The 1973 National Invitation Tournament was the 1973 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. The tournament started on March 17 and concluded on March 25, with all fifteen games at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was won by Virginia Tech, which won its four games by a total of five points, including a 92–91 overtime victory over Notre Dame.[1][2]
| Teams | 16 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finals site | Madison Square Garden New York City | ||||
| Champions | Virginia Tech Hokies (1st title) | ||||
| Runner-up | Notre Dame Fighting Irish (1st title game) | ||||
| Semifinalists |
| ||||
| Winning coach | Don DeVoe (1st title) | ||||
| MVP | John Shumate (Notre Dame) | ||||
| |||||
Selected teams
Below is a list of the 16 teams selected for the tournament.[3] For the first time, the Pacific-8 Conference allowed a member to participate;[4] USC fell to Notre Dame by four points in the opening round.
Bracket
| First Round March 17–19 | Quarterfinals March 20 & 22 | Semifinals Saturday, March 24 | Finals Sunday, March 25 | ||||||||||||||||
| North Carolina | 82 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Oral Roberts | 65 | ||||||||||||||||||
| North Carolina | 73 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Massachusetts | 63 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Massachusetts | 78 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Missouri | 71 | ||||||||||||||||||
| North Carolina | 71 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Notre Dame | 78 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Louisville | 97 | ||||||||||||||||||
| American | 84 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Louisville | 71 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Notre Dame | 79 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Notre Dame | 69 | ||||||||||||||||||
| USC | 65 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Notre Dame | 91 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 92 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 65 | ||||||||||||||||||
| New Mexico | 63 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 77 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Fairfield | 76 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Fairfield | 80 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Marshall | 76 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Virginia Tech | 74 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Alabama | 73 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Alabama | 87 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Manhattan | 86 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Alabama | 69 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 65 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 68 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Rutgers | 59 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Third place game | ||||
| North Carolina | 88 | |||
| Alabama | 69 | |||
- Source:[3]
For years after the third-place game, North Carolina hung a banner in the Dean Smith Center that read "NIT 3RD PLACE 1973." The banner became the subject of ridicule from rival fans, and has since been removed.[5]