North Carolina pulled even with Indiana for third place on the all-time list with five NCAA championships after beating Michigan State 89-72 to give head coach Roy Williams his second NCAA crown. Wayne Ellington was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

65-Team Field

The NCAA continued its 65-team system with a play-in game between the 64th and 65th teams for the ninth consecutive year. The tournament ran from March 17 to April 6 with the Final Four being played at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan.

North Carolina No. 1 Seed In South

Roy Williams' Tar Heels were the overwhelming favorites to capture the title after bringing back most of the 2008 team which lost to Kansas in the national semifinals. North Carolina were given a No. 1 seed in the South region, and Williams' men cruised to the Final Four. In the first round, UNC beat Radford 101-58 before knocking off LSU 84-70 in the second round. Gonzaga was the next victim in the Sweet Sixteen, 98-77 and then the Tar Heels beat Blake Griffin and Oklahoma 72-60 to reach the Final Four for the 18th time.