1966 NCAA College Division basketball tournament
| Teams | 36 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finals site | Evansville, Indiana | ||||
| Champions | Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers (1st title) | ||||
| Runner-up | Southern Illinois Salukis (2nd title game) | ||||
| Semifinalists |
| ||||
| Winning coach | Guy R. Strong (1st title) | ||||
| MOP | Sam Smith (Kentucky Wesleyan) | ||||
| Attendance | 26,082 | ||||
| |||||
The 1966 NCAA College Division basketball tournament involved 36 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA College Division basketball as a culmination of the 1965–66 NCAA College Division men's basketball season. It was won by Kentucky Wesleyan College, with Kentucky Wesleyan's Sam Smith named Most Outstanding Player.
Springfield
Syracuse
Moorhead
Akron
Jonesboro
Reading
Worcester
Grand Forks
Carbondale
Fresno
Durham
Evansville
1966 NCAA Division II Men's sites - first round (white) first 2 rounds (yellow) regionals (cyan) Elite Eight (red)
Regional participants[edit]
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| American International | Fifth Place* | |
| Assumption | Runner-up | |
| Central Connecticut State | Regional Champion | |
| Le Moyne | Fifth Place* | |
| Northeastern | Third Place* | |
| Philadelphia Textile | Third Place* | |
| Potsdam State | Seventh Place* | |
| Springfield | Seventh Place* | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Kentucky Wesleyan | Regional Champion | |
| Oglethorpe | Runner-up | |
| South Carolina State | Fourth Place | |
| Winston-Salem | Third Place | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Albright | Third Place | |
| Cheyney | Runner-up | |
| Drexel | Fourth Place | |
| Long Island | Regional Champion | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Akron | Regional Champion | |
| Randolph–Macon | Fourth Place | |
| Steubenville | Runner-up | |
| Youngstown State | Third Place | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Fresno State | Regional Champion | |
| Nevada | Third Place | |
| San Diego | Fourth Place | |
| Seattle Pacific | Runner-up | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Evansville | Runner-up | |
| Indiana State | Fourth Place | |
| Lamar | Third Place | |
| Southern Illinois | Regional Champion | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Abilene Christian | Regional Champion | |
| Arkansas State | Third Place | |
| Jackson State | Fourth Place | |
| SW Missouri State | Runner-up | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Colorado State College | Third Place* | |
| North Dakota | Regional Champion | |
| St. Procopius | Third Place* | |
| Valparaiso | Runner-up | |
*indicates a tie
Regionals[edit]
Northeast[edit]
| First round Round of 36 See below | Regional semifinals Round of 32 See below | Regional Final - Worcester, MA Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||||||
| Assumption | 105 | |||||||||||||
| American International | 102 | |||||||||||||
| Assumption | 96 | |||||||||||||
| Section A Springfield, MA March 2 and 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Northeastern | 69 | |||||||||||||
| Northeastern | 93 | |||||||||||||
| Springfield | 80 | |||||||||||||
| Assumption | 87 | |||||||||||||
| Central Connecticut State | 96 | |||||||||||||
| Central Connecticut State | 94 | |||||||||||||
| Potsdam State | 82 | |||||||||||||
| Central Connecticut State | 97 | |||||||||||||
| Section B DeWitt, NY March 1 and 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Philadelphia Textile | 75 | |||||||||||||
| Philadelphia Textile | 83 | |||||||||||||
| Le Moyne | 61 | |||||||||||||
- Section B Consolation March 2 - Le Moyne 86, Potsdam State 63
- Section A Consolation March 3 - American International 96, Springfield 94*
- Notes
- The right to host the regional final was given to the Section A winner, which was Assumption.[1]
- American International College and Springfield College are both located in Springfield, Massachusetts. Springfield College was the host school for Section A.[2]
South - Durham, North Carolina[edit]
Location: McClendon–McDougald Gym Host: North Carolina College at Durham
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 4 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 5 | ||||||||
| Kentucky Wesleyan | 81* | ||||||||
| South Carolina State | 73 | ||||||||
| Kentucky Wesleyan | 48 | ||||||||
| Oglethorpe | 41 | ||||||||
| Oglethorpe | 69 | ||||||||
| Winston-Salem | 66 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Winston-Salem 85, South Carolina State 81
East - Reading, Pennsylvania[edit]
Location: Bollman Center Host: Albright College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 4 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 5 | ||||||||
| Cheyney | 61 | ||||||||
| Albright | 56 | ||||||||
| Cheyney | 64 | ||||||||
| Long Island | 67 | ||||||||
| Long Island | 62 | ||||||||
| Drexel | 54 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Albright 78, Drexel 61
Mideast - Akron, Ohio[edit]
Location: Memorial Hall Host: Municipal University of Akron
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 4 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 5 | ||||||||
| Steubenville | 77 | ||||||||
| Randolph–Macon | 56 | ||||||||
| Steubenville | 76 | ||||||||
| Akron | 93 | ||||||||
| Akron | 70 | ||||||||
| Youngstown State | 51 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Youngstown State 94, Randolph–Macon 63
Pacific Coast - Fresno, California[edit]
Location: North Gym Host: Fresno State College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 4 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 5 | ||||||||
| Seattle Pacific | 69 | ||||||||
| San Diego | 63 | ||||||||
| Seattle Pacific | 58 | ||||||||
| Fresno State | 64 | ||||||||
| Fresno State | 127 | ||||||||
| Nevada | 78 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Nevada 74, San Diego 71
Great Lakes - Carbondale, Illinois[edit]
Location: SIU Arena Host: Southern Illinois University
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 4 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 5 | ||||||||
| Evansville | 111 | ||||||||
| Lamar | 103 | ||||||||
| Evansville | 77 | ||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 90 | ||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 83 | ||||||||
| Indiana State | 65 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Lamar 93, Indiana State 78
Southwest - Jonesboro, Arkansas[edit]
Location: Indian Fieldhouse Host: Arkansas State College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 4 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 5 | ||||||||
| Abilene Christian | 94 | ||||||||
| Jackson State | 79 | ||||||||
| Abilene Christian | 63 | ||||||||
| SW Missouri State | 58 | ||||||||
| SW Missouri State | 72 | ||||||||
| Arkansas State | 71 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Arkansas State 84, Jackson State 77
Midwest - Grand Forks, North Dakota[edit]
Location: Hyslop Sports Center Host: University of North Dakota
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 See below | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| Valparaiso | 107 | ||||||||
| St. Procopius | 76 | ||||||||
| Valparaiso | 82 | ||||||||
| North Dakota | 112 | ||||||||
| North Dakota | 84 | ||||||||
| Colorado State College | 71 | ||||||||
Note: The first-round game between North Dakota and Colorado State College was delayed a day to March 6; the Valparaiso/Saint Procopius game was played in Moorhead, Minnesota on March 5; and the third-place game was cancelled entirely. These occurrences were due to inclement weather.
*denotes each overtime played
National Finals - Evansville, Indiana[edit]
Location: Roberts Municipal Stadium Host: Evansville College
| National Quarterfinals Elite Eight March 9 | National semifinals Final Four March 10 | National Championship March 11 | ||||||||||||
| Central Connecticut State | 76 | |||||||||||||
| Kentucky Wesleyan | 84 | |||||||||||||
| Kentucky Wesleyan | 105 | |||||||||||||
| Akron | 74 | |||||||||||||
| Long Island | 68 | |||||||||||||
| Akron | 74 | |||||||||||||
| Kentucky Wesleyan | 54 | |||||||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 51 | |||||||||||||
| Fresno State | 70 | |||||||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 93 | |||||||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 69 | |||||||||||||
| North Dakota | 61 | |||||||||||||
| Abilene Christian | 62 | |||||||||||||
| North Dakota | 63 | |||||||||||||
- Third Place - Akron 76, North Dakota 71
*denotes each overtime played
All-tournament team[edit]
- Phil Jackson (North Dakota)
- David Lee (Southern Illinois)
- George McNeil (Southern Illinois)
- Clarence Smith (Southern Illinois)
- Sam Smith (Kentucky Wesleyan)
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "Springfield Teams Out of Tournament". North Adams Transcript. North Adams, Massachusetts. March 3, 1966. p. 16. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
- ^ "NCAA Cage Meet Opens Tomorrow". The Post-Standard. Syracuse, New York. February 28, 1966. p. 14. Retrieved January 31, 2024.