Ever since the St. Louis Hawks left in ’68, our hoops-loving town has relied on college games to get its fix. Fortunately, we sometimes have the excitement of hosting part of the NCAA tournament, including this month’s hotly anticipated Midwest Regional men’s basketball tournament, March 23 and 25 at the Edward Jones Dome. Joe Mitch, in his 27th year as associate commissioner of the Missouri Valley Conference, has attended all but one of the 12 NCAA men’s basketball tournaments held locally since ’73. Here are five memorable games
he’s witnessed in St. Louis.
1) The 1978 NCAA Final Four at The Checkerdome, when Jack Givens scored 41 points in the national championship to lead the University of Kentucky to a 94–88 victory over Duke University.
2) The 2005 NCAA Final Four—the first Final Four held here since 1978—when Michigan State, Mitch’s alma mater, played in the tournament.
3) The 1999 Midwest Regional, the first NCAA tournament in the Edward Jones Dome. Total paid attendance of 84,568 across two days set a record for an NCAA regional at the time.
4) The 1982 NCAA Midwest Regional at The Arena, when “Phi Slama Jama”—led by Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler—brought the University of Houston to a thrilling 79–78 victory over the University of Missouri in the regional semifinals.
5) The 1993 NCAA Midwest Regional, the first NCAA tournament held in St. Louis since 1984 and the last at the old Checkerdome. A Roy Williams–coached University of Kansas team defeated a Bob Knight–coached Indiana University squad for a trip to the Final Four.
