Memorable individual performances are part of why college basketball fans love the NCAA Tournament. When that happens in the national championship, it's even more remarkable. Below is our ranking of the best individual performances from the national finals over the years.
1. Shabazz Napier, Connecticut (2014)
The 2014 NCAA tournament was unique in that 7th seed Connecticut faced 8th seed Kentucky in the final. Although the match did not result in explosive results as neither team shot better than 41.5%, Napier's performance in helping the Huskies win 60-54 should be celebrated. He finished the match with a top 22 in the game, hitting 4/9 from a 3-point range, while also scoring six rebounds, three assists and three steals. As the Four Finals Player of the Year, the senior keeper averaged 21.2 points, while taking a 20/42 lead from outside the arc, 5.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists for the tournament.
2. Ty Lawson, North Carolina (2009)
The 2009 National Championship match was not the most exciting final in NCAA Tournament history. North Carolina led the emerging Michigan State team by a score of 21 after halftime and won 89-72. However, Lawson is the star of the show. He scored a top 21 in the game, made 15/18 free throws, made 6 assists and set an NCAA record with 8 steals. The latter broke the seven mark shared by Duke's Tommy Amaker (1986) and former Oklahoma star Mookie Blaylock (1988).
5. Hunter De'Andre, Virginia (2019)
Oden's only college season with the Buckeyes in 2006-07 was undoubtedly one of the best college basketball seasons from freshmen (15.7 points per game, 9.6 bounces). per game, 3.3 blocks per game). The seven-foot-tall ended his brief college career with a memorable run, scoring the highest 25 points in the game (ranked second by freshmen all-time), 12 times bounced back and saved four shots, during Ohio State's 84-75 loss to Florida in the 2007 national championship competition.
22. Toby Bailey, UCLA (1995)
There have been plenty of stellar performances in the championship game by freshmen over the years, but Bailey may be forgotten. Probably because one of his upperclassmen made a more famous effort (more on that later) in the Bruins' 89-78 win over Arkansas. However, Bailey left his mark on tournament history with 26 points - a record in the freshman title game. To measure well, Bailey also made 9 rebounds, while also recording 3 assists and 2 steals.
21. Hunter De'Andre, Virginia (2019)
As a sophomore, the 6-foot-7 Hunter scored a career-high 27 and won 8 rebounds in his 2019 national championship game against Texas Tech. If that wasn't impressive enough, one of the four 3-point Hunters took down, ending the contest with the prescribed 12.9 seconds remaining. The Cavaliers, who a year earlier became the first No. 1 seed to lose a 16th seed in an NCAA Tournament game, won 85-77 in extra time.
6. Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston (1983)
Longtime NCAA basketball fans know Olajuwon and his Houston Cougars didn't win the 1983 national championship. And yes, Akeem (his then-name), had trouble with the heights of Albuquerque and worried about a call tend to score in Lorenzo Charles' legendary game-winning pitch. However, when we look at the bottom of the box, at least from a statistical standpoint, Olajuwon was the best player on the floor that night: scoring 20 points, 18 rebounds and seven saves on the road. won the Best Player award in the Finals. .
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