March Madness: Ranking the college basketball national championship games across all three divisions

1. D-1 Men’s Championship

The UNC Tar Heels defeated the Gonzaga Bulldogs, 71-65, in a sloppy game. With the win, the Tar Heels move into third on the all-time NCAA D-I men’s all-time national championship list with their sixth title.

North Carolina Tar Heels Basketball

This championship game was not the greatest game ever. But it was a hard-fought, close game throughout. In the end, the Tar Heels were able to avenge last year’s loss to Villanova.

Neither team was able to get into a rhythm offensively as the Tar Heels rushed a lot of shots and the Zags shot the ball worse than they did all season, connecting on just 33.9 percent of their attempts from the field. There were also lots of whistles and very poor free throw shooting.

The good news is the stars of the teams were able to shine when needed most.

Nigel Williams-Goss, who struggled with his shot for most of the evening, scored eight straight points to give Gonzaga (37-2) a two-point lead with 1:52 remaining. Justin Jackson converted a three-point play after receiving a bullet pass from Theo Pinson.

UNC (33-7) went up 68-65 on an Isaiah Hicks layup. Then Kennedy Meeks sealed the Tar Heels’ victory with a block of Williams-Goss shot, leading to a dunk by Jackson with 10 seconds remaining.

Joel Berry II, who overcame two ankle injuries during the tournament, was named the Final Four MOP after compiling 22 points and six assists. Jackson added 16 points and Hicks had 13.

Next: UNC captures National Title

Williams-Goss led the way for the Zags with 15 points along with nine boards and six assists. Josh Perkins was the only other Bulldog in double-figures with 13.