Villanova versus. Georgetown, 66-64, 1985: Villanova wins. The Wildcats beat Georgetown for the third time in four years. They also defeated them in 1983 and '84. All three games were in Philadelphia. The '83 and '84 victories are still considered among the greatest upsets in NCAA history.
The 1985 game was no different. It had all the makings of a classic: two top 10 teams, ranked 1-2; national title implications on the line. As the clock struck zero, there was hope yet again that the Hoyas would claim their first championship in thirty years. Instead, coach Joe Mazzola's Wildcats went on to win their second consecutive title with a final score of 66-64.
Joe Mazzella's squad outscored their opponents by ten points per game during the tournament. He is the only coach to lead his team to victory in each of its first three rounds before going on to win it all. His career record is 111-20. The '85 championship was his second overall and he is still active today at the age of eighty-three years old.
1985 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Game
The 1985 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team represented Villanova University in the 1985 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. The team was led by first-year head coach Jay Wright and played its home games at the Pavilion. As a 10-seed, they defeated 2-seed Michigan State in the second round before losing to 3-seed Georgetown in the quarterfinals. The 10-7 record earned them a spot in the 1985 National Invitation Tournament where they lost to St. John's in the first round.
1985 was a big year for Wildcat basketball. They finished the season with a 30-4 record, their third straight 30-win season. It also marked the first time since 1939 that the school had three consecutive winning seasons. The team was awarded its third national championship by the McDonald's College All-American Team on April 4, 1985. Led by First Team All-Americans Tony Jones and Dwayne McClain along with Second Team All-American Jason Phillips, the Wildcats defeated Michigan State, 33-32, in the second round before falling to Georgetown, 46-44, in the quarterfinals.
Finals of the 1985 NBA (Champion) San Antonio Spurs vs. Miami Heat game summary table.
Spurs wins title 4-3.
1985 - April 24th, 1985: Miami defeats San Antonio 4-3 to take home their first championship.
This is the only season where a champion was decided by a final four match up. Previously, from 1957-1976, there had been five titles decided by the Finals. The best record after three games would win each series.
The Spurs were led by Hall of Fame player and coach Gregg Popovich, who is known for his defensive-minded style of play. He had also never lost a Finals series before this year's finale. Meanwhile, Miami's star player was Michael Jordan, who had just completed his third season with the team. They relied on their balanced attack featuring players like Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish. This was also the first time that two teams featured multiple players who would go on to be named MVP of the League during their respective seasons.
Miami won the first two games in San Antonio before suffering its first loss of the series in Game 3.
The 1986 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament featured 64 teams competing in single-elimination play to decide the men's NCAA Division I collegiate basketball national champion. It began on March 13, 1986, and finished on March 31, 1986, with the championship game in Dallas, Texas. There were a total of 63 games played. The University of North Carolina won its second consecutive title by defeating the Georgetown Hoyas 69–67 in double overtime.
The tournament was held over two rounds called the "first round" and "second round". In 1986, there were only 48 teams participating in the first round. The remaining 16 teams would have their first round games played during the "second round". Each round consisted of a best-of-three series between two teams. If the third game was needed, then the series would become a best-of-five game. A team was declared the winner of a round once all three or all five games had been played. If the series remained tied after five games, then a tiebreaker procedure would be used to determine a final winner. This could include any of the following methods: head-to-head record, score differential in their meetings, degree of difficulty of their opponents' schedule, record against regional rivals, coin toss, etc.
The top eight teams from 1985 advanced to the first round while the next four teams advanced to the second round. These 12 teams were seeded 1 through 8 based on their rankings at the conclusion of the 1985 season.
Here are the top eight collegiate basketball contests of all time.
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