The 1948 NAIA basketball tournament was held in March at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The 11th annual NAIA basketball tournament featured 32 teams playing in a single-elimination format.[1]

1948 NAIA men's basketball tournament
Teams32
Finals siteMunicipal Auditorium
Kansas City, Missouri
ChampionsLouisville (1st title, 1st title game,
1st Final Four)
Runner-upIndiana State (2nd title game,
2nd Final Four)
Semifinalists
MVPDuane Klueh (Indiana State)
Top scorerDuane Klueh (Indiana State)
(96 points)
NAIA men's basketball tournament
«1947 1949»

The championship game featured Louisville beating Indiana State, 82–70.

The only school to have won national titles in both the NAIA and NCAA Division I is Louisville. Uniquely, Indiana State has finished as the National Runner-up in the NAIA (1946 and 1948), the NCAA Division I (1979) and the NCAA Division II (1968) tournaments. Indiana State won the NAIA in 1950.

The tournament was the first intercollegiate postseason to feature a black student-athlete, Clarence J. Walker of Indiana State under coach John Wooden. Wooden had withdrawn from the 1947 tournament because the NAIB would not allow Walker to play.[2]

Awards and honors

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Many of the records set by the 1948 tournament have been broken, and many of the awards were established much later:

  • Leading scorer est. 1963
  • Leading rebounder est. 1963
  • Charles Stevenson Hustle Award est. 1958
  • Coach of the Year est. 1954
  • Player of the Year est. 1994
  • All-time scoring leader; second appearance: Harold Haskins, 12th, Hamline (Minn.) (1947,48,49,50), 14 games, 104 field goals, 72 free throws, 280 total points, 20.0 average per game.[3]

Bracket

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First round Second round Elite Eight NAIA national semifinals NAIA national championship
          
Marshall 72
Peru State 53
Marshall 72*
San Jose State 74
San Jose State 64
Iowa State Teachers 58
San Jose State 52
TOP TIER
Indiana State 59
Brigham Young 66
Delta State 61*
Brigham Young 68
Indiana State 82
Indiana State 72
St. Francis (PA) 40
Indiana State 66
Hamline 65*
Southern Illinois 54
Southern Oregon State 50
Southern Illinois 42
Manhattan 52
Manhattan 65
Arkansas State Teachers 60
Manhattan 51
TOP TIER
Hamline 60
Gonzaga 46
Texas Wesleyan 45
Gonzaga 55
Hamline 70
Hamline 85
Mercer 41
Indiana State 70
Louisville 82
Louisville 63
South Dakota State 60
Louisville 82
Emporia State 66
Emporia State 65
Loyola Maryland 57
Louisville 85
BOTTOM TIER
Beloit 76
Lawrence Tech 76
Appalachian State 48
Lawrence Tech 62
Beloit 78
Beloit 84
East Central State 60
Louisville 56
Xavier 49
Connecticut Teachers 63
Montana 52
Connecticut Teachers 35
Xavier 57
Xavier (OH) 67 NAIA third-place game
Northwestern State (LA) 43
Xavier 63 Hamline 59
BOTTOM TIER
Mankato State 50 Xavier 58
Mankato State 49
Denver 46
Mankato State 54
Arizona State-Tempe 53
Arizona State-Tempe 68
NE Missouri State 66
  •  * denotes overtime.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "NAIA.org". Archived from the original on May 1, 2009. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  2. ^ Keefer, Zak (March 16, 2017). "Indiana basketball player broke racial barrier, changed game forever". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
  3. ^ NAIA Championship History Archived 2008-05-15 at the Wayback Machine