basketball-men-d1 flag

Andy Wittry | NCAA.com | May 15, 2020

1948 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records

Kentucky won its first-ever national championship in 1948 as the Wildcats knocked off Baylor 58-42 inside Madison Square Garden. Holy Cross and Kansas State also made the Final Four, with the Crusaders winning the third-place game.

The Wildcats would also win the national championship in 1949, becoming just the second men's basketball team to win back-to-back titles.

Just eight teams qualified for the 1948 NCAA tournament. Kentucky's Alex Groza was named the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player and he led all scorers in the tournament with 54 points in three games. Groza scored a game-high 14 points in the national championship game.

1948 NCAA tournament: Bracket

Click here for printable bracket.

1948 NCAA tournament bracket

1948 NCAA tournament: Scores

  • Quarterfinals
    • Kentucky 76, Columbia 53
    • Holy Cross 63, Michigan 45
    • Kansas State 58, Wyoming 48
    • Baylor 64, Washington 62
  • Semifinals
    • Kentucky 60, Holy Cross 52
    • Baylor 60, Kansas State 52
  • National Championship
    • Kentucky 58, Baylor 42
  • Third-Place Game
    • Holy Cross 60, Kansas State 54
  • Regional Third-Place Games
    • Michigan 66, Columbia 49
    • Washington 57, Wyoming 47

1948 NCAA tournament: Stats, records

Here are the 1948 NCAA tournament leaders (number of games in parentheses):

Individual scoring

  • Jack Nichols, Washington: 19.5 points per game

Records

  • Tied for the fewest points at halftime in the national championship game: 16 points, Baylor

College basketball's 9 winningest teams

Here are the top nine college basketball programs in terms of all-time wins.
READ MORE

The winningest DI men's college basketball programs from every state

These are the winningest Division I men's college basketball program in every state, ranked by total number of wins and winning percentage.
READ MORE

The 2023 Bowerman watch list for men's and women's NCAA track and field

Here are the finalists for the 2023 Bowerman, highlighting some of the best athletes in DI track and field.
READ MORE

Subscribe To Email Updates

Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners