1985 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament |
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Teams | 64 | ||||
Finals site |
Rupp Arena Lexington, Kentucky |
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Champions |
Villanova (1st title, 1st title game, 2nd Final Four) |
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Runner-up |
Georgetown (4th title game, 4th Final Four) |
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Semifinalists |
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Winning coach | Rollie Massimino (1st title) | ||||
MOP | Ed Pinckney Villanova | ||||
Attendance | 422,519 | ||||
Top scorer |
Chris Mullin St. John's (110 points) |
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The 1985 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. This was the first year the field was expanded to 64 teams, from 53 in the previous year's tournament. It began on March 14, 1985, and ended with the championship game on April 1 in Lexington, Kentucky. A total of 63 games was played.
Eighth-seed Villanova, coached by Rollie Massimino, won their first national title with a 66–64 victory in the final game over Georgetown, coached by John Thompson. Ed Pinckney of Villanova was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. The game is often cited among the greatest upsets in college basketball history, and is the second biggest point-spread upset in Championship Game history. This Villanova team remains the lowest-seeded team to win the tournament. The Wildcats are also notable as the last Division I men's national champion to date to represent a school that did not sponsor varsity football at the time of its title (Villanova had dropped football after the 1980 season and did not reinstate the sport until the 1985 season, the first after the championship game). The game is also notable as the last played without a shot clock.