The championship game of the 2022 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament was contested on April 4, 2022 at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Kansas Jayhawks defeated the North Carolina Tar Heels, 72–69, to claim the title for the 2021–22 season. The victory marked Kansas's fourth national championship, and their second under head coach Bill Self. Trailing 38–22 near the end of the first half, Kansas rallied from a 16-point deficit for the largest comeback win in the championship game's history. The Jayhawks' Ochai Agbaji was named the Most Outstanding Player (MOP) of the 2022 tournament.
Participants
It was the second national championship game between the schools after North Carolina's triple-overtime victory over Kansas in 1957.
North Carolina
North Carolina was led by first-year head coach Hubert Davis, a former Tar Heels player who took over for Roy Williams, who also coached at Kansas and had recently retired. The Tar Heels were on the bubble for an NCAA Tournament invite with an 18–8 record in mid-February, having suffered double-digit losses to Tennessee, Kentucky, Miami, Wake Forest and Duke. After qualifying for the tournament as a No. 8 seed, they advanced to the title game with wins over Marquette, in the most lopsided NCAA tournament game between a No. 8 seed and a No. 9 seed; UCLA; the defending national champion Baylor; the tournament's Cinderella, Saint Peter's; and their biggest rival, Duke. Guard Caleb Love scored 22 of his game-high 28 points in the second half against Duke. Earlier in the tournament in the Sweet 16, he scored 27 of his game-high 30 in the second half in their win over UCLA. Forward Armando Bacot entered the game averaging over 16 points and 13 rebounds per game, and guard Caleb Love was expected to match up well defensively with Kansas guard Ochai Agbaji. The Tar Heels were attempting to become the second No. 8 seed to win the tournament, joining Villanova in 1985. Davis was seeking to become the first Division I men’s basketball coach to win a national championship in his first full season. He was the tenth first-year coach to lead a team to the Final Four.
Kansas
Kansas was coached by Bill Self, who reached the Final Four for the fourth time in his career. They had seven players returning from their 2019–20 squad, which was 28–3 and odds-on favorite to win the national title before the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ochai Agbaji was named an All-American, and led the Big 12 Conference in scoring and was voted the Big 12 Player of the Year. The Jayhawks duo of David McCormack and Mitch Lightfoot provided production on the inside, while guard Remy Martin emerged during the Big 12 tournament, after having struggled with a nagging injury throughout the season. Kansas received the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament's Midwest Regional. On their way to the championship game, the Jayhawks defeated Texas Southern, Creighton, Providence, Miami, and Villanova. Martin was the team's leading scorer for three games during the tournament. After defeating Providence in the Sweet 16, Kansas passed Kentucky for the most wins in Division I men's college basketball history.
Starting lineups
Game summary
Kansas won the jump ball to begin the game and opened the scoring 21 seconds later when Ochai Agbaji made a three-point shot. The Jayhawks began the game on a 7–0 run with David McCormack's jumper and a pair of free throws by Jalen Wilson. North Carolina's first points of the game were made by Brady Manek, who made a three-point shot with two and a quarter minutes elapsed. The Tar Heels made up ground and tied the game at 11 points apiece with 13:30 on the clock with a layup by Leaky Black, free throws by Caleb Love, and another layup by Armando Bacot. A free throw by Bacot as part of a three-point play gave North Carolina their first lead, 12–11, but a pair of field goals shortly thereafter by Christian Braun and Mitch Lightfoot gave the edge back to Kansas. Love's three-point shot with 9:21 remaining tied the contest back at 18 points each, and the teams traded field goals for the next three minutes, when the score tied again at 22–22. Manek's three-pointer a few seconds later began a large run for the Tar Heels which saw them score 16 unanswered points. Leading 38–22 with 2:23 until halftime after a pair of free throws made by Bacot, Agbaji made a free throw of his own to end Kansas's scoring drought. From there, Agbaji and Puff Johnson traded field goals in the last thirty seconds of the half, giving North Carolina a 40–25 lead at halftime.