2014 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

The 2014 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 68 teams playing in a single-elimination tournament that determined the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men's basketball national champion for the 2013-14 season. The 76th annual edition of the tournament began on March 18, 2014, and concluded with the championship game on April 7, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

The East Regional semifinals and final were held in Madison Square Garden, the first time that arena has been used as an NCAA Tournament venue and the first time in 63 years that tournament games have been held in New York City.

The Final Four consisted of Florida (the #1 overall seed of the tournament), making their first appearance since winning their second consecutive championship in 2007, UConn, returning after winning their 2011 national championship, Wisconsin, making their first appearance since 2000, and Kentucky, back in the Final Four after winning their 2012 national championship.

With No. 7 seed UConn and No. 8 seed Kentucky reaching the championship game, this tournament's final was the first ever not to include at least one team seeded 1–3. It was also only the third final not to feature a 1 or 2 seed (1989 #3 Michigan vs. #3 Seton Hall and 2011 #3 UConn vs. #8 Butler) and is the fourth ever (2023 #4 UConn vs #5 San Diego State). UConn defeated Kentucky in the championship game 60–54, to claim their 4th national championship as in many attempts. UConn was also the first 7 seed ever to reach and win the championship game. The two teams combined for the highest seed total in championship game history with 15. The previous record (11) was held by UConn and Butler in 2011.

The next day, the UConn Huskies women's team won the women's NCAA basketball tournament, only the second time that a school has won both the men's and women's Division I national basketball championships in the same year; UConn first accomplished this in 2004.

This was the first men's final four with a region as host instead of a city.

Tournament procedure

For 2014 the selection committee picked a total of 68 teams that would enter the 2014 tournament, of which 32 were "automatic bids" (teams winning their conference tournaments, with the exception of the Ivy League, which does not host a post-season conference tournament; thus, its regular-season conference champion is awarded the automatic bid) while the remaining 36 were "at large" bids which were extended by the NCAA Selection Committee on the Sunday preceding the First Four play-in tournament and dubbed Selection Sunday by the media and fans. The Selection Committee also seeded the entire field from 1 to 68.

Eight teams – the four lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and the four lowest-seeded at-large teams – played in the First Four (the successor to what had been popularly known as "play-in games" through the 2010 tournament). The winners of those games advanced to the main draw of the tournament.

Schedule and venues

The following are the sites selected to host each round of the 2014 tournament:

First Four March 18 and 19 University of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio (Host: University of Dayton)

First and Second rounds March 20 and 22 First Niagara Center, Buffalo, New York (Hosts: Canisius College, Niagara University, Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) Bradley Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Host: Marquette University) Amway Center, Orlando, Florida (Host: Stetson University) Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, Spokane, Washington (Host: Washington State University) March 21 and 23 PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina (Host: North Carolina State University) AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas (Host: University of Texas at San Antonio) Viejas Arena, San Diego, California (Host: San Diego State University) Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri (Host: Missouri Valley Conference)

Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight) March 27 and 29 South Regional, FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee (Host: University of Memphis) West Regional, Honda Center, Anaheim, California (Host: Big West Conference) March 28 and 30 East Regional, Madison Square Garden, New York, New York (Hosts: St. John's University, Big East Conference) Midwest Regional, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana (Hosts: IUPUI, Horizon League)

National semifinals and championship (Final Four and championship) April 5 and 7 AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas (Host: Big 12 Conference)

Qualified teams

Automatic qualifiers The following teams are automatic qualifiers for the 2014 NCAA field by virtue of winning their conference's tournament (except for the Ivy League, whose regular-season champion receives the automatic bid).

ConferenceTeamAppearanceLast bidACCVirginia18th2012America EastAlbany4th2013AmericanLouisville40th2013Atlantic 10Saint Joseph's20th2008Atlantic SunMercer3rd1985Big 12Iowa State16th2013Big EastProvidence16th2004Big SkyWeber State15th2007Big SouthCoastal Carolina3rd1993Big TenMichigan State28th2013Big WestCal Poly1stNeverColonialDelaware5th1999C-USATulsa15th2003HorizonMilwaukee4th2006Ivy LeagueHarvard4th2013MAACManhattan7th2004MACWestern Michigan4th2004MEACNorth Carolina Central1stNeverMissouri ValleyWichita State11th2013Mountain WestNew Mexico15th2013NortheastMount St. Mary's4th2008Ohio ValleyEastern Kentucky8th2007Pac-12UCLA46th2013PatriotAmerican3rd2009SECFlorida19th2013SouthernWofford3rd2011SouthlandStephen F. Austin2nd2009SWACTexas Southern5th 2003SummitNorth Dakota State2nd 2009Sun BeltLouisiana–Lafayette6th2000 West CoastGonzaga17th2013WACNew Mexico State21st2013

Tournament seeds +South Region – FedEx Forum, Memphis, TennesseeSeedSchoolConferenceRecordOverall SeedBerth typeLast bid1FloridaSEC32–21Automatic20132KansasBig 1224–97At–large20133SyracuseACC27–510At–large20134UCLAPac-1226–815Automatic20135VCUAtlantic 1026–819At–large20136Ohio StateBig Ten25–922At–large20137New MexicoMountain West27–628Automatic20138ColoradoPac-1223–1132At–large20139PittsburghACC25–936At–large201310StanfordPac-1221–1237At–large200811DaytonAtlantic 1023–1041At–large200912Stephen F. AustinSouthland31–250Automatic200913TulsaC-USA21–1252Automatic200314Western MichiganMAC23–955Automatic200415Eastern KentuckyOhio Valley24–959Automatic200716*AlbanyAmerica East18–1466Automatic2013Mount St. Mary'sNortheast16–1665Automatic2008+East Region – Madison Square Garden, New York City, New YorkSeedSchoolConferenceRecordOverall SeedBerth typeLast bid1VirginiaACC28–64Automatic20122VillanovaBig East28–45At-Large20133Iowa StateBig 1226–712Automatic20134Michigan StateBig Ten26–814Automatic20135CincinnatiAmerican27–617At-Large20136North CarolinaACC23–921At-Large20137UConnAmerican26–826At-Large20128MemphisAmerican23–931At-Large20139George WashingtonAtlantic 1024–834At-Large200710Saint Joseph'sAtlantic 1024–938Automatic200811ProvidenceBig East23–1143Automatic200412HarvardIvy26–449Automatic201313DelawareColonial25–954Automatic199914North Carolina CentralMEAC28–558AutomaticNever15MilwaukeeHorizon21–1360Automatic200616Coastal CarolinaBig South21–1263Automatic1993+West Region – Honda Center, Anaheim, CaliforniaSeedSchoolConferenceRecordOverall SeedBerth typeLast bid1ArizonaPac-1230–42At–large20132WisconsinBig Ten26–78At–large20133CreightonBig East26–711At–large20134San Diego StateMountain West29–416At–large20135OklahomaBig 1223–920At–large20136BaylorBig 1224–1124At–large20127OregonPac-1223–927At–large20138GonzagaWest Coast28–630Automatic20139Oklahoma StateBig 1221–1235At–large201310BYUWest Coast23–1139At–large201211NebraskaBig Ten19–1242At–large199812North Dakota StateSummit25–648Automatic200913New Mexico StateWAC26–953Automatic201314Louisiana-LafayetteSun Belt23–1157Automatic200015AmericanPatriot20–1262Automatic200916Weber StateBig Sky19–1164Automatic2007+Midwest Region – Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IndianaSeedSchoolConferenceRecordOverall SeedBerth typeLast bid1Wichita StateMVC34–03Automatic20132MichiganBig Ten25–86At–large20133DukeACC26–89At–large20134LouisvilleAmerican29–513Automatic20135Saint LouisAtlantic 1026–618At–large20136MassachusettsAtlantic 1024–823At–large19987TexasBig 1223–1025At–large20128KentuckySEC24–1029At–large20129Kansas StateBig 1220–1233At–large201310Arizona StatePac-1221–1140At–large200911*IowaBig Ten20–1245At–large2006TennesseeSEC21–1244At–large201112*NC StateACC21–1347At–large2013XavierBig East21–1246At–large201213ManhattanMAAC25–751Automatic200414MercerAtlantic Sun26–856Automatic198515WoffordSouthern20–1261Automatic201116*Cal PolyBig West13–1968AutomaticNeverTexas SouthernSWAC19–1467Automatic2003

*See First Four

Florida was the overall 1 seed for the second time, the other being 2007 when they repeated as national champions. Arizona was a 1 seed for the 6th time in school history. They lost in the West regional final for the 3rd straight time as a 1 seed, all games being played in Anaheim (also in 1998 and 2003). Virginia was a 1 seed for the 4th time in school history, their first since three straight 1 seeds in 1981, 1982, and 1983.

Bracket Unless otherwise noted, all times listed are Eastern Daylight Time (UTC-04)

First Four – Dayton, Ohio The First Four games involved eight teams: the four overall lowest-ranked teams, and the four lowest-ranked at-large teams.

South Regional – Memphis, Tennessee

Regional Final summary

South Regional all-tournament team Regional all-tournament team: Michael Frazier II, Florida; Devin Oliver, Dayton; Dyshawn Pierre, Dayton; Dwight Powell, Stanford

Regional most outstanding player: Scottie Wilbekin, Florida

East Regional – New York City, New York

Regional Final summary

East Regional all-tournament team Regional all-tournament team: DeAndre Daniels, UConn; Gary Harris, Michigan State; Dustin Hogue, Iowa State; Adreian Payne, Michigan State

Regional most outstanding player: Shabazz Napier, UConn

West Regional – Anaheim, California

Regional Final summary

West Regional all-tournament team Regional all-tournament team: Aaron Gordon, Arizona; Traevon Jackson, Wisconsin; Nick Johnson, Arizona; Xavier Thames, San Diego State

Regional most outstanding player: Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin

Midwest Regional – Indianapolis, Indiana

On February 20, 2018, the NCAA announced that the wins and records for Louisville's 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, and 2014–15 seasons were vacated due to the sex scandal at Louisville. Unlike forfeiture, a vacated game does not result in the other school being credited with a win, only with Louisville removing the wins from its own record.

Regional Final summary

Midwest Regional all-tournament team Regional all-tournament team: Aaron Harrison, Kentucky; Marcus Lee, Kentucky; Caris LeVert, Michigan; Nik Stauskas, Michigan

Regional most outstanding player: Julius Randle, Kentucky

Final Four During the Final Four round, regardless of the seeds of the participating teams, the champion of the top overall top seed's region plays against the champion of the fourth-ranked top seed's region, and the champion of the second overall top seed's region plays against the champion of the third-ranked top seed's region. Florida (placed in the South Regional) was selected as the top overall seed, and Virginia (in the East Regional) was named as the No. 4 overall seed. Thus, the South champion (Florida) played the East Champion (UConn) in one semifinal game, and the West Champion (Wisconsin) faced the Midwest Champion (Kentucky) in the other semifinal game. The overall No. 1 seed Florida lost only two games during the regular season: to West Champion Wisconsin and to East Champion (and eventual National Champion) UConn; Florida also played and beat Midwest Champion Kentucky twice during the regular season and again in the conference championship game.

Final Four – AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas

Game summaries

Final four

National Championship

Final Four all-tournament team Julius Randle, Kentucky James Young, Kentucky Ryan Boatright, UConn DeAndre Daniels, UConn Shabazz Napier, UConn, Most Outstanding Player