Season 2004–05 End date April 4, 2005 | Start date 2005 Teams 65 | |
 | ||
Champions North Carolina (4th title, 8th title game,
16th Final Four) Runner-up Illinois (1st title game,
5th Final Four) Semifinalists Louisville (8th Final Four)
Michigan State (6th Final Four) Winning coach Roy Williams (1st title) MOP Sean May University of North Carolina Champion North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball Finals site The Dome at America's Center Similar 2004 NCAA Division I, 2006 NCAA Division I, 2007 NCAA Division I, 2003 NCAA Division I, 2002 NCAA Division I | ||
The 2005 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament involved 65 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 15, 2005, and ended with the championship game on April 4 at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.
Contents
- Tournament procedure
- Locations
- Opening round
- Chicago Regional
- Albuquerque Regional
- Syracuse Regional
- Austin Regional
- Semifinals
- Final
- Final Four
- National Semifinals
- National Championship Game
- Bracket
- Record by conference
- Television
- Radio
- References
The Final Four consisted of Illinois, the overall top seed and in the Final Four for the first time since 1989, Louisville, making their first appearance since winning the national championship in 1986, North Carolina, reaching their first Final Four since their 2000 Cinderella run, and Michigan State, back in the Final Four for the first time since 2001.
North Carolina emerged as the national champions for a fourth time, defeating Illinois in the final 75-70. North Carolina's Sean May was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Coach Roy Williams won his first national championship.
For the first time since 1999, when Weber State defeated North Carolina, a #14 seed defeated a #3 seed when Bucknell upset Kansas. A #13 seed, Vermont, advanced by defeating Syracuse in the first round and a #12 seed, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the Chicago region.
Tournament procedure
A total of 65 teams entered the tournament. Thirty of the teams earned automatic bids by winning their conference tournaments. The automatic bid of the Ivy League, which does not conduct a postseason tournament, went to its regular season champion. The remaining 34 teams were granted "at-large" bids, which are extended by the NCAA Selection Committee.
Two teams played an opening-round game, popularly called the "play-in game"; the winner of that game advanced to the main draw of the tournament and plays a top seed in one of the regionals. This game has been played at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio since its inception in 2001.
All 64 teams were seeded 1 to 16 within their regionals; the winner of the play-in game automatically received a 16 seed. The Selection Committee seeded the entire field from 1 to 65.
The 2005 regionals, along with their top seeds, are listed below.
Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four, held April 2–4 in St. Louis.
Locations
The 2005 play-in game was played on Tuesday, March 15, at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio, as it had been since its inception in 2001.
The first and second-round games were played at the following sites:
The regional final sites, named after their host cities, were:
Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four at the Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri, hosted by the Missouri Valley Conference. The semi-final games were held on April 2 and the final on April 4, 2005.
Opening round
Chicago Regional
Albuquerque Regional
Syracuse Regional
Austin Regional
Chicago Regional
Albuquerque Regional
Syracuse Regional
Austin Regional
Chicago Regional
At Allstate Arena, Rosemont, Illinois
Semifinals
Final
Albuquerque Regional
At University Arena, Albuquerque
Semifinals
Final
Syracuse Regional
At Carrier Dome, Syracuse
Semifinals
Final
Austin Regional
At Frank Erwin Center, Austin
Semifinals
Final
Final Four
At Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis
National Semifinals
National Championship Game
North Carolina was playing looking for its 4th National Championship while Illinois was playing in its first National Championship. It was a tight contest for much of the first half before an 8-0 run by North Carolina allowed them to take a 35-25 lead. Eventually they would take a 40-27 lead into halftime. North Carolina increased its lead to 15 at one point in the second half. But Illinois began a furious charge. At one point, they would hit seven consecutive shots from the floor to turn a fifteen-point lead back to four. Unfazed, North Carolina would push the lead back up to ten before a 10-0 run by the Illini tied the game at 65-65. Illinois would tie the game at 70-70 on a three by Luther Head. But North Carolina would fight back as freshman Marvin Williams tapped back a Rashad McCants missed shot to put North Carolina back in front. Illinois would get several cracks to take the lead but were unable to convert. Eventually, Raymond Felton was able to steal the ball from Head forcing Deron Williams to foul. However, Felton converted on 1 of 2 free throws giving Illinois one last chance. But Luther Head's three pointer bounced high and out. Eventually it went into the hands of Felton who this time connected on both free throws to give North Carolina a 75-70 victory. For North Carolina head coach Roy Williams, it was his first national championship. Illinois was denied a chance to set the NCAA record for most wins in a season, instead tying it at 37. Sean May scored 26 points as he took the MOP of the Final Four.
Bracket
Winners in bold. * next to a score indicates that the game went to overtime; multiple stars indicate multiple overtimes.
Record by conference
* Oakland won the Opening Round game.
The Atlantic 10, Atlantic Sun, Big Sky, Big South, CAA, Ivy, MAAC, MAC, MEAC, Northeast, Ohio Valley, SoCon, Southland, SWAC, and Sun Belt conferences all went 0–1.
The columns R32, S16, E8, F4, and CG respectively stand for the Round of 32, Sweet Sixteen, Elite Eight, Final Four, and Championship Game.
Television
ESPN carried the opening round game.
Rece Davis served as studio host, joined by analyst Fran Fraschilla.
CBS Sports carried the remaining 63 games. They were carried on a regional basis until the Elite Eight, at which point all games were shown nationally.
Greg Gumbel once again served as the studio host, joined by analysts Clark Kellogg and Seth Davis.
The television rating indicated the tournament was watched by an average of 10.6 million viewers.
Radio
Westwood One had exclusive radio coverage.
John Tautges once again served as studio host.