The 2000 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament: A Detailed Overview
The 2000 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament was a memorable event in college basketball history. It was the 62nd annual edition of the tournament, commencing on March 16, 2000, and concluding with the championship game on April 3 in Indianapolis, Indiana, at the RCA Dome. This tournament holds the distinction of being the last with a 64-team bracket before the introduction of the 65-team bracket in 2001 and the subsequent 68-team bracket in 2011.
Tournament Structure and Selection
Sixty-four teams were selected to participate in the tournament. These teams came from thirty-three states, plus Washington, D.C. California and Texas had the most teams with five bids each. Thirty conferences earned an automatic bid. In fifteen cases, the automatic bid was the only representative from the conference.
In 2000, the field remained at 64 teams. The teams were seeded, and assigned to four geographic regions, with seeds 1-16 in each region. In Round 1, seeds 1 and 16 faced each other, as well as 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. In the first two rounds, the top four seeds were given the opportunity to host the first-round game. In most cases, the higher seed accepted the opportunity. Each regional winner advanced to the Final Four held March 31 and April 2 in Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Center.
Unexpected Upsets and Regional Highlights
The 2000 NCAA Tournament was notable for a string of upsets. The Midwest Regional, where No. 1 seed Michigan State was placed, played out in favor of the top seeds with teams seeded No. 1 through No. 8 winning in the first round. However, there was chaos elsewhere in the bracket. The Sweet 16 featured a mix of high and low seeds including No. 6 seed Miami (FL), No. 6 seed Purdue, No. 6 seed UCLA, No. 7 seed Tulsa, No. 8 seed North Carolina, No. 8 seed Wisconsin, No. 10 seed Gonzaga and No. 10 seed Seton Hall. This meant that half of the Sweet 16 field was seeded No. 6 or lower.
Elite Eight Showdowns
The Elite Eight consisted of a diverse range of seeds, highlighting the unpredictable nature of the tournament:
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- No. 1 seed Michigan State
- No. 2 seed Iowa State
- No. 3 seed Oklahoma State
- No. 5 seed Florida
- No. 6 seed Purdue
- No. 7 seed Tulsa
- No. 8 seed North Carolina
- No. 8 seed Wisconsin
Final Four Matchups and Semifinal Results
Due to the upsets throughout the tournament, only one top-four seed advanced to the Final Four. That was Michigan State, who finished the season as the #2 team in the nation and was given the top seed in the Midwest Region. The highest seeded of the other three Final Four teams was Florida, who won the East Region as the fifth seed. Two eight-seeds made the Final Four, with Wisconsin and North Carolina rounding the bracket out.
The semifinal matchups were:
- No. 1 Michigan State vs. No. 8 Wisconsin
- No. 5 Florida vs. No. 8 North Carolina
In the first semifinal, Michigan State defeated Wisconsin 53-41. The game was close in the first half, with Michigan State leading only 19-17. However, the Spartans opened the second half with a 13-2 run, including 10 points from senior Morris Peterson, to take control of the game.
In the second semifinal, Florida defeated North Carolina 71-59. Despite trailing early, the Tar Heels took a 48-42 lead in the second half. However, the Gators answered with a 9-0 run and held North Carolina to just six points over a 9 1/2 minute span to secure the victory.
Championship Game and Michigan State's Victory
The 2000 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game was played on April 3, 2000, at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana. The game matched No. 1-seeded Michigan State against No. 5-seeded Florida.
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Michigan State won their first national championship since 1979 by defeating Florida 89-76 in the final game. Michigan State senior Mateen Cleaves was named the Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the tournament. Cleaves sprained his ankle in the second half, but returned to lead the Spartans on a 16-6 run that put the game out of reach. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo earned his first and only title, from his second straight final four appearance.
Key Players and Moments
Several players had standout performances throughout the tournament. Mateen Cleaves' leadership and performance despite injury earned him the Most Outstanding Player award. Morris Peterson's second-half surge in the semifinal against Wisconsin was crucial to Michigan State's victory.
Broadcast Information
CBS Sports had exclusive TV coverage of the tournament.
Women's Tournament Highlights
The 2000 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament began on March 17 and ended on April 2. The tournament featured 64 teams. Two of the number one seeds advanced to the Final Four - Tennessee and Connecticut - while two failed to advance. Penn State upset Louisiana Tech in the Midwest Regional, while Rutgers upset Georgia in the West Regional.
Tennessee faced Rutgers in one of the Final Four match ups. At the end of the half, the Lady Vols held only a two-point lead 28-26. Pat Summitt challenged her players at halftime, and advised Tamika Catchings to move around more. That advice helped, as Catchings, who had only scored two points in the first half, scored eleven in the second half. Michelle Snow blocked seven shots in the game setting a Final Four record.
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The other semifinal match up was Connecticut against Penn State. The regional win by Penn State gave the team a chance to play in a Final Four in their home state. The Lady Lions were led by point guard Helen Darling, who would go on to win the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award that year. However, the defense by the Huskies held Darling scoreless on this day. UConn's point guard Sue Bird, had a better day, scoring 19 points, hitting five of her seven three point attempts. 20,060 fans were in the stands, the largest crowd ever to see a college basketball game in Pennsylvania. Connecticut had a nine-point lead at halftime, but Penn State had cut the lead to five points midway through the second half.
The match up in the finals between Tennessee and Connecticut was highly anticipated. The teams have met ten times prior to this meeting, with each team winning five. In eight of the ten meetings, one of the teams has had a number one ranking in the country. Tennessee entered the final game on a 19-game winning streak; Connecticut on a 15-game winning streak, with their only loss of the season coming by a single point at the hands of Tennessee.
UConn started the game with a 9-2 run. Kelly Schumacher set a record for blocks in a championship game, and had the record, with six, at halftime. She went on to record nine blocks, setting a new Final Four record, breaking the one established by Tennessee just two days before. The Huskies led 31-19 at the half, but the second half was yet to be played. Any chance of a comeback faded early, as UConn scored eight consecutive points to start the second half. Eight UConn players would get eleven or more minutes, giving Tennessee the impression that they were seeing fresh players every few minutes. Shea Ralph would score 15 points, on her way to winning the Most Outstanding Player award, and Svetlana Abrosimova scored 14.
The 2000 Final Four, played at the then-First Union Center (now Wells Fargo Center) in Philadelphia, was notable for featuring three head coaches who had ties to the Philadelphia area: Penn State coach Rene Portland grew up in the Philadelphia area, played at Immaculata College (now Immaculata University) in suburban Philadelphia, and briefly coached at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia; Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer coached at Cheyney University in suburban Philadelphia; and Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma grew up in nearby Norristown, Pennsylvania.
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