NCAA Basketball Past Champions
| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Third Place | Fourth Place |
| 1939 | Oregon | 46-33 | Ohio St. | Oklahoma * | Villanova * |
| 1940 | Indiana | 60-42 | Kansas | Duquesne* | Southern California* |
| 1941 | Wisconsin | 39-34 | Washington St. | Pittsburgh* | Arkansas* |
| 1942 | Stanford | 53-38 | Dartmouth | Colorado* | Kentucky* |
| 1943 | Wyoming | 46-34 | Georgetown | Texas* | DePaul* |
| 1944 | Utah | 42-40 | Dartmouth | Iowa St.* | Ohio St.* |
| 1945 | Oklahoma St. | 49-45 | New York U. | Arkansas* | Ohio St.* |
| 1946 | Oklahoma St. | 43-40+ | North Carolina | Ohio St. | California |
| 1947 | Holy Cross | 58-47 | Oklahoma | Texas | CCNY |
| 1948 | Kentucky | 58-42 | Baylor | Holy Cross | Kansas St. |
| 1949 | Kentucky | 46-36 | Oklahoma St. | Illinois | Oregon St. |
| 1950 | CCNY | 71-68 | Bradley | North Carolina St. | Baylor |
| 1951 | Kentucky | 68-58 | Kansas St. | Illinois | Oklahoma St. |
| 1952 | Kansas | 80-63 | St.John's (N.Y.) | Illinois | Santa Clara |
| 1953 | Indiana | 69-68 | Kansas | Washington | LSU |
| 1954 | La Salle | 92-76 | Bradley | Penn St. | Southern California |
| 1955 | San Francisco | 77-63 | La Salle | Colorado | Iowa |
| 1956 | San Francisco | 83-71 | Iowa | Temple | Southern Methodist |
| 1957 | North Carolina | 54-53# | Kansas | San Francisco | Michigan St. |
| 1958 | Kentucky | 84-72 | Seattle | Temple | Kansas St. |
| 1959 | California | 71-70 | West Virginia | Cincinnati | Louisville |
| 1960 | Ohio St. | 75-55 | California | Cincinnati | New York U. |
| 1961 | Cincinnati | 70-65+ | Ohio St. | St.Joseph's% | Utah |
| 1962 | Cincinnati | 71-59+ | Ohio St. | Wake Forest | UCLA |
| 1963 | Loyola (Ill.) | 60-58 | Cincinnati | Duke | Oregon St. |
| 1964 | UCLA | 98-83 | Duke | Michigan | Kansas St. |
| 1965 | UCLA | 91-90 | Michigan | Princeton | Wichita St. |
| 1966 | UTEP | 72-65 | Kentucky | Duke | Utah |
| 1967 | UCLA | 79-64 | Dayton | Houston | North Carolina |
| 1968 | UCLA | 78-55 | North Carolina | Ohio St. | Houston |
| 1969 | UCLA | 92-72 | Purdue | Drake | North Carolina |
| 1970 | UCLA | 80-69 | Jacksonville | New Mexico St. | St. Bonaventure |
| 1971 | UCLA | 68-62 | Villanova% | Western Ky.% | Kansas |
| 1972 | UCLA | 81-76 | Florida St. | North Carolina | Louisville |
| 1973 | UCLA | 87-66 | Memphis | Indiana | Providence |
| 1974 | North Carolina St. | 76-64 | Marquette | UCLA | Kansas |
| 1975 | UCLA | 92-85 | Kentucky | Louisville | Syracuse |
| 1976 | Indiana | 86-68 | Michigan | UCLA | Rutgers |
| 1977 | Marquette | 67-59 | North Carolina | UNLV | UNC Charlotte |
| 1978 | Kentucky | 94-88 | Duke | Arkansas | Notre Dame |
| 1979 | Michigan St. | 75-64 | Indiana St. | DePaul | Pennsylvania |
| 1980 | Louisville | 59-54 | UCLA% | Purdue | Iowa |
| 1981 | Indiana | 63-50 | North Carolina | Virginia | LSU |
| 1982 | North Carolina | 63-62 | Georgetown | Houston* | Louisville* |
| 1983 | North Carolina St. | 54-52 | Houston | Georgia* | Louisville* |
| 1984 | Georgetown | 84-75 | Houston | Kentucky* | Virginia* |
| 1985 | Villanova | 66-64 | Georgetown | Memphis*% | St.John's (N.Y.)* |
| 1986 | Louisville | 72-69 | Duke | Kansas* | LSU* |
| 1987 | Indiana | 74-73 | Syracuse | UNLV* | Providence* |
| 1988 | Kansas | 83-79 | Oklahoma | Arizona* | Duke* |
| 1989 | Michigan | 80-79+ | Seton Hall | Duke* | Illinois* |
| 1990 | UNLV | 103-73 | Duke | Arkansas* | Georgia Tech* |
| 1991 | Duke | 72-65 | Kansas | North Carolina* | UNLV* |
| 1992 | Duke | 71-51 | Michigan | Cincinnati* | Indiana* |
| 1993 | North Carolina | 77-71 | Michigan | Kansas* | Kentucky* |
| 1994 | Arkansas | 76-72 | Duke | Arizona* | Florida* |
| 1995 | UCLA | 89-78 | Arkansas | North Carolina* | Oklahoma St.* |
| 1996 | Kentucky | 76-67 | Syracuse | Massachusetts* | Mississippi St.* |
| 1997 | Arizona | 84-79+ | Kentucky | Minnesota* % | North Carolina* |
| 1998 | Kentucky | 78-69 | Utah | North Carolina* | Stanford* |
| 1999 | Connecticut | 77-74 | Duke | Michigan St.* | Ohio St.* |
| 2000 | Michigan St. | 89-76 | Florida | North Carolina* | Wisconsin* |
| 2001 | Duke | 82-72 | Arizona | Maryland* | Michigan St.* |
| 2002 | Maryland | 64-52 | Indiana | Kansas* | Oklahoma* |
| 2003 | Syracuse | 81-78 | Kansas | Texas* | Marquette* |
| *Tied for third place. +Overtime. #Three Overtimes. %Record later vacated. | |||||
| Consolation game discontinued after 1981. | |||||
