1971 NCAA University Division Basketball Tournament

UCLA was going for its 5th consecutive title and was a heavy favorite over Villanova. But the Bruins did not cruise through the season in their accustomed fashion. They were severely threatened in their own conference (and backyard) by 2nd ranked Southern Cal, who lost only 2 games all season – both to UCLA. In addition, UCLA lost at Notre Dame and had several other close calls (against Washington, Oregon, and Oregon State). In the Western Regional Final, the Bruins trailed Long Beach State by 11 points midway through the 2nd half and their star player Sidney Wicks was on the bench with 4 personal fouls. But Wicks returned and avoided his 5th foul (and disqualification), and the Bruins rallied to take a 55–53 lead. With 20 seconds remaining, Wicks sunk two clinching free throws and UCLA escaped 57–55.

In the championship game, UCLA jumped out to an early lead, but star players Sidney Wicks and Curtis Rowe struggled against Villanova's stingy zone defense. Only the outside shooting of Henry Bibby and a career best 29 points from center Steve Patterson kept the Bruins in the lead. In the meantime, Villanova stars Howard Porter and Chris Ford overcame early struggles to keep the Wildcats in the game. Midway through the 2nd half, UCLA coach John Wooden ordered the Bruins to go into a 4 corner stall offense (there was no shot clock in college in 1971), a tactic he rarely employed. Wooden said after the game he did so to bring Villanova out of their zone, and because he wanted to use the stage of the national championship game to show the NCAA that they should adopt a shot clock (something Wooden had long argued for). However, the tactic almost backfired as Villanova started forcing turnovers with an aggressive man to man defense. In addition, the stall took UCLA out of its offensive rhythm. Villanova closed the gap to 63–60 and had the ball with one minute to play. However, Porter missed a 15-foot off balance jumper, Wicks grabbed the rebound, and UCLA made 5 of 6 free throws down the stretch as they won 68–62.

For the national 3rd place, Western Kentucky won over Kansas 77–75.[1]

In a situation similar to Villanova, Western Kentucky's placement in the tournament was vacated, due to an NCAA investigation that showed Jim McDaniels had signed a professional contract and accepted money during the 1970–71 season. Western Kentucky would be found in violation twice more in the next 10 years, earning the school a "lack of institutional control" violation.[2]

The total attendance for the tournament was 220,447, a new record. It was the largest crowd of 31,765 to see the championship game.[3]

The city of Houston became the 10th host city, and the Astrodome the 11th host venue, to host the Final Four. It was the first time the Final Four was held in the state of Texas, and the first time the Final Four was held in a domed stadium (or, for that matter, in a baseball or football venue of any kind), though the trend would not take off until the usage of the Louisiana Superdome eleven years later. The tournament saw six new venues used besides the Astrodome. The Mideast regional brought the tournament to the state of Georgia for the first time, with games held at the Georgia Coliseum on the campus of the University of Georgia. For the second time, the tournament came to the campus of the University of Utah, with the Special Events Center, a future Final Four venue, hosting games for the first time. The tournament came to West Virginia for the first time, with one of the three East sub-regional games held at the WVU Coliseum. In the Mideast sub-regional, the tournament came to its third new host city – South Bend, home of the University of Notre Dame and the Athletic & Convocation Center, just east of Notre Dame Stadium. In the Midwest sub-regional, the tournament began at the University of Houston's Hofheinz Pavilion, the on-campus home of the Houston Cougars. To date, this marks the last time two different parts of the tournament were held in the same city. In the West sub-regional, the tournament came to Logan and the campus of Utah State University for the first time, with games held at the USU Assembly Center (now known as the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum).

The tournament would mark the only time the Astrodome or the Georgia Coliseum were used. While Houston has continued to be a tournament host at various venues, this was the only time the tournament came to Athens.

* – Denotes overtime period

Final Four

Kenny Booker of UCLA against Kansas in the Final Four.

	National Semifinals					National Championship Game
	E	Villanova	92
	ME	Western Kentucky	89**
						E	Villanova	62
						W	UCLA	68
	MW	Kansas	60
	W	UCLA	68			National Third Place Game
						ME	Western Kentucky	77
						MW	Kansas	75

• Jim McDaniels of Western Kentucky had 147 points, top scorer in the playoffs.
• Austin Carr of Notre Dame scored 289 career tournament points in seven games.
• As a result of the Villanova’s forfeit to Penn, the 1971 Penn Quakers technically went undefeated but did not win the national championship. North Carolina State went undefeated in 1972–73 but did not win the national championship because they were on NCAA probation and were not eligible to participate in the NCAA tournament.

• 1971 NCAA College Division Basketball Tournament
• 1971 National Invitation Tournament
• 1971 NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament
• 1971 National Women's Invitation Tournament

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