1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game

See also: 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

The 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game was the finals of the 1998 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament and it determined the national champion for the 1997–98 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The game was played on March 30, 1998, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, and featured the South Regional Champion, No. 2-seeded Kentucky versus the West Regional Champion, No. 3-seeded Utah.^[2]

1998 NCAA Tournament Championship Game

National championship game
Utah Utes Kentucky Wildcats WAC SEC (30–3) (34–4) 69 78 Head coach: Rick Majerus Head coach: Tubby Smith
AP: 7 Coaches: 7 AP: 5 Coaches: 6
1st half 2nd half Total Utah Utes 41 28 69 Kentucky Wildcats 31 47 78
Date	March 30, 1998
Venue	Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
MVP	Jeff Sheppard, Kentucky
Favorite	Kentucky by 3.5^[1]
Referees	Jim Burr, Donnie Gray, Mike Sanzere
Attendance	40,509
United States TV coverage
Network	CBS
Announcers	Jim Nantz (play-by-play) Billy Packer (color) Michele Tafoya and Armen Keteyian (sideline)
← 1997 1999 →

Participants

Utah

Main article: 1997–98 Utah Utes men's basketball team

• West Regional
  • Utah (3) 85, San Francisco (14) 68
  • Utah 75, Arkansas (6) 69
  • Utah 65, West Virginia (10) 62
  • Utah 76, Arizona (1) 51
• Final Four
  • Utah 65, North Carolina (1) 59

Kentucky

Main article: 1997–98 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team

Seeding in brackets

• East
  • Kentucky (2) 82, South Carolina State (15) 67
  • Kentucky 88, Saint Louis (10) 61
  • Kentucky 94, UCLA (6) 66
  • Kentucky 86, Duke (1) 84
• Final Four
  • Kentucky 86, Stanford (3) 85 (OT)

Starting lineups

Utah	Position		Kentucky
Andre Miller 1	G		Wayne Turner
Derek Broomhall	G		Jeff Sheppard
Hanno Möttölä 2	F		Allen Edwards
Alex Jensen	F		Scott Padgett 1
Michael Doleac 1	C		Nazr Mohammed 1
Players selected in an NBA draft  (number indicates round)

Source^[3]

Game summary

CBS

Monday, March 30

Box score

No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats 78, No. 3 Utah Utes 69
Scoring by half: 31–41, 47–28
Pts: Scott Padgett 17 Rebs: Heshimu Evans 6 Asts: Allen Edwards 5		Pts: Andre Miller 16 Rebs: Michael Doleac 10 Asts: Andre Miller 5

Alamodome, San Antonio, TX Attendance: 40,509 Referees: Jim Burr, Donnie Gray, Mike Sanzere

^[4]

References

1. Roxborough, Michael (March 30, 1998). "America's Line". Daily Record. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
2. "Kentucky Turns Comeback Into Its 2d Title in 3 Years". The New York Times. March 31, 1998. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
3. "Utah vs. Kentucky Box Score (Men), March 30, 1998". Sports Reference. Retrieved March 29, 2023.
4. "Utah vs. Kentucky Box Score, March 30, 1998". Sports Reference. Retrieved March 10, 2019.