March 27, 1939: The inaugural NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship was played. The single-elimination game tournament started off in this first year of existence with just an eight-team field. The concept was the brainchild of then Ohio State Coach Harold Olsen who with the help of the National Association of Basketball Coaches turned the idea into a reality. The results of the first tournament championship game played on this day had the University of Oregon defeating Olsen’s Ohio State squad, 46-33. Ohio State’s forward, Jimmy Hull was named tournament Most Outstanding Player.
As the years went by the tournament expanded in popularity and with entrants. In 1985 it expanded to 64 teams and this year with play-in games there were 68 altogether involved in what has been deemed as March Madness.
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March 27, 1983: The most active champion of the year was Heavyweight Champ WBC Larry Holmes. He defended his title 4 times. First on March 27, a W12 vs. Lucien Rodriguez in Scranton, PA, the city of his first pro fight back on March 1973.