History of March Madness
It’s Called “March Madness”
Every year, as winter wanes, a curious ailment spreads across the country. The thump of basketballs, the squeak of sneakers, and the roar of the crowd are sure signals that basketball fever is with us. It's a condition called “March Madness,” and it afflicts millions of people with no known cure. Where did this malady originate?
A Tradition is Born
“March Madness” was born in Illinois. The annual tournament of high school boys basketball teams, sponsored by the Illinois High School Association, grew from a small invitational affair in 1908 to a statewide institution with over 900 schools competing by the late 1930's. A field of teams known as the “Sweet Sixteen” routinely drew sellout crowds to the University of Illinois' Huff Gymnasium. In a time before television, before the college game became popular with the average fan, before professional leagues had established a foothold in the nation's large cities, basketball fever had already reached epidemic proportions in the Land of Lincoln.
Giving It a Name
Henry V. Porter, assistant executive secretary of the Illinois High School Association, was so impressed by the phenomenon that he wrote an essay to commemorate it. Entitled “March Madness,” it first appeared in the Illinois Interscholastic, the IHSA's magazine, in 1939. The term struck a chord with newspapermen, who used it throughout their pages. During the tournament's “Golden Era” of the 1940's and 1950's, “March Madness” became the popular name of the event.
It was an era of some of Illinois' most legendary teams, including the undefeated 1944 Taylorville squad and Mt. Vernon's unstoppable back-to-back champions of 1949 and 1950. But the one champion remembered more than any other is tiny Hebron, a school of only 99 students, which won the tournament in 1952.
Making It Official
The IHSA tournaments continued to grow and develop. In 1963, the tournament moved to the huge new Assembly Hall on the campus of the University of Illinois and fans witnessed the most famous finish in history, when Chicago Carver beat Centralia on a last-second shot by a substitute named Anthony Smedley.
“March Madness” grew as well. Beginning in 1973, the IHSA began using the term officially in its programs and on its merchandise. In 1977, the organization enlisted veteran Chicago sportswriter and Big Ten basketball referee Jim Enright to write the official history of the boys basketball tournament.
The result was March Madness: The Story of High School Basketball in Illinois. As media technology advanced, the IHSA and KOST Broadcast Sales of Chicago produced March Madness: The Official Video History of the IHSA Basketball Tournament in 1989. Both the book and video were sold nationwide.
During this period, the Illinois High School Association received trademark status for the term “March Madness” and registered the trademark “America's Original March Madness.” The spirit of March Madness has subsequently spread from coast to coast, as other companies and organizations, including state high school associations and manufacturers, have been licensed by the IHSA to use these trademarks.
March Madness Today
Today's March Madness is different from the original version. Nowadays an “Elite Eight” of teams advances to the state finals, but there are four tournaments - a Class A (small school) and Class AA (large school) version for both boys and girls, played in Peoria and Normal. “The Happening,” a thrilling contest featuring the state's best three-point shooters and dunkers, is now a part of these tournaments as well. And starting in 1996, the “March Madness Experience,” an exhibition hall full of fun, games, and good times, has allowed fans of Illinois high school basketball to join in the action.
The popularity of these events now allows the IHSA to provide more than just good entertainment for its fans. A significant portion of the fees generated from the licensing of the unified marks “March Madness” and “America's Original March Madness” are used to fund college scholarships for Illinois high school boys and girls.
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Year-by-Year Tournament History |
Year |
Championship game |
Score |
2004 |
UConn def. Georgia Tech |
82-73 |
2003 |
Syracuse def. Kansas |
81-78 |
2002 |
Maryland def. Indiana |
64-52 |
2001 |
Duke def. Arizona |
82-72 |
2000 |
Michigan State def. Florida |
89-76 |
1999 |
UConn def. Duke |
77-74 |
1998 |
Kentucky def. Utah |
78-69 |
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Seeds in the Final Four |
Year |
Seeds |
Teams |
2004 |
1, 2, 2, 3 |
Duke, UConn , Okla. St. , Ga. Tech |
2003 |
1, 2, 3, 3 |
Texas , Kansas , Marquette , Syracuse |
2002 |
1, 5, 1, 2 |
Maryland , Indiana , KU, Okla. |
2001 |
1, 1, 2, 3 |
Duke, Mich. St., Arizona , Maryland |
2000 |
1, 5, 8, 8 |
Mich. St., Florida , UNC, Wisc. |
|
| |
|
Outstanding Player Award |
Year |
Player |
Team |
Key stats |
2004 |
E. Okafor |
Connecticut |
42 pts, 22 reb |
2003 |
C. Anthony |
Syracuse |
53 pts, 24 reb |
2002 |
J. Dixon |
Maryland |
51 pts, 7 stl |
2001 |
S. Battier |
Duke |
43 pts, 19 reb |
2000 |
M. Cleaves |
Michigan St . |
29 pts, 5 asts |
1999 |
R. Hamilton |
UConn |
51 pts, 12 reb |
1998 |
J. Sheppard |
Kentucky |
16-29, 43 pts |
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Team-by-Team Win-Loss Records |
Team |
Yrs. |
Won |
Lost |
Kentucky |
46 |
95 |
41 |
UCLA |
38 |
85 |
31 |
North Carolina |
36 |
82 |
36 |
Duke |
28 |
81 |
25 |
Kansas |
33 |
73 |
33 |
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Single-Game Scoring Performances |
Name |
Game |
Year |
Pts. |
Austin Carr |
Notre Dame vs. Ohio |
1970 |
61 |
Bill Bradley |
Princeton vs. Wichita St. |
1965 |
58 |
Oscar Robertson |
Cincinnati vs. Arkansas |
1958 |
56 |
Austin Carr |
Notre Dame vs. Kentucky |
1970 |
52 |
Austin Carr |
Notre Dame vs. TCU |
1971 |
52 |
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Final Four Team Records |
Most NCAA Championship Titles |
UCLA |
11 |
Kentucky |
7 |
Indiana |
5 |
Duke |
3 |
North Carolina |
3 |
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First-Round Shockers |
Year |
Winner (Seed) |
Loser (Seed) |
Score |
2003 |
Tulsa (13) |
Dayton (4) |
84-71 |
2002 |
UNC-Wilm. (13) |
USC (4) |
93-89 OT |
2001 |
Kent St. (13) |
Indiana (4) |
77-73 |
2001 |
Hampton (15) |
Iowa St. (2) |
58-57 |
2001 |
Indiana St. (13) |
Oklahoma (4) |
70-68 |
1999 |
Weber State (14) |
N. Carolina (3) |
76-74 |
1999 |
Oklahoma (13) |
Arizona (4) |
61-60 |
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SportsLine First Team All-Time Tourney |
Player, School |
Pos. |
PPG |
RPG |
AST |
W-L |
Bill Walton, UCLA |
C |
21.2 |
14.7 |
3.0 |
11-1 |
Christian Laettner, Duke |
F |
17.7 |
7.3 |
1.7 |
21-2 |
Bill Bradley, Princeton |
F |
33.7 |
12.0 |
|
5-4 |
Austin Carr, Notre Dame |
G |
41.3 |
7.6 |
|
2-5 |
Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati |
G |
32.4 |
13.1 |
9.4 |
7-3 |
Bobby Hurley, Duke |
PG |
12.0 |
2.4 |
7.3 |
18-2 |
Coach: John Wooden, UCLA (47-10, 10 NCAA titles) |
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2004 NCAA Tournament |
 TOP |
Championship Game Results
|
Location: San Antonio
|
1
|
2
|
T
|
|
Georgia Tech
|
26 |
47 |
73 |
|
Connecticut
|
41 |
41 |
82 |
|
Georgia Tech (73)
|
|
Player
|
Min |
FG |
3FG |
FT |
Reb
O-T |
A |
TO |
STL |
BLK |
PF |
PTS |
|
W. Bynum
|
23 |
6-11 |
3-6 |
2-6 |
0-2 |
5 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
4 |
17 |
|
B. Elder
|
28 |
4-15 |
3-8 |
3-4 |
2-4 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
14 |
|
I. Muhammad
|
16 |
5-12 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
4-5 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
10 |
|
L. Schenscher
|
28 |
4-7 |
0-0 |
1-2 |
7-11 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
9 |
|
J. Jack
|
26 |
1-8 |
0-1 |
5-6 |
0-4 |
3 |
5 |
4 |
0 |
3 |
7 |
|
C. Moore
|
24 |
3-5 |
0-1 |
1-3 |
2-10 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
7 |
|
M. Lewis
|
23 |
3-9 |
0-5 |
0-0 |
0-1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
6 |
|
A. McHenry
|
20 |
1-3 |
1-1 |
0-0 |
2-4 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
3 |
|
T. Tarver
|
11 |
0-1 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
1-2 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
R. Brooks
|
1 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Totals
|
200 |
27-71
38.0% |
7-22
31.8% |
12-21
57.1% |
18-43 |
9 |
14 |
10 |
1 |
16 |
73 |
Connecticut (82) |
Player |
Min |
FG |
3FG |
FT |
Reb
O-T |
A |
TO |
STL |
BLK |
PF |
PTS |
E. Okafor |
38 |
10-17 |
0-0 |
4-8 |
7-15 |
1 |
6 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
24 |
T. Brown |
37 |
2-6 |
0-0 |
5-8 |
0-6 |
4 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
9 |
R. Anderson |
31 |
5-10 |
2-7 |
6-8 |
2-6 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
18 |
B. Gordon |
30 |
5-17 |
3-8 |
8-9 |
0-2 |
2 |
4 |
2 |
0 |
4 |
21 |
J. Boone |
29 |
4-6 |
0-0 |
1-4 |
5-6 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
9 |
D. Brown |
19 |
0-4 |
0-2 |
0-0 |
3-6 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
C. Villanueva |
7 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0-1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
H. Armstrong |
7 |
0-1 |
0-0 |
1-2 |
0-6 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
S. Tooles |
2 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0-0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Totals |
200 |
26-61
42.6% |
5-17
29.4% |
25-39
64.1% |
17-48 |
10 |
16 |
5 |
2 |
8 |
82 |
|
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2004 Tournament Scores
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ST. LOUIS
OPENING ROUND
Florida A&M 72, Lehigh 57
FIRST ROUND br> ST. LOUIS
No. 1 Kentucky 96, No. 16 Florida A&M 76
No. 9 UAB 102, No. 8 Washington 100
No. 12 Pacific 66, No. 5 Providence 58
No. 4 Kansas 78, No. 13 Ill-Chicago 53
No. 6 Boston College 58, No. 11 Utah 51
No. 3 Georgia Tech 65, No. 14 N. Iowa 60
No. 10 Nevada 72, No. 7 Michigan St. 66
No. 2 Gonzaga 76, No. 15 Valparaiso 49
EAST RUTHERFORD
No. 1 St. Joseph's 82, No. 16 Liberty 63
No. 8 Texas Tech 76, No. 9 Charlotte 73
No. 12 Manhattan 75, No. 5 Florida 60
No. 4 Wake Forest 79, No. 13 VCU 78
No. 6 Wisconsin 76, No. 11 Richmond 64
No. 3 Pittsburgh 53, No. 14 Central Florida 44
No. 7 Memphis 59, No. 10 South Carolina 43
No. 2 Oklahoma St. 75, No. 15 E. Washington 56
ATLANTA
No. 1 Duke 96, No. 16 Alabama St. 61
No. 8 Seton Hall 80, No. 9 Arizona 76
No. 5 Illinois 72, No. 12 Murray St. 53
No. 4 Cincnnati 80, No. 13 E. Tennessee St. 77
No. 6 North Carolina 63, No. 11 Air Force 52
No. 3 Texas 66, No. 14 Princeton 49
No. 7 Xavier 80, No. 10 Louisville 70
No. 2 Mississippi St. 85, No. 15 Monmouth 52
PHOENIX
No. 1 Stanford 71, No. 16 TX-San Antonio 45
No. 8 Alabama 65, No. 9 S. Illinois 64
No. 5 Syracuse 80, No. 12 BYU 75
No. 4 Maryland 86, No. 13 UTEP 83
No. 6 Vanderbilt 71, No. 11 W. Michigan 58
No. 3 N. Carolina St. 61, No. 14 LA-Lafayette 52
No. 7 DePaul 76, No. 10 Dayton 69
No. 2 Connecticut 70, No. 15 Vermont 53
SECOND ROUND
ST. LOUIS
UAB 76, Kentucky 75
Kansas 78, Pacific 63
Georgia Tech 57, Boston College 54
Nevada 91, Gonzaga 72
EAST RUTHERFORD
St. Joseph's 70, Texas Tech 65
Wake Forest 84, Manhattan 80
Pittsburgh 59, Wisconsin 55
Oklahoma St. 70, Memphis 53
ATLANTA
Duke 90, Seton Hall 62
Illinois 92, Cincnnati 68
Texas 78, North Carolina 75
Xavier 89, Mississippi St. 74
PHOENIX
Alabama 70, Stanford 67
Syracuse 72, Maryland 70
Vanderbilt 75, N. Carolina St. 73
Connecticut 72, DePaul 55
REGIONAL SEMIFINALS
ST. LOUIS
Kansas 100, UAB 74
Georgia Tech 72, Nevada 67
EAST RUTHERFORD
St. Joseph's 84, Wake Forest 80
Oklahoma St. 63, Pittsburgh 51
ATLANTA
Duke 72, Illinois 62
Xavier 79, Texas 71
PHOENIX
Alabama 80, Syracuse 71
Connecticut 73, Vanderbilt 53
REGIONAL FINALS
ST. LOUIS
Georgia Tech 79, Kansas 71
EAST RUTHERFORD
Oklahoma St. 64, St. Joseph's 62
ATLANTA
Duke 66, Xavier 63
PHOENIX
Connecticut 87, Alabama 71
NATIONAL SEMIFINALS
Georgia Tech 67, Oklahoma St. 65
Connecticut 79, Duke 78
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Connecticut 82, Georgia Tech 73
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