1979 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament
| 1979 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | 1978–79 | ||||
| Teams | 40 | ||||
| Finals site |
Special Events Center Salt Lake City, Utah |
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| Champions |
Michigan State (1st title, 1st title game, 2nd Final Four) |
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| Runner-up |
Indiana State (1st title game, 1st Final Four) |
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| Semifinalists | |||||
| Winning coach | Jud Heathcote (1st title) | ||||
| MOP | Magic Johnson Michigan State | ||||
| Attendance | 262,101 | ||||
| Top scorer | Tony Price Penn (142 points) |
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The 1979 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament involved 40 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 9, 1979, and ended with the championship game on March 26 in Salt Lake City. A total of 40 games were played, including a national third-place game.
Michigan State, coached by Jud Heathcote, won the national title with a 75–64 victory in the final game over Indiana State, coached by Bill Hodges. Indiana State came into the game without a loss all season, but couldn't win their final game. Magic Johnson of Michigan State was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Michigan State's victory over Indiana State was its first over a number one ranked team, and remained its only victory over a number one ranked team until 2007 (Wisconsin).
The final game marked the beginning of the rivalry between future Hall of Famers Johnson and Larry Bird. As of 2016, it remains the highest-rated game in the history of televised college basketball. Both Johnson and Bird would enter the NBA in the fall of 1979, and the rivalry between them and their teams (respectively, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics) was a major factor in the league's renaissance in the 1980s and 1990s. The game also led to the "modern era" of college basketball, as it introduced a nationwide audience to a sport that was once relegated to second-class status in the sports world.
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