The 1985 NCAA tournament was the first NCAA tournament with a 64-team bracket, expanding from the 53-team bracket that was used in 1984. The 64-team format continued until 2001, when the tournament expanded to 65 teams and later 68 teams in 2011.
Villanova upset defending national champion Georgetown 66-64 in the national championship. The No. 8 seeded Wildcats remain the lowest seed to win the title.
This year's event is also notable in that it was the last one before the shot clock. The Final Four also had three teams from the same conference (Big East): Villanova, Georgetown and St. John's.
1985 NCAA tournament: Bracket
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1985 NCAA tournament: Scores
- First Round (Round of 64)
- East Regional
- No. 1 Georgetown 68, No. 16 Lehigh 43
- No. 8 Temple 60, No. 9 Virginia Tech 57
- No. 5 SMU 85, No. 12 Old Dominion 68
- No. 4 Loyola Chicago 59, No. 13 Iona 58
- No. 6 Georgia 67, No. 11 Wichita State 59
- No. 3 Illinois 76, No. 14 Northeastern 57
- No. 7 Syracuse 70, No. 10 DePaul 65
- No. 2 Georgia Tech 65, No. 15 Mercer 58
- Midwest Regional
- No. 1 Oklahoma 96, No. 16 North Carolina A&T 83
- No. 9 Illinois State 58, No. 8 Southern California 55
- No. 5 Louisiana Tech 78, No. 12 Pittsburgh 54
- No. 4 Ohio State 75, No. 13 Iowa State 64
- No. 11 Boston College 55, No. 6 Texas Tech 53
- No. 3 Duke 75, No. 14 Pepperdine 62
- No. 7 UAB 70, No. 10 Michigan State 68
- No. 2 Memphis State 67, No. 15 Penn 55
- Southeast Regional
- No. 1 Michigan 59, No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson 55
- No. 8 Villanova 51, No. 9 Dayton 49
- No. 5 Maryland 69, No. 12 Miami (Ohio) 68 (OT)
- No. 13 Navy 78, No. 4 LSU 55
- No. 11 Auburn 59, No. 6 Purdue 58
- No. 3 Kansas 49, No. 14 Ohio 38
- No. 7 Notre Dame 79, No. 10 Oregon State 70
- No. 2 North Carolina 76, No. 15 Middle Tennessee State 57
- West Regional
- No. 1 St. John's 83, No. 16 Southern 59
- No. 9 Arkansas 63, No. 8 Iowa 54
- No. 12 Kentucky 66, No. 5 Washington 58
- No. 4 UNLV 85, No. 13 San Diego State 80
- No. 11 UTEP 79, No. 6 Tulsa 75
- No. 3 NC State 65, No. 14 Nevada 56
- No. 7 Alabama 50, No. 10 Arizona 41
- No. 2 VCU 81, No. 15 Marshall 65
- East Regional
- Second Round (Round of 32)
- East Regional
- No. 1 Georgetown 63, No. 8 Temple 46
- No. 4 Loyola Chicago 70, No. 5 SMU 57
- No. 3 Illinois 74, No. 6 Georgia 58
- No. 2 Georgia Tech 70, No. 7 Syracuse 53
- Midwest Regional
- No. 1 Oklahoma 75, No. 9 Illinois State 69
- No. 5 Louisiana Tech 79, No. 4 Ohio State 67
- No. 11 Boston College 74, No. 3 Duke 73
- No. 2 Memphis State 67, No. 7 UAB 66 (OT)
- Southeast Regional
- No. 8 Villanova 59, No. 1 Michigan 55
- No. 5 Maryland 64, No. 13 Navy 59
- No. 11 Auburn 66, No. 3 Kansas 64
- No. 2 North Carolina 60, No. 7 Notre Dame 58
- West Regional
- No. 1 St. John's 68, No. 9 Arkansas 65
- No. 12 Kentucky 64, No. 4 UNLV 61
- No. 3 NC State 86, No. 11 UTEP 73
- No. 7 Alabama 63, No. 2 VCU 59
- East Regional
- Sweet 16
- East Regional
- No. 1 Georgetown 65, No. 4 Loyola Chicago 53
- No. 2 Georgia Tech 61, No. 3 Illinois 53
- Midwest Regional
- No. 1 Oklahoma 86, No. 5 Louisiana Tech 84 (OT)
- No. 2 Memphis State 59, No. 11 Boston College 57
- Southeast Regional
- No. 8 Villanova 46, No. 5 Maryland 43
- No. 2 North Carolina 62, No. 11 Auburn 56
- West Regional
- No. 1 St. John's 86, No. 12 Kentucky 70
- No. 3 NC State 61, No. 7 Alabama 55
- East Regional
- Elite Eight
- East Regional
- No. 1 Georgetown 60, No. 2 Georgia Tech 54
- Midwest Regional
- No. 2 Memphis State 63, No. 1 Oklahoma 61
- Southeast Regional
- No. 8 Villanova 56, No. 2 North Carolina 44
- West Regional
- No. 1 St. John's 69, No. 3 NC State 60
- East Regional
- Final Four (Lexington, Kentucky)
- National semifinals
- No. 1 Georgetown 77, No. 1 St. John's 59
- No. 8 Villanova 52, No. 2 Memphis State 45
- National championship
- No. 8 Villanova 66, No. 1 Georgetown 64 | Watch full replay
- National semifinals
1985 NCAA tournament: Upsets
The following double-digit seeds won games:
Team | Score | Opponent |
---|---|---|
FIRST ROUND (Round of 64) | ||
No. 11 Auburn | 59-58 | No. 6 Purdue |
No. 11 UTEP | 79-75 | No. 6 Tulsa |
No. 12 Kentucky | 66-58 | No. 5 Washington |
No. 13 Navy | 78-55 | No. 4 LSU |
No. 11 Boston College | 55-53 | No. 6 Texas Tech |
SECOND ROUND (Round of 32) | ||
No. 11 Auburn | 66-64 | No. 3 Kansas |
No. 11 Boston College | 74-73 | No. 3 Duke |
No. 12 Kentucky | 64-61 | No. 4 UNLV |
1985 NCAA tournament: Stats, records
Here are the 1985 NCAA tournament leaders (number of games in parentheses):
Individual scoring
- Kenny Walker, Kentucky (3): 25.0 points per game
Individual rebounding
- Karl Malone, Louisiana Tech (3): 13.3 rebounds per game
Records
- No. 8 Villanova is the lowest seed to win a national championship
- Three Final Four teams came from the same conference (Big East — Villanova, Georgetown, St. John's)
- The higher-seeded team won every game in the East Regional