| National championship game | |||||||||||||
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| Date | April 4, 1988 | ||||||||||||
| Venue | Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Missouri | ||||||||||||
| MVP | Danny Manning, Kansas | ||||||||||||
| Favorite | Oklahoma by 8 | ||||||||||||
| Referees | John Clougherty, Tim Higgins & Ed Hightower | ||||||||||||
| Attendance | 16,392 | ||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||
| Network | CBS | ||||||||||||
| Announcers | Brent Musburger (play-by-play) Billy Packer (color) | ||||||||||||
| ← 19871989 → | |||||||||||||
The 1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game was the final round of the 1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament and determined the national champion for the 1987–88 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The game was played on April 4, 1988, at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri, and featured the Southeast Regional Champion, #1-seeded Oklahoma versus the Midwest Regional Champion, #6-seeded Kansas, both from the Big Eight Conference.
The game remains, as of the 2023 Championship game, the last time two teams from the same conference played for the National Championship. Kansas's upset of Oklahoma was the third-biggest point-spread upset in the national title game in NCAA Tournament history. After the win, the 1988 Kansas team was remembered as "Danny and the Miracles" due to Danny Manning's excellence throughout the tournament, including a double-double in the national championship game with 31 points and 18 rebounds.
Participating teams
Kansas Jayhawks
Main article: 1987–88 Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball teamDanny Manning, a senior forward, was named the Big Eight Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year for the third consecutive season.
- Midwest
- (6) Kansas 85, (11) Xavier 72
- (6) Kansas 61, (14) Murray State 58
- (6) Kansas 77, (7) Vanderbilt 64
- (6) Kansas 71, (4) Kansas State 58
- Final Four
- (MW6) Kansas 66, (E2) Duke 59
Oklahoma Sooners
Main article: 1987–88 Oklahoma Sooners men's basketball team- Southeast
- (1) Oklahoma 94, (16) Chattanooga 66
- (1) Oklahoma 107, (8) Auburn 87
- (1) Oklahoma 108, (5) Louisville 98
- (1) Oklahoma 78, (6) Villanova 59
- Final Four
- (SE1) Oklahoma 86, (W1) Arizona 78
Starting lineups
| Kansas | Position | Oklahoma | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Pritchard | G | Ricky Grace | ||
| Jeff Gueldner | G | Mookie Blaylock | ||
| Chris Piper | F | Harvey Grant | ||
| Milt Newton | F | Dave Sieger | ||
| †Danny Manning | C | Stacey King | ||
| † 1988 Consensus First Team All-American | ||||
Source
Game summary
Source:
| April 4, 1988 |
| #MW6 Kansas Jayhawks 83, #SE1 Oklahoma Sooners 79 | ||
| Scoring by half: 50-50, 33-29 | ||
| Pts: Danny Manning 31 Rebs: Danny Manning 18 Asts: Kevin Pritchard, Clint Normore 4 |
Pts: Dave Sieger 22 Rebs: Stacey King, Ricky Grace 7 Asts: Dave Sieger, Ricky Grace 7 | |
| Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Missouri Referees: John Clougherty, Tim Higgins & Ed Hightower |
References
| Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball 1987–88 NCAA champions | |
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- 1987–88 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
- NCAA Division I men's basketball championship games
- Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball
- Oklahoma Sooners men's basketball
- College sports tournaments in Missouri
- Basketball competitions in Kansas City, Missouri
- 1988 in sports in Missouri
- 20th century in Kansas City, Missouri
- April 1988 sports events in the United States