 77
- West Region
- No. 6 NC State 63, No. 1 Virginia 62
- Mideast Region
- No. 1 Louisville 80, No. 3 Kentucky 68 (OT)
- Midwest Region
- No. 1 Houston 89, No. 3 Villanova 71
- East Region
- Final Four (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
- National semifinals
- No. 6 NC State 67, No. 4 Georgia 60
- No. 1 Houston 94, No. 1 Louisville 81
- National championship
- No. 6 NC State 54, No. 1 Houston 52 |
- National semifinals
1983 NCAA tournament: Upsets
The following double-digit seeds won games:
Team | Score | Opponent |
---|---|---|
FIRST ROUND | ||
No. 12 Princeton | 56-53 | No. 5 Oklahoma State |
No. 11 Ohio | 51-49 | No. 6 Illinois State |
No. 11 Lamar | 73-50 | No. 6 Alabama |
No. 10 James Madison | 57-50 | No. 7 West Virginia |
No. 10 Utah | 52-49 | No. 7 Illinois |
SECOND ROUND | ||
No. 10 Utah | 67-61 | No. 2 UCLA |
1983 NCAA tournament: Stats, records
Here are the tournament leaders, with games in parentheses (minimum three games):
Individual scoring
- Greg Stokes, Iowa (3) — 20.3 points per game
Individual rebounding
- Akeem Olajuwon, Houston (5) — 13.0 rebounds per game
Team records
- NC State became the first team to win six NCAA tournament games to win the championship.
- Houston's Akeem Olajuwon was named Most Outstanding Player despite the Cougars not winning the title. As of 2020, this is the last time a player won MOP without winning the championship.
- Louisville beat Kentucky in the regional final in the rivals' first meeting since 1959.
- Georgia advanced to the Final Four in its first NCAA tournament appearance.