The 1950 NAIA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament was held in March at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...

. The 13th annual NAIA

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics

The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics is an athletic association that organizes college and university-level athletic programs. Membership in the NAIA consists of smaller colleges and universities across the United States. The NAIA allows colleges and universities outside the USA...

 basketball tournament featured 32 teams playing in a single-elimination format . The championship game featured Indiana State University

Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball

The Indiana State Sycamores basketball is the NCAA Division I men's basketball program of Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Indiana. They currently compete in the Missouri Valley Conference...

 and East Central University (Okla.)

East Central University

East Central University is a four year public university in Ada, Oklahoma, located in the south central region of the state. The university also has courses available in McAlester, Shawnee, Ardmore, and Durant....

. It was the first time these two teams had met in the tournament history. The Sycamores defeated the Tigers 61-57.

This would be Indiana State's highest finish in their 12 career appearances in the NAIA tournament. Winning the championship puts them in a unique group to place 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. Also Indiana State finally gets a win after 2 times as runner-up. Uniquely, Indiana State

Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball

The Indiana State Sycamores basketball is the NCAA Division I men's basketball program of Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Indiana. They currently compete in the Missouri Valley Conference...

 has finished as the National Runner-up in the NAIA (1946

1946 NAIA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament

The 1946 NAIA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament was held in March at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri. The 9th annual NAIA basketball tournament featured 32 teams playing in a single-elimination format...

 and 1948

1948 NAIA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament

The 1948 NAIA Men's Division I 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 . The championship game featured Louisville beating Indiana State 82-70.The...

), the NCAA Division I (1979

1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament

The 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 40 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 9, 1979, and ended with the championship game on March 26 in Salt Lake City, Utah...

) and the NCAA Division II (1968

1968 NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Tournament

The 1968 NCAA Men's Division II Basketball Tournament involved 36 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college basketball as a culmination of the 1967-8 NCAA Division II men's basketball season. It was won by the...

) tournaments.

Awards and honors

Many of the records set by the 1950 tournament have been broken, and many of the awards were established much later:

• Leading scorer est. 1963
• Leading rebounder est. 1963
• Chuck Taylor Award
  NAIA Basketball Tournament Most Valuable Player
  The Chuck Taylor Most Valuable Player Award was created to honor the most outstanding player for the NAIA Men's Division I National Championship Tournament. Established in 1939, it has been awarded every year with the exception of 1944....
  
  : est. 1939 Len Rzeszewski
• Charles Stevenson Hustle Award est. 1958
• All-Tournament Team: Len Rzeszewski, Dan Dimich, Don McDonald - Indiana State; Stacey Howell, Claude Overton - East Central (Okla)
• Coach of the Year est. 1954
• Player of the Year est. 1994
• All-time scoring leaders; first appearance: Lloyd Thorgaard, 10th, Hamline (Minn.) (1950,51,52,53), 15 games, 111 field goals, 61 free throws, 283 total points, 18.9 average per game; James Fritsche, 14th, Hamline (Minn.) (1950,51,52,53), 15 games, 113 field goals, 46 free throws, 272 total points, 18.1 average per game.
• All-time scoring leader; final 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.

1950 NAIA bracket

•  *  Denotes overtime.

3rd place game

The third place game featured the losing teams from the national semifinalist to determine 3rd and 4th places in the tournament. This game was played until 1988.

See also

• 1950 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
  1950 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament
  The 1950 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament involved 8 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. It began on March 23, 1950, and ended with the championship game on March 28 in New York City, New York...
  
  
• 1950 National Invitation Tournament
  1950 National Invitation Tournament
  The 1950 National Invitation Tournament was the 1950 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. For the only time in history, the same school won both the NIT and NCAA tournaments as CCNY took both championships, beating Bradley in both finals...