Most Outstanding
Player: Patrick Ewing,
Georgetown
After No. 1 North Carolina was upset by Indiana in the East
semifinals, No. 2 Georgetown became the clear-cut favorite.
And the Hoyas didn't disappoint, shutting down Kentucky in
the semis and then relying on a deeper bench to beat
Houston. Ewing and Houston center Akeem Olajuwon, who
picked up his third and fourth fouls in the last 49 seconds
of the first half, basically played to a standstill (10
points, nine rebounds, four blocks for Ewing; 15, 9, 2 for
Olajuwon), but Georgetown got 33 points and 12 rebounds
combined from freshman forwards Reggie Williams and Michael
Graham.
Surprise
Guests: Unranked Virginia—in its first season after the Ralph
Sampson era—upset No. 8 Arkansas (in OT) and No. 18
Syracuse en route to the Final Four. The Cavaliers had
finished fifth in the ACC and were barely above .500 in
their last 18 regular-season games
(10-8).
Close Call:
Georgetown beat Southern Methodist 37-36 in the first round
on a Ewing tip with 51 seconds
left.
Notable Performance:
In maybe the most pathetic shooting display in big-game
history, Kentucky shot 3-for-33 (0-for-21 by the starters)
and scored just 11 points in the second half of its
semifinal loss to Georgetown. The Wildcats, who finished
with a 24.5 field goal percentage, actually led 27-15 with
3:04 left in the first half and Ewing with three
fouls.
Significant Fact:
Ten teams squared off in a preliminary round for the final
four tournament
slots.
They Said It:
Olajuwon, on Georgetown—"They play team ball, the way
it's supposed to be played. We play selfish. I was open and
my teammates said they missed me. But how many times can
they miss
me?"
Swan Song:
Ray Meyer coached his 1,078th and last game at DePaul, as
the No. 4 Blue Demons lost to Wake Forest in the Midwest
semis 73-71 in OT. In 42 seasons, Meyer's record was
724-354. Houston Baptist made its only NCAA appearance,
losing to Alcorn State 79-60 in the preliminary
round.
Future First-Round
Picks: Georgetown—Patrick Ewing (1985, 1st, New York), Reggie
Williams (1987, 4th, L.A. Clippers); Houston—Akeem
Olajuwon (1984, 1st, Houston), Michael Young (1984, 24th,
Boston), Greg Anderson (1987, 23rd, San Antonio);
Kentucky—Sam Bowie (1984, 2nd, Portland), Melvin Turpin
(1984, 6th, Washington), Kenny Walker (1986, 5th, New
York); Virginia—Olden Polynice (1987, 8th,
Chicago).
