1998 NCAA Basketball Tournaments: A Year of Upsets and Dominance

The year 1998 witnessed compelling narratives unfold in both the NCAA Division I Women's and Men's Basketball Tournaments. From stunning upsets to dominant championship runs, the tournaments delivered memorable moments that continue to resonate in college basketball history.

1998 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament

The 1998 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament commenced on March 13, 1998, and culminated on March 29, 1998, with Tennessee securing the national title. The Final Four showdown took place at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri, from March 27-29, 1998.

Final Four and Championship

Tennessee, Louisiana Tech, NC State, and Arkansas emerged as the Final Four contenders. Tennessee triumphed over Arkansas 86-58 in the semi-final game, while Louisiana Tech also won their semi-final Final Four matchup. Ultimately, Tennessee clinched the championship, solidifying their dominance in women's college basketball.

Unbeaten Entrants and Historic Upsets

A notable occurrence marked the 1998 tournament: for the first time in either the men's or women's tournament, two teams, Tennessee and Liberty, entered the competition with undefeated records. This feat was later replicated in 2014 by the Connecticut and Notre Dame women's teams. However, Liberty's run was cut short in the Mideast Regional, as they were defeated by the Lady Vols with a score of 102-58.

The West Regional witnessed a historic upset when Harvard, a #16 seed, triumphed over an injury-ridden #1 seed Stanford on their home court with a score of 71-67. This marked the first instance in either the men's or women's tournament where a #16 seed defeated a #1 seed, a feat not repeated until 2018 in the men's tournament.

Arkansas' Remarkable Run

Adding to the tournament's surprises, 9th-seeded Arkansas made an improbable run to the Final Four, becoming the highest seed ever to achieve this feat in the women's tournament. As of today, the ninth-seeded Razorbacks remain the lowest-seeded team to ever reach the Final Four in the women's tournament. Only 10th-seeded Oregon in 2017, 10th-seeded Creighton in 2022 and 11th-seeded Gonzaga in 2011 have even reached an Elite Eight to be in position to break this record. Moreover, Arkansas remains the only 9 seed to even reach the Elite Eight in the women's tournament.

Other Notable Facts

The 1998 tournament was the last time that two number 1 seeds failed to make the Sweet Sixteen, a feat not repeated until the 2023 tournament. Ticha Penicheiro of Old Dominion set a record for the most steals in an NCAA tournament, with 23 steals, since the statistic was first recorded in 1988.

Tournament Structure and Participants

Sixty-four teams were selected to participate in the 1998 NCAA Tournament. Thirty conferences were granted automatic bids, with nineteen of these conferences represented solely by their automatic bid winner. The teams were seeded and assigned to four geographic regions, with seeds 1-16 in each region. In the first round, seeds 1 and 16 faced off, as did seeds 2 and 15, seeds 3 and 14, seeds 4 and 13, seeds 5 and 12, seeds 6 and 11, seeds 7 and 10, and seeds 8 and 9. The top four seeds were given the opportunity to host the first-round games. The sixty-four teams represented thirty-four states, plus Washington, D.C. California, Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina each had the most teams participating, with four bids each.

1998 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament

The 1998 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament involved 64 schools competing in single-elimination games to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. The 60th annual edition of the tournament commenced on March 12, 1998, and concluded with the championship game on March 30, at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

Kentucky's Championship Run

Kentucky emerged victorious in the 1998 NCAA tournament, marking the program's second title in three years. It was also the Wildcats' third consecutive appearance in the national final. Jeff Sheppard of Kentucky was honored as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Tournament highlights include Kentucky rallying from double-digit deficits in its final three tournament games and No. 13 Valparaiso making the Sweet 16. Kentucky came back from double-digit deficits in each of its last three games in the tournament, including a 17-point second half comeback against the Duke Blue Devils, leading to the school's fans dubbing the team the "Comeback Cats".

Read also: Crafting Your NCAA Profile

Notable Moments and Upsets

For the second time in three years, a top-seeded team failed to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. Valpo's run included Bryce Drew's buzzer-beating 3-pointer to shock No.

Newcomers and Regional Action

Three conference champions, Northern Arizona (Big Sky), Radford (Big South), and Prairie View A&M (SWAC), made their first NCAA tournament appearances.

Regional sites included:

MCI Center, Washington, D.C.
Midwest Regional, Kiel Center, St. Louis
South Regional, Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg.
South Regional - St. Petersburg.
Midwest Regional - St. Louis
Kiel Center - St. Louis

Broadcast Teams

The broadcast teams for the tournament included:

Jim Nantz/Billy Packer/Michele Tafoya - First & Second Round at Atlanta, Georgia; South Regional at St. Petersburg.
Tim Brando/Al McGuire/Craig James - First & Second Round at Lexington, Kentucky; Midwest Regional at St. Louis

Vacated Wins

All of Michigan's wins from the 1997-98 season were vacated on November 7, 2002, as part of the settlement of the University of Michigan basketball scandal.

Game Scores

The following scores are from the 1998 NCAA Tournament:

No. 1 North Carolina 88, No.
No. 8 UNC Charlotte 77, No.
No. 5 Princeton 69, No.
No. 4 Michigan State 83, No.
No. 11 Washington 69, No.
No. 14 Richmond 62, No.
No. 7 Indiana 94, No.
No. 2 UConn 93, No.
No. 1 Arizona 99, No.
No. 9 Illinois State 82, No.
No. 5 Illinois 64, No.
No. 4 Maryland 82, No.
No. 6 Arkansas 74, No.
No. 3 Utah 85, No.
No. 10 West Virginia 82, No.
No. 2 Cincinnati 65, No.
No. 1 Duke 99, No.
No. 8 Oklahoma State 74, No.
No. 5 Syracuse 63, No.
No. 4 New Mexico 79, No.
No. 6 UCLA 65, No.
No. 3 Michigan 80, No.
No. 10 Saint Louis 51, No.
No. 2 Kentucky 82, No.
No. 1 Kansas 110, No.
No. 8 Rhode Island 97, No.
No. 12 Florida State 96, No.
No. 13 Valparaiso 70, No.
No. 11 Western Michigan 75, No.
No. 3 Stanford 67, No.
No. 10 Detroit 66, No.
No. 7 St.
No. 2 Purdue 95, No.
No. 1 North Carolina 93, No.
No. 4 Michigan State 63, No.
No. 11 Washington 81, No.
No. 2 UConn 78, No.
No. 1 Arizona 82, No.
No. 4 Maryland 67, No.
No. 3 Utah 75, No.
No. 10 West Virginia 75, No.
No. 1 Duke 79, No.
No. 5 Syracuse 56, No.
No. 6 UCLA 85, No.
No. 2 Kentucky 88, No.
No. 8 Rhode Island 80, No.
No. 13 Valparaiso 83, No.
No. 3 Stanford 83, No.
No. 2 Purdue 80, No.
No. 1 North Carolina 73, No.
No. 2 UConn 75, No.
No. 1 Arizona 87, No.
No. 3 Utah 65, No.
No. 1 Duke 80, No.
No. 2 Kentucky 94, No.
No. 8 Rhode Island 74, No.
No. 3 Stanford 67, No.
No. 1 North Carolina 75, No.
No. 3 Utah 76, No.
No. 2 Kentucky 86, No.
No. 3 Stanford 79, No.
No. 3 Utah 65, No.
No. 2 Kentucky 86, No.
No. 2 Kentucky 78, No.

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