The 1984 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 53 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. The 46th annual edition of the tournament began on March 13, 1984, and ended with the championship game on April 2, at the Kingdome in Seattle. A total of 52 games were played. This was the last tournament in which some teams earned first-round byes as the field expanded to 64 teams beginning in the 1985 tournament when each team played in the first round. It was also the second year with a preliminary round; preliminary games would not be played again until 2001.

Georgetown, coached by John Thompson, won the national title with an 84–75 victory in the final game over Houston, coached by Guy Lewis. Patrick Ewing of Georgetown was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Thompson became the first African-American head coach to lead his team to any NCAA Division I title.

Georgetown reached the Final Four for the third time in school history and second time in three years to face Kentucky, a team that had never lost a national semifinal game and was led by the "Twin Towers", Sam Bowie and Melvin Turpin. Bowie and Turpin managed to get Ewing into foul trouble early, and with him on the bench and Reggie Williams shooting only 1-for-7 (14.3%) from the field during the game, the Wildcats raced out to a 27–15 lead with 3:06 left in the first half. After that, however, the Hoyas made a defensive stand still unequalled in college basketball: Kentucky scored only two more points in the first half; the Wildcats also did not score in the first 9 minutes 55 seconds of the second half, missing their first 12 shots and after that shooting 3-for-21 (14.3%) during the remainder of the game. Overall, Kentucky shot 3-for-33 (9.1 percent) from the field during the second half. Although he played for only 17 minutes and suffered a season-ending foot injury in the second half, Gene Smith had one of the best defensive games of his career. Bowie and Turpin finished the game a combined 5-for-21, Wingate scored 12 points and held Kentucky's Jim Master to 2-for-7 (28.6%) shooting from the field, Michael Jackson scored 12 points and pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds, and Georgetown won 53–40 to advance to the national final for the third time in school history and second time in three years.

In the first national semifinal, Houston, playing in its third consecutive Final Four, edged Virginia, which reached the Final Four as a No. 7 seed in the East region, 49–47. The Cavaliers reached the national semifinals despite the graduation of four-time All-American Ralph Sampson the previous season. Coincidentally, Houston's All-America center, Akeem Olajuwon, would soon become Sampson's teammate with the Houston Rockets.

In the NCAA final, Georgetown faced Houston on April 2. Reggie Williams demonstrated his true potential for the first time, putting in a strong defensive performance and shooting 9-for-18 (50.0%) from the field with 19 points and seven rebounds in the game, while David Wingate scored 16 points and Ewing managed 10 points and nine rebounds. Jackson scored 11 points and had six assists, two of which set up Ewing and Michael Graham for decisive baskets late in the game. The game was decided well before the final whistle, and the Hoyas won the school's first national championship 84–75. Late in the game, with Georgetown enjoying a comfortable lead, Thompson began to pull starters out and give bench players some time on the court; the game's enduring image came when senior guard Fred Brown came out of the game. Two years earlier, Brown had mistakenly passed the ball to North Carolina's James Worthy in the last seconds of the 1982 championship game, ruining Georgetown's chances for a final game-winning shot and allowing North Carolina to take the national championship, and cameras had captured Thompson consoling a devastated Brown with a hug as the Tar Heels celebrated. As Brown left the 1984 championship game, cameras caught Brown and Thompson again embracing on the sideline, this time to celebrate a victory.

Schedule and venues

The following are the sites that were selected to host each round of the 1984 tournament, and their host(s):

Opening Round March 13 East/West Regions Palestra, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Hosts: University of Pennsylvania, Temple University) Mideast/Midwest Regions University of Dayton Arena, Dayton, Ohio (Host: University of Dayton)

First/Second Rounds March 15 and 17 East Region Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina (Host: University of North Carolina at Charlotte) Mideast Region BJCC Coliseum, Birmingham, Alabama (Host: Southeastern Conference) Midwest Region Mid-South Coliseum, Memphis, Tennessee (Host: Memphis State University) West Region Special Events Center, Salt Lake City, Utah (Host: University of Utah) March 16 and 18 East Region Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey (Host: Seton Hall University) Mideast Region MECCA Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Hosts: University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Marquette University) Midwest Region Bob Devaney Sports Center, Lincoln, Nebraska (Host: University of Nebraska–Lincoln) West Region Beasley Coliseum, Pullman, Washington (Host: Washington State University)

Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen/Elite Eight) March 22 and 24 East Regional, Omni Coliseum, Atlanta, Georgia (Host: Georgia Tech) Mideast Regional, Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky (Host: University of Kentucky) March 23 and 25 Midwest Regional, St. Louis Arena, St. Louis, Missouri (Host: Missouri Valley Conference) West Regional, Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, California (Host: UCLA)

National semifinals and championship (Final Four and championship) March 31 and April 2 Kingdome, Seattle, Washington (Host: University of Washington)

Teams Region Seed Team Coach Conference Finished Final Opponent Score East East 1 North Carolina Dean Smith ACC Sweet Sixteen4 IndianaL 72–68 East 2 Arkansas Eddie Sutton Southwest Round of 327 VirginiaL 53–51 East 3 Syracuse Jim Boeheim Big East Sweet Sixteen7 VirginiaL 63–55 East 4 Indiana Bob Knight Big Ten Regional Runner-up7 VirginiaL 50–48 East 5 Auburn Sonny Smith SEC Round of 4812 RichmondL 72–71 East 6 VCU J. D. Barnett Sun Belt Round of 323 SyracuseL 78–63 East 7 Virginia Terry Holland ACC National semifinals2 HoustonL 49–47 East 8 Temple John Chaney Atlantic 10 Round of 321 North CarolinaL 77–66 East 9 St. John's Lou Carnesecca Big East Round of 488 TempleL 65–63 East 10 Iona Pat Kennedy MAAC Round of 487 VirginiaL 58–57 East 11 Long Island Paul Lizzo ECAC Metro Preliminary Round11 NortheasternL 90–87 East 11 Northeastern Jim Calhoun ECAC North Round of 486 VCUL 70–69 East 12 Richmond Dick Tarrant ECAC South Round of 324 IndianaL 75–67 East 12 Rider John Carpenter East Coast Preliminary Round12 RichmondL 89–65 Mideast Mideast 1 Kentucky Joe B. Hall SEC National semifinals1 GeorgetownL 53–40 Mideast 2 Illinois Lou Henson Big Ten Regional Runner-up1 KentuckyL 54–51 Mideast 3 Maryland Lefty Driesell ACC Sweet Sixteen2 IllinoisL 72–70 Mideast 4 Tulsa Nolan Richardson Missouri Valley Round of 325 LouisvilleL 69–67 Mideast 5 Louisville Denny Crum Metro Sweet Sixteen1 KentuckyL 72–67 Mideast 6 Oregon State Ralph Miller Pacific-10 Round of 4811 West VirginiaL 64–62 Mideast 7 Villanova Rollie Massimino Big East Round of 322 IllinoisL 64–56 Mideast 8 BYU LaDell Andersen WAC Round of 321 KentuckyL 93–68 Mideast 9 UAB Gene Bartow Sun Belt Round of 488 BYUL 84–68 Mideast 10 Marshall Rick Huckabay Southern Round of 487 VillanovaL 84–72 Mideast 11 West Virginia Gale Catlett Atlantic 10 Round of 323 MarylandL 102–77 Mideast 12 Morehead State Wayne Martin Ohio Valley Round of 485 LouisvilleL 72–59 Mideast 12 North Carolina A&T Don Corbett MEAC Preliminary Round12 Morehead StateL 70–69 Midwest Midwest 1 DePaul Ray Meyer Independent Sweet Sixteen4 Wake ForestL 73–71 Midwest 2 Houston Guy Lewis Southwest Runner Up1 GeorgetownL 84–75 Midwest 3 Purdue Gene Keady Big Ten Round of 326 Memphis StateL 66–48 Midwest 4 Wake Forest Carl Tacy ACC Regional Runner-up2 HoustonL 68–63 Midwest 5 Kansas Larry Brown Big Eight Round of 324 Wake ForestL 69–59 Midwest 6 Memphis State (Vacated) Dana Kirk Metro Sweet Sixteen2 HoustonL 78–71 Midwest 7 Fresno State Boyd Grant Pacific Coast Round of 4810 Louisiana TechL 66–56 Midwest 8 Illinois State Bob Donewald Missouri Valley Round of 321 DePaulL 75–61 Midwest 9 Alabama Wimp Sanderson SEC Round of 488 Illinois StateL 49–48 Midwest 10 Louisiana Tech Andy Russo Southland Round of 322 HoustonL 77–69 Midwest 11 Oral Roberts Dick Acres Midwestern City Round of 486 Memphis StateL 92–83 Midwest 12 Alcorn State Davey Whitney SWAC Round of 485 KansasL 57–56 Midwest 12 Houston Baptist Gene Iba Trans America Preliminary Round12 Alcorn StateL 79–60 West West 1 Georgetown John Thompson Big East Champion2 HoustonW 84–75 West 2 Oklahoma Billy Tubbs Big Eight Round of 3210 DaytonL 89–85 West 3 Duke Mike Krzyzewski ACC Round of 326 WashingtonL 80–78 West 4 UTEP Don Haskins WAC Round of 325 UNLVL 73–60 West 5 UNLV Jerry Tarkanian Pacific Coast Sweet Sixteen1 GeorgetownL 62–48 West 6 Washington Marv Harshman Pacific-10 Sweet Sixteen10 DaytonL 64–58 West 7 LSU Dale Brown SEC Round of 4810 DaytonL 74–66 West 8 Miami (OH) Darrell Hedric MAC Round of 489 SMUL 83–69 West 9 SMU Dave Bliss Southwest Round of 321 GeorgetownL 37–36 West 10 Dayton Don Donoher Independent Regional Runner-up1 GeorgetownL 61–49 West 11 Nevada Sonny Allen Big Sky Round of 486 WashingtonL 64–54 West 12 Princeton Pete Carril Ivy League Round of 485 UNLVL 68–56 West 12 San Diego Jim Brovelli West Coast Preliminary Round12 PrincetonL 65–56

Bracket * – Denotes overtime period

Preliminary round

East Regional – Atlanta, Georgia

Midwest Regional – St. Louis, Missouri

# - Memphis State was forced to vacate its NCAA tournament appearance after a massive gambling scandal and criminal investigation into head coach Dana Kirk. Unlike forfeiture, a vacated game does not result in the other school being credited with a win, only with Memphis removing the wins from its own record.

Mideast Regional – Lexington, Kentucky

West Regional – Los Angeles

Final Four

Championship game

Broadcast information

Television CBS Sports Brent Musburger served as Studio Host Gary Bender and Billy Packer – first round (Dayton-LSU) at Salt Lake City, Utah; Second Round at Charlotte, North Carolina (North Carolina–Temple, Indiana–Richmond) and Lincoln, Nebraska (DePaul–Illinois State, Wake Forest–Kansas); East Regional semifinal (North Carolina–Indiana) and Regional Final at Atlanta, Georgia; West Regional Final at Los Angeles, California; Final Four at Seattle, Washington Verne Lundquist and Steve Grote – second round at Memphis, Tennessee (Houston–Louisiana Tech, Memphis State–Purdue) and Milwaukee, Wisconsin (Tulsa–Louisville, Illinois–Villanova); Midwest Regional semifinal (DePaul–Wake Forest) and Regional Final at St. Louis, Missouri Frank Glieber and Larry Conley – first (Miami of Ohio–SMU) and second (Georgetown–SMU, Duke–Washington) rounds at Pullman, Washington; Mideast Regional Final at Lexington, Kentucky Dick Stockton and Bill Raftery – second round at East Rutherford, New Jersey (Arkansas–Virginia, Syracuse–VCU); West Regional semifinal (Georgetown–UNLV) at Los Angeles, California Frank Herzog and James Brown – second round at Birmingham, Alabama (Kentucky–Brigham Young, Maryland–West Virginia) Tim Ryan and Lynn Shackelford – second round at Salt Lake City, Utah (Oklahoma–Dayton, UTEP–UNLV)

ESPN/NCAA Productions Bob Ley served as Studio host and Dick Vitale as Studio analyst Jim Thacker and Irv Brown – East Regional semifinal (Syracuse–Virginia) at Atlanta, Georgia Tom Hammond and Larry Conley – preliminary round at Dayton, Ohio; Mideast Regional semifinals at Lexington, Kentucky