2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season

The 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 25, 2020, and concluded on March 14, 2021. The 2021 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament culminated the season and began on March 18 and concluded on April 5.

Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, hosted the NCAA men's Final Four.

2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Preseason AP No. 1	Gonzaga Bulldogs
Regular season	November 25, 2020 – March 14, 2021
NCAA Tournament	2021
Tournament dates	March 18 – April 5, 2021
National Championship	Lucas Oil Stadium Indianapolis, Indiana
NCAA Champions	Baylor Bears
Other champions	Memphis Tigers (NIT), Pepperdine Waves (CBI), Not awarded (CIT)
Player of the Year (Naismith, Wooden)	Luka Garza, Iowa Hawkeyes
← 2019–20 2021–22 →

Season headlines

• November 11 – The Associated Press preseason All-American team was released. Iowa center Luka Garza was the lone unanimous selection (64 votes). Joining him on the team were Baylor guard Jared Butler, Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu, Oklahoma State guard Cade Cunningham, Gonzaga guard Corey Kispert (26), and Arizona State guard Remy Martin (26).^[1]
• November 15 – The UT Martin Skyhawks announced that head coach Anthony Stewart, who had been set to start his fifth season with the Skyhawks, had died earlier that day. No cause of death was given at the time.^[2]
• January 18 – When the AP poll's Week 9 top 25 rankings were released, it was the first time since December 18, 1961, that neither Duke, Kentucky, nor North Carolina were included on the list.^[3] In 1961, the poll was only composed of the top 10 teams.^[3]
• February 7 – The UTRGV Vaqueros announce the death of fifth-year head coach Lew Hill from coronavirus.^[4] Longtime assistant Jai Steadman was named interim head coach four days later.^[5]
• February 9 – For the first time since an 0–2 start to the 1999–2000 season, the Duke men's basketball team fell below .500 after an 89–93 loss to Notre Dame.^[6]
• March 23 – Just three days after playing in the NCAA tournament, Grand Canyon senior Oscar Frayer died in a car crash, along with his sister and one other person.^[7]

COVID-19 pandemic-related

• October 14 – The NCAA announced that all student-athletes in winter sports during the 2020–21 school year, including men's and women's basketball, would receive an extra year of athletic eligibility, whether or not they or their teams play during that school year.^[8]
• October 27 – Bethune–Cookman, which had previously canceled its 2020 fall sports due to COVID-19 concerns, announced that none of its other teams, including men's and women's basketball, would play in the 2020–21 school year.^[9]
• November 12 – The Ivy League became the first conference to cancel all winter sports for the 2020–21 season, including men's and women's basketball, due to COVID-19 concerns.^[10][11]
• November 19 – Maryland Eastern Shore became the second MEAC program to opt out of the 2020–21 men's and women's basketball seasons due to COVID-19 concerns.^[12]
• December 23 – Chicago State ended its 2020–21 season after an 0–9 start marked by many COVID-19-related issues. Head coach Lance Irvin opted out before the season started due to concerns over the disease; the Cougars played one game with only six available players and another with only seven; the team's final game before suspending its season was canceled due to a lack of players.^[13]
• February 9 – Howard ended its 2020–21 season after a 1–4 start of an abundance of caution due to the health and safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[14]
• February 11 – Organizers of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament announced that the 2021 edition had been canceled.^[15]
• February 13 – Maine decided to conclude their 2020–21 season due to challenges related to COVID-19 after not being cleared to practice or play a game since January 17.^[16]
• February 23 – Charleston Southern ended its 2020–21 season after a 3–18 start, citing player concerns over COVID-19.^[17]
• February 26 – Jacksonville ended its 2020–21 season after an 11–13 start, citing player concerns over COVID-19.
• March 2 – Holy Cross ended its 2020–21 season after a 5–11 start, citing player concerns over COVID-19.^[18]

Milestones and records

• During the season, the following players reached the 2,000-career-point milestone – Austin Peay swingman Terry Taylor,^[19] Pepperdine guard Colbey Ross,^[20] Iowa center Luka Garza,^[21] Bowling Green guard Justin Turner,^[22] Detroit Mercy guard Antoine Davis,^[23] UTSA guard Keaton Wallace,^[24] and Davidson guard Kellan Grady.^[25]
• November 30 – Kansas took sole possession of the record for most consecutive weeks ranked in the AP poll. The Jayhawks' 222nd straight appearance surpassed UCLA's 221 from 1966 to 1980.^[26] The Jayhawks' streak ended at 231 when they dropped out of the poll released on February 8.^[27]
• December 1 – UC Riverside head coach Mike Magpayo became the first head coach of Asian or Filipino descent to coach and won a Division I game in their 57–42 victory over Washington. Magpayo had missed the Highlanders' season opener on November 25 against Pacific due to his child's birth.^[28]
• February 21 – Iowa center Luka Garza scored 23 points in a win against Penn State to become the school's all-time leading scorer, breaking a 32-year-old record previously held by Roy Marble (2,116 points).^[29]

Conference membership changes

Ten schools joined a new conference for the 2020–21 season with four schools leaving Division II for Division I.

School	Former conference	New conference
Bellarmine	Great Lakes Valley Conference (D-II)	ASUN Conference
Cal State Bakersfield	Western Athletic Conference	Big West Conference
Dixie State	Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (D-II)	Western Athletic Conference
Kansas City	Western Athletic Conference	Summit League
NJIT	ASUN Conference	America East Conference
Purdue Fort Wayne	Summit League	Horizon League
Robert Morris	Northeast Conference	Horizon League
Tarleton State	Lone Star Conference (D-II)	Western Athletic Conference
UC San Diego	California Collegiate Athletic Association (D-II)	Big West Conference
UConn	American Athletic Conference	Big East Conference

Arenas

New arenas

• James Madison opened the new Atlantic Union Bank Center on November 25, 2020, defeating Division II Limestone 89–55.^[30]
• Liberty played its first game at Liberty Arena, winning 78–62 over Saint Francis (PA) on December 3, 2020.^[31] The first event at the arena, which had officially opened on November 23,^[32] was a women's game on December 1.^[33]

Arenas of new D-I teams

Three of the four new D-I members for this season are using existing on-campus facilities:

• Dixie State plays in Burns Arena.
• Tarleton State plays in Wisdom Gym.
• UC San Diego plays in RIMAC Arena.

The other D-I newcomer, Bellarmine, announced a multi-year deal with the Kentucky State Fair Board on November 2, 2020, to play home games at Freedom Hall, located at the Kentucky Exposition Center near Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport. The arena had been home to Louisville for more than 50 years before that team moved to the downtown KFC Yum! Center in 2010. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Bellarmine could only seat 300 at its on-campus facility, Knights Hall. With Freedom Hall's basketball capacity of 18,252, the Knights were able to seat 2,700.^[34]

Arenas closing

• High Point had originally planned to open Nido and Mariana Qubein Arena and Conference Center for the 2020–21 season.^[35] However, construction delays brought on by COVID-19 led to the university delaying the new arena's opening until 2021–22, meaning that the Millis Center was in use for one more season.^[36]
• This was intended to be Idaho's final season at the Kibbie Dome, a facility also home to Idaho football, with its basketball configuration known as Cowan Spectrum. When Idaho moved its 2020 football season to spring 2021, it displaced the men's and women's basketball teams, forcing them to use Memorial Gymnasium. The latter facility had been home to both basketball teams before the Kibbie Dome opened in 1976, and remained a part-time home for both. The school plans to open the new Idaho Central Credit Union Arena for the 2021–22 season. The Dome will remain in use for football and several other sports.

Temporary arenas

• Due to COVID-19 restrictions in Santa Clara County, Santa Clara and Stanford played the majority of their home games at Kaiser Permanente Arena in neighboring Santa Cruz County.^[37]

Season outlook

Main article: 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

Pre-season polls

The top 25 from the AP and USA Today Coaches polls

AP Ranking Team 1 Gonzaga (28) 2 Baylor (24) 3 Villanova (1) 4 Virginia (1) 5 Iowa 6 Kansas 7 Wisconsin 8 Illinois 9 Duke 10 Kentucky 11 Creighton 12 Tennessee 13 Michigan State 14 Texas Tech 15 West Virginia 16 North Carolina 17 Houston 18 Arizona State 19 Texas 20 Oregon 21 Florida State 22 UCLA 23 Ohio State 24 Rutgers 25 Michigan

USA Today Coaches Ranking Team 1 Baylor (12) 2 Gonzaga (10) 3 Villanova (3) 4 Virginia 5 Kansas 6 Iowa (1) 7 Wisconsin 8 Duke (1) 9 Kentucky 10 Illinois 11 Creighton 12 Michigan State 13 Texas Tech 14 Tennessee 15 West Virginia 16 North Carolina 17 Arizona State 18 Houston т Florida State т 20 Oregon 21 UCLA 22 Texas 23 Rutgers 24 Ohio State 25 Alabama

Regular season top-10 matchups

Rankings reflect the AP poll Top 25.

• November 26
  • No. 1 Gonzaga defeated No. 6 Kansas, 102–90 (Fort Myers Tip-Off, Suncoast Credit Union Arena, Fort Myers, FL)
• December 1
  • No. 8 Michigan State defeated No. 6 Duke, 75–69 (Champions Classic, Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, NC)
• December 2
  • No. 2 Baylor defeated No. 5 Illinois, 82–69 (Jimmy V Classic, Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN)
• December 8
  • No. 5 Kansas defeated No. 8 Creighton, 73–72 (Big East–Big 12 Battle, Allen Fieldhouse, Lawrence, KS)
  • No. 6 Illinois defeated No. 10 Duke, 83–68 (ACC–Big Ten Challenge, Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, NC)
• December 19
  • No. 1 Gonzaga defeated No. 3 Iowa, 99–88 (Sanford Pentagon, Sioux Falls, SD)
• December 22
  • No. 3 Kansas defeated No. 7 West Virginia, 79–65 (Allen Fieldhouse, Lawrence, KS)
• January 2
  • No. 8 Texas defeated No. 3 Kansas, 84–59 (Allen Fieldhouse, Lawrence, KS)
• January 12
  • No. 7 Michigan defeated No. 9 Wisconsin, 77–54 (Crisler Arena, Ann Arbor, MI)
• January 18
  • No. 2 Baylor defeated No. 9 Kansas, 77–69 (Ferrell Center, Waco, TX)
• February 2
  • No. 2 Baylor defeated No. 6 Texas, 83–69 (Frank Erwin Center, Austin, TX)
• February 4
  • No. 7 Ohio State defeated No. 8 Iowa, 89–85 (Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City, IA)
• February 21
  • No. 3 Michigan defeated No. 4 Ohio State, 92–87 (Value City Arena, Columbus, OH)
• February 25
  • No. 3 Michigan defeated No. 9 Iowa, 79–57 (Crisler Arena, Ann Arbor, MI)
• February 28
  • No. 9 Iowa defeated No. 4 Ohio State, 73–57 (Value City Arena, Columbus, OH)
• March 2
  • No. 3 Baylor defeated No. 6 West Virginia, 94–89 ^OT (WVU Coliseum, Morgantown, WV)
  • No. 4 Illinois defeated No. 2 Michigan, 76–53 (Crisler Arena, Ann Arbor, MI)
• March 6
  • No. 4 Illinois defeated No. 7 Ohio State, 73–68 (Value City Arena, Columbus, OH)
• March 13
  • No. 3 Illinois defeated No. 5 Iowa, 82–71 (2021 Big Ten men's basketball tournament, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN)
  • No. 9 Ohio State defeated No. 4 Michigan, 68–67 (2021 Big Ten men's basketball tournament, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis)
• March 14
  • No. 3 Illinois defeated No. 9 Ohio State, 91–88 ^OT (2021 Big Ten men's basketball tournament, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis)

Regular season

Early season tournaments

The Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in Nassau, Bahamas was cancelled due to logistical issues associated with COVID-19. A new tournament known as the Crossover Classic is scheduled to be held at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and had invited almost all of the teams that had originally planned to compete in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament (although five teams would later drop out).^[38][39]

On October 26, 2020, ESPN Events cancelled 10 early-season tournaments that it organizes. It had planned to hold them at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando within a protected "bubble" (the same site had recently hosted the remainder of the 2019–20 NBA season under similar circumstances), but The Athletic reported that there had been disagreements over health and COVID-19 testing protocols that had been mandated by ESPN Events (in accordance with recommendations by the CDC), which were stricter than those being adopted by conferences.^[40][41]

Upsets

Teams listed in bold type won "true road games", defined as games held at an opponent's regular home court (including regularly used alternate homes).

Winner	Score	Loser	Date	Tournament/Event
San Diego State	73–58	No. 22 UCLA	November 25, 2020	San Diego State MTE
San Francisco	61–60	No. 4 Virginia	November 27, 2020	Bubbleville/HomeLight Classic
Virginia Tech	81–73OT	No. 3 Villanova	November 28, 2020	Bubbleville/Hall of Fame Tip Off
Richmond	76–64	No. 10 Kentucky	November 29, 2020	Bluegrass Showcase
Missouri	83–75	No. 21 Oregon	December 2, 2020	Game played in Omaha, NE
Marquette	67–65	No. 4 Wisconsin	December 4, 2020	Rivalry
Georgia Tech	79–62	No. 20 Kentucky	December 6, 2020	Holiday Hoopsgiving
Penn State	75–55	No. 15 Virginia Tech	December 8, 2020	ACC–Big Ten Challenge
Missouri	81–78	No. 6 Illinois	December 12, 2020	Braggin' Rights
Marquette	89–84	No. 9 Creighton	December 14, 2020
Virginia Tech	66–60	No. 24 Clemson	December 15, 2020
Purdue	67–60	No. 20 Ohio State	December 16, 2020
BYU	72–62	No. 18 San Diego State	December 18, 2020
UCF	86–74	No. 15 Florida State	December 19, 2020
Northwestern	79–65	No. 4 Michigan State	December 20, 2020
NC State	79–76	No. 17 North Carolina	December 22, 2020	Rivalry
Minnesota	102–95OT	No. 4 Iowa	December 25, 2020
Northwestern	71–70	No. 23 Ohio State	December 26, 2020
Maryland	70–64	No. 6 Wisconsin	December 28, 2020
Clemson	77–67	No. 18 Florida State	December 29, 2020
Tulsa	65–64	No. 5 Houston	December 29, 2020
Oklahoma	75–71	No. 9 West Virginia	January 2, 2021
Oklahoma State	82–77OT	No. 13 Texas Tech	January 2, 2021
Alabama	71–63	No. 7 Tennessee	January 2, 2021
Mississippi State	78–63	No. 13 Missouri	January 5, 2021
Louisville	73–71	No. 19 Virginia Tech	January 6, 2021
Colorado	79–72	No. 17 Oregon	January 7, 2021
Purdue	55–54	No. 23 Michigan State	January 8, 2021
Ohio State	79–68	No. 15 Rutgers	January 9, 2021
Maryland	66–63	No. 12 Illinois	January 10, 2021
Oklahoma State	75–70	No. 6 Kansas	January 12, 2021
Butler	70–66OT	No. 8 Creighton	January 16, 2021
Miami (FL)	78–72	No. 16 Louisville	January 16, 2021
St. John's	74–70	No. 23 UConn	January 18, 2021
Purdue	67–65	No. 15 Ohio State	January 19, 2021
Florida	75–49	No. 6 Tennessee	January 19, 2021
Georgia Tech	83–65	No. 20 Clemson	January 20, 2021
Providence	74–70	No. 11 Creighton	January 20, 2021
Indiana	81–69	No. 4 Iowa	January 21, 2021
Syracuse	78–60	No. 16 Virginia Tech	January 23, 2021
Oklahoma	75–68	No. 9 Kansas	January 23, 2021
Maryland	63–49	No. 17 Minnesota	January 23, 2021
Florida State	80–61	No. 20 Clemson	January 23, 2021
Stanford	73–72OT	No. 24 UCLA	January 23, 2021
Oregon State	75–64	No. 21 Oregon	January 23, 2021	Rivalry
Dayton	76–71	No. 22 Saint Louis	January 26, 2021
Auburn	88–82	No. 12 Missouri	January 26, 2021
Clemson	54–50	No. 25 Louisville	January 27, 2021
Florida	85–80	No. 11 West Virginia	January 30, 2021	SEC/Big 12 Challenge
Penn State	81–71	No. 14 Wisconsin	January 30, 2021
Georgia Tech	76–65	No. 16 Florida State	January 30, 2021
Purdue	81–62	No. 21 Minnesota	January 30, 2021
Maryland	61–60	No. 24 Purdue	February 2, 2021
Ole Miss	52–50	No. 11 Tennessee	February 2, 2021
East Carolina	82–73	No. 5 Houston	February 3, 2021
South Carolina	72–66	No. 22 Florida	February 3, 2021
Pittsburgh	83–72	No. 16 Virginia Tech	February 3, 2021
St. John's	70–59	No. 3 Villanova	February 3, 2021
Georgetown	86–79	No. 15 Creighton	February 3, 2021
Oklahoma State	75–672OT	No. 6 Texas	February 6, 2021
USC	66–48	No. 21 UCLA	February 6, 2021	Rivalry
Indiana	67–65	No. 8 Iowa	February 7, 2021
Valparaiso	74–57	No. 25 Drake	February 7, 2021
Kansas	78–66	No. 23 Oklahoma State	February 8, 2021
Ole Miss	80–59	No. 10 Missouri	February 10, 2021
Minnesota	71–68	No. 24 Purdue	February 11, 2021
LSU	78–65	No. 16 Tennessee	February 13, 2021
Arkansas	86–81OT	No. 10 Missouri	February 13, 2021
Drake	51–50OT	No. 22 Loyola–Chicago	February 14, 2021
Georgia	80–70	No. 20 Missouri	February 16, 2021
Wichita State	68–63	No. 6 Houston	February 18, 2021
Kentucky	70–55	No. 19 Tennessee	February 20, 2021	Rivalry
Arizona	81–72	No. 17 USC	February 20, 2021
Duke	66–65	No. 7 Virginia	February 20, 2021
Oklahoma State	74–69OT	No. 18 Texas Tech	February 22, 2021
Georgia Tech	69–53	No. 16 Virginia Tech	February 23, 2021
Michigan State	81–72	No. 5 Illinois	February 23, 2021
Ole Miss	60–53	No. 24 Missouri	February 23, 2021
Kansas State	62–57	No. 7 Oklahoma	February 23, 2021
NC State	68–61	No. 15 Virginia	February 24, 2021
Colorado	80–62	No. 19 USC	February 25, 2021
Michigan State	71–67	No. 4 Ohio State	February 25, 2021
Auburn	77–72	No. 25 Tennessee	February 27, 2021
Oklahoma State	94–90OT	No. 7 Oklahoma	February 27, 2021	Bedlam Series
North Carolina	78–70	No. 11 Florida State	February 27, 2021
Xavier	77–69	No. 13 Creighton	February 27, 2021
Utah	71–61	No. 19 USC	February 27, 2021
Butler	73–61	No. 8 Villanova	February 28, 2021
Notre Dame	83–73	No. 11 Florida State	March 6, 2021
Providence	54–52	No. 10 Villanova	March 6, 2021
Michigan State	70–64	No. 2 Michigan	March 7, 2021	Rivalry
Georgetown	72–71	No. 14 Villanova	March 11, 2021	Big East tournament
North Carolina	81–73	No. 22 Virginia Tech	March 11, 2021	ACC tournament
LSU	78–71	No. 8 Arkansas	March 13, 2021	SEC tournament
Georgetown	73–48	No. 17 Creighton	March 13, 2021	Big East tournament
Georgia Tech	80–75	No. 15 Florida State	March 13, 2021	ACC tournament
Oregon State	80–78	No. 23 Colorado	March 13, 2021	Pac-12 tournament

In addition to the above listed upsets in which an unranked team defeated a ranked team, there were eleven non-Division I teams to defeat a Division I team this season. Bold type indicates winning teams in "true road games"—i.e., those played on an opponent's home court (including secondary homes).

Winner	Score	Loser	Date	Tournament/event
Southern Wesleyan (Division II)	82–72[42]	USC Upstate	November 25, 2020
Queens (NC) (Division II)	85–71[43]	Howard	November 27, 2020	Paradise Jam
Emmanuel (GA) (Division II)	64–61[44]	Stetson	November 30, 2020
Flagler (Division II)	92–73[45]	Central Michigan	December 2, 2020
Greensboro (Division III)	67–64[46]	Longwood	December 6, 2020
Fort Hays State (Division II)	81–68[47]	Kansas State	December 8, 2020
Our Lady of the Lake (NAIA)	61–58[48]	Texas State	December 12, 2020
West Virginia Tech (NAIA)	73–67[49]	Morgan State	December 19, 2020
Flagler (Division II)	73–66[50]	North Florida	December 19, 2020
Northwest Nazarene (Division II)	75–72[51]	Portland State	January 9, 2021
Belmont Abbey (Division II)	75–72OT[52]	Charlotte	January 9, 2021

Conference winners and tournaments

Each of the 31 Division I athletic conferences that played in 2020–21 ended its regular season with a single-elimination tournament. The team with the best regular-season record in each conference was given the number one seed in each tournament, with tiebreakers used as needed in the case of ties for the top seeding. The winners of these tournaments received automatic invitations to the 2021 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.

Conference	Regular season first place	Conference player of the year	Conference coach of the Year	Conference tournament	Tournament venue (city)	Tournament winner
America East Conference	UMBC[a] & Vermont	Ryan Davis, Vermont[53]	Ryan Odom, UMBC[53]	2021 America East men's basketball tournament	Campus sites	Hartford
American Athletic Conference	Wichita State	Quentin Grimes, Houston & Tyson Etienne, Wichita State[54]	Isaac Brown, Wichita State[54]	2021 American Athletic Conference men's basketball tournament	Dickies Arena (Fort Worth, TX)	Houston
ASUN Conference	Liberty	Darius McGhee, Liberty[55]	Ritchie McKay, Liberty[55]	2021 ASUN men's basketball tournament	Swisher Gymnasium & UNF Arena (Jacksonville, FL)	Liberty
Atlantic 10 Conference	St. Bonaventure	Nah'Shon Hyland, VCU[56]	Mark Schmidt, St. Bonaventure[56]	2021 Atlantic 10 men's basketball tournament	Early rounds: Robins Center & Siegel Center (Richmond, VA) Final: UD Arena (Dayton, OH)	St. Bonaventure
Atlantic Coast Conference	Virginia	Moses Wright, Georgia Tech[57]	Mike Young, Virginia Tech[57]	2021 ACC men's basketball tournament	Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, NC)	Georgia Tech
Big 12 Conference	Baylor	Cade Cunningham, Oklahoma State[58]	Scott Drew, Baylor[58]	2021 Big 12 men's basketball tournament	T-Mobile Center (Kansas City, MO)	Texas
Big East Conference	Villanova	Collin Gillespie, Villanova, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Seton Hall & Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Villanova[59]	Mike Anderson, St. John's[59]	2021 Big East men's basketball tournament	Madison Square Garden (Manhattan, NY)	Georgetown
Big Sky Conference	Southern Utah	Tanner Groves, Eastern Washington[60]	Todd Simon, Southern Utah[61]	2021 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament	Idaho Central Arena (Boise, ID)	Eastern Washington
Big South Conference	Winthrop	Chandler Vaudrin, Winthrop[62]	Pat Kelsey, Winthrop[62]	2021 Big South Conference men's basketball tournament	Campus sites	Winthrop
Big Ten Conference	Michigan	Luka Garza, Iowa[63]	Juwan Howard, Michigan[63]	2021 Big Ten men's basketball tournament	Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis, IN)	Illinois
Big West Conference	UC Santa Barbara	JaQuori McLaughlin, UC Santa Barbara[64]	Joe Pasternack, UC Santa Barbara	2021 Big West Conference men's basketball tournament	Michelob Ultra Arena (Paradise, NV)	UC Santa Barbara
Colonial Athletic Association	James Madison[a] & Northeastern	Matt Lewis, James Madison[65]	Mark Byington, James Madison[65]	2021 CAA men's basketball tournament	Atlantic Union Bank Center (Harrisonburg, VA)	Drexel
Conference USA	Western Kentucky (East) and Louisiana Tech (West)[b]	Charles Bassey, Western Kentucky[66]	Eric Konkol, Louisiana Tech[66]	2021 Conference USA men's basketball tournament	Ford Center (Frisco, TX)	North Texas
Horizon League	Cleveland State[a] & Wright State	Loudon Love, Wright State[67]	Dennis Gates, Cleveland State[67]	2021 Horizon League men's basketball tournament	First round and quarterfinals: Campus sites Semifinals and final: Indiana Farmers Coliseum (Indianapolis, IN)	Cleveland State
Ivy League	No Ivy League season held due to COVID-19 concerns.[68]
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference	Siena[a] & Monmouth	Manny Camper, Siena[69]	King Rice, Monmouth[70]	2021 MAAC men's basketball tournament	Boardwalk Hall (Atlantic City, NJ)	Iona
Mid-American Conference	Toledo	Marreon Jackson, Toledo[71]	Tod Kowalczyk, Toledo[71]	2021 Mid-American Conference men's basketball tournament	Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (Cleveland, OH)	Ohio
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference	Norfolk State & Coppin State (North) North Carolina A&T (South)[b]	Anthony Tarke, Coppin State[72]	Robert McCullum, Florida A&M[72]	2021 MEAC men's basketball tournament	Norfolk Scope (Norfolk, VA)	Norfolk State
Missouri Valley Conference	Loyola	Cameron Krutwig, Loyola[73]	Darian DeVries, Drake[74]	2021 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball tournament	Enterprise Center (St. Louis, MO)	Loyola
Mountain West Conference	San Diego State	Matt Mitchell, San Diego State[75]	Brian Dutcher, San Diego State[75]	2021 Mountain West Conference men's basketball tournament	Thomas & Mack Center (Paradise, NV)	San Diego State
Northeast Conference	Wagner	Alex Morales, Wagner[76]	Bashir Mason, Wagner[76]	2021 Northeast Conference men's basketball tournament	Campus sites	Mount St. Mary's
Ohio Valley Conference	Belmont	Terry Taylor, Austin Peay[77]	Preston Spradlin, Morehead State[77]	2021 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball tournament	Ford Center (Evansville, IN)	Morehead State
Pac-12 Conference	Oregon	Evan Mobley, USC[78]	Andy Enfield, USC[78]	2021 Pac-12 Conference men's basketball tournament	T-Mobile Arena (Paradise, NV)	Oregon State
Patriot League	Navy	Jordan Burns, Colgate[79]	Ed DeChellis, Navy[79]	2021 Patriot League men's basketball tournament	Campus sites	Colgate
Southeastern Conference	Alabama	Herbert Jones, Alabama[80][81]	Nate Oats, Alabama[80][81]	2021 SEC men's basketball tournament	Bridgestone Arena (Nashville, TN)	Alabama
Southern Conference	UNC Greensboro	Isaiah Miller, UNC Greensboro[82]	Dan Earl, VMI[82]	2021 Southern Conference men's basketball tournament	Harrah's Cherokee Center (Asheville, NC)	UNC Greensboro
Southland Conference	Nicholls	Zach Nutall, Sam Houston State[83]	Austin Claunch, Nicholls[83]	2021 Southland Conference men's basketball tournament	Leonard E. Merrell Center (Katy, TX)	Abilene Christian
Southwestern Athletic Conference	Prairie View A&M	Tristan Jarrett, Jackson State[84]	Byron Smith, Prairie View A&M[84]	2021 SWAC men's basketball tournament	Bartow Arena (Birmingham, AL)	Texas Southern
Summit League	South Dakota State	Max Abmas, Oral Roberts[85]	Todd Lee, South Dakota[85]	2021 Summit League men's basketball tournament	Sanford Pentagon (Sioux Falls, SD)	Oral Roberts
Sun Belt Conference	Georgia State (East) and Texas State (West)[b]	DeVante' Jones, Coastal Carolina[86]	Terrence Johnson, Texas State[86]	2021 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball tournament	Hartsell Arena & Pensacola Bay Center (Pensacola, FL)	Appalachian State
West Coast Conference	Gonzaga	Corey Kispert, Gonzaga[87]	Mark Few, Gonzaga[87]	2021 West Coast Conference men's basketball tournament	Orleans Arena (Paradise, NV)	Gonzaga
Western Athletic Conference	Grand Canyon	Fardaws Aimaq, Utah Valley[88]	Lew Hill, Texas–Rio Grande Valley[88]	2021 WAC men's basketball tournament		Grand Canyon

1. Top seed in conference tournament
2. These conferences chose to seed their tournament by division, with both divisional champions being top seeds in different halves of the bracket.

Statistical leaders

Source for additional stats categories

Points per game				Rebounds per game				Assists per game				Steals per game
Player	School	PPG		Player	School	RPG		Player	School	APG		Player	School	SPG
Max Abmas	Oral Roberts	24.5		Fardaws Aimaq	Utah Valley	15.0		Jalen Moore	Oakland	8.4		Jacob Gilyard	Richmond	3.57
Luka Garza	Iowa	24.1		Jayveous McKinnis	Jackson St.	13.2		Colbey Ross	Pepperdine	7.7		Jose Alvarado	Georgia Tech	2.85
Antoine Davis	Detroit Mercy	24.0		Norchad Omier	Arkansas St.	12.3		Cam Mack	Prairie View A&M	7.7		DeVante' Jones	Coastal Carolina	2.81
Cameron Thomas	LSU	23.0		Elyjah Goss	IUPUI	11.6		Kendric Davis	SMU	7.6		Kameron Langley	NC A&T	2.68
Loren Cristian Jackson	Akron	22.3		Charles Bassey	W. Kentucky	11.6		Sahvir Wheeler	Georgia	7.4		Cam Mack	Prairie View A&M	2.67

Blocked shots per game				Field goal percentage				Three-point field goal percentage				Free throw percentage
Player	School	BPG		Player	School	FG%		Player	School	3FG%		Player	School	FT%
KC Ndefo	St. Peter's	3.64		Asbjorn Midtgaard	Grand Canyon	.707		Chris Shelton	Hampton	.486		Ty Gadsden	UNC Wilmington	.944
Dajour Dickens	Hampton	3.38		Dwight Wilson	Ohio	.655		Spencer Littleson	Toledo	.473		C. J. Walker	Ohio St.	.941
Neemias Queta	Utah St.	3.34		Drew Timme	Gonzaga	.655		Jordan Schakel	San Diego St.	.461		Robby Beasley	Montana	.929
Charles Bassey	W. Kentucky	3.11		Kofi Cockburn	Illinois	.654		Nate Johnson	Xavier	.452		Antoine Davis	Detroit Mercy	.917
Mouhamadou Gueye	Stony Brook	3.10		Xavier Cork	W. Carolina	.641		Jon Williams	Robert Morris	.445		Justin Jaworski	Lafayette	.913

Postseason

NCAA tournament

Main article: 2021 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament

Tournament upsets

For this list, an "upset" is defined as a win by a team seeded 7 or more spots below its defeated opponent. This is more restrictive than the NCAA's official definition, in which a difference of 5 seed lines is sufficient to declare an "upset".^[89]

Date	Winner	Score	Loser	Region	Round
March 19	Oregon State (#12)	70–56	Tennessee (#5)	Midwest	First round
March 19	North Texas (#13)	78–69OT	Purdue (#4)	South	First round
March 19	Oral Roberts (#15)	75–72OT	Ohio State (#2)	South	First round
March 20	Ohio (#13)	62–58	Virginia (#4)	West	First round
March 20	Abilene Christian (#14)	53–52	Texas (#3)	East	First round
March 21	Loyola–Chicago (#8)	71–58	Illinois (#1)	Midwest	Second round
March 21	Syracuse (#11)	75–72	West Virginia (#3)	Midwest	Second round
March 21	Oregon State (#12)	80–70	Oklahoma State (#4)	Midwest	Second round
March 21	Oral Roberts (#15)	81–78	Florida (#7)	South	Second round
March 28	UCLA (#11)	88–78OT	Alabama (#2)	East	Sweet Sixteen
March 30	UCLA (#11)	51–49	Michigan (#1)	East	Elite Eight

Teams eliminated from postseason participation due to COVID-19

• March 5 – Northern Iowa^[90]
• March 9 – FIU^[91]
• March 11 – Duke^[92]
• March 12 – North Carolina A&T^[93]

Conference standings

2020–21 America East Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT UMBC 10 – 4   .714 14 – 6   .700 Vermont 10 – 4   .714 10 – 5   .667 New Hampshire 9 – 6   .600 10 – 9   .526 Hartford † 8 – 6   .571 15 – 9   .625 Albany 6 – 6   .500 7 – 9   .438 UMass Lowell 7 – 8   .467 11 – 12   .478 Stony Brook 7 – 9   .438 9 – 14   .391 NJIT 6 – 10   .375 7 – 12   .368 Binghamton 4 – 10   .286 4 – 14   .222 Maine 2 – 6   .250 2 – 7   .222 † 2021 AmEast tournament winner Maine suspended its season on February 13, 2021.	2020–21 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Wichita State 11 – 2   .846 16 – 6   .727 No. 6 Houston † 14 – 3   .824 28 – 4   .875 Memphis 11 – 4   .733 20 – 8   .714 SMU 7 – 4   .636 11 – 6   .647 Cincinnati 8 – 6   .571 12 – 11   .522 UCF 8 – 10   .444 11 – 12   .478 Tulsa 7 – 9   .438 11 – 12   .478 South Florida 4 – 10   .286 9 – 13   .409 Temple 4 – 10   .286 5 – 11   .313 Tulane 4 – 12   .250 10 – 13   .435 East Carolina 2 – 10   .167 8 – 11   .421 † 2021 AAC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll	2020–21 Atlantic 10 men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT St. Bonaventure† 11 – 4   .733 16 – 5   .762 VCU 10 – 4   .714 19 – 7   .731 Davidson 7 – 4   .636 13 – 9   .591 Saint Louis 6 – 4   .600 14 – 7   .667 UMass 6 – 4   .600 8 – 7   .533 George Mason 8 – 6   .571 13 – 9   .591 Dayton 9 – 7   .563 14 – 10   .583 Richmond 6 – 5   .545 14 – 9   .609 Duquesne 7 – 7   .500 9 – 9   .500 Rhode Island 7 – 10   .412 10 – 15   .400 George Washington 3 – 5   .375 5 – 12   .294 La Salle 6 – 11   .353 9 – 16   .360 Saint Joseph's 3 – 9   .250 5 – 15   .250 Fordham 2 – 11   .154 2 – 12   .143 † 2021 A10 Tournament winner
2020–21 ACC men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 15 Virginia 13 – 4   .765 18 – 7   .720 No. 14 Florida State 11 – 4   .733 18 – 7   .720 No. 25 Virginia Tech 9 – 4   .692 15 – 7   .682 Georgia Tech † 11 – 6   .647 17 – 9   .654 Clemson 10 – 6   .625 16 – 8   .667 North Carolina 10 – 6   .625 18 – 11   .621 Louisville 8 – 5   .615 13 – 7   .650 Syracuse 9 – 7   .563 18 – 10   .643 NC State 9 – 8   .529 14 – 11   .560 Duke 9 – 9   .500 13 – 11   .542 Notre Dame 7 – 11   .389 11 – 15   .423 Pittsburgh 6 – 10   .375 10 – 12   .455 Miami (FL) 4 – 15   .211 10 – 17   .370 Wake Forest 3 – 15   .167 6 – 16   .273 Boston College 2 – 11   .154 4 – 16   .200 † 2021 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll	2020–21 ASUN men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Liberty † 11 – 2   .846 23 – 6   .793 Bellarmine * 10 – 3   .769 14 – 8   .636 Lipscomb 9 – 6   .600 15 – 12   .556 North Florida 6 – 6   .500 8 – 15   .348 North Alabama * 7 – 8   .467 13 – 11   .542 Florida Gulf Coast 4 – 5   .444 10 – 8   .556 Stetson 7 – 9   .438 12 – 15   .444 Jacksonville 5 – 9   .357 11 – 13   .458 Kennesaw State 2 – 13   .133 5 – 19   .208 † 2021 ASUN Tournament winner * ineligible for the 2021 NCAA tournament due to transition period Jacksonville suspended their season on February 26, 2021	2020–21 Big East men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 18 Villanova 11 – 4   .733 18 – 7   .720 No. 19 Creighton 14 – 6   .700 22 – 9   .710 UConn 11 – 6   .647 15 – 8   .652 St. John's 10 – 9   .526 16 – 11   .593 Seton Hall 10 – 9   .526 14 – 13   .519 Providence 9 – 10   .474 13 – 13   .500 Xavier 6 – 7   .462 13 – 8   .619 Georgetown † 7 – 9   .438 13 – 13   .500 Marquette 8 – 11   .421 13 – 14   .481 Butler 8 – 12   .400 10 – 15   .400 DePaul 2 – 13   .133 5 – 14   .263 † 2021 Big East tournament winner Rankings from AP poll
2020–21 Big Sky men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Southern Utah 12 – 2   .857 20 – 4   .833 Weber State 12 – 3   .800 17 – 6   .739 Eastern Washington† 12 – 3   .800 16 – 8   .667 Montana State 8 – 6   .571 13 – 10   .565 Idaho State 8 – 6   .571 13 – 11   .542 Montana 7 – 9   .438 15 – 13   .536 Northern Colorado 6 – 8   .429 11 – 11   .500 Portland State 6 – 8   .429 9 – 13   .409 Sacramento State 5 – 9   .357 8 – 12   .400 Northern Arizona 4 – 10   .286 6 – 16   .273 Idaho 1 – 17   .056 1 – 21   .045 † Conference tournament winner	2020–21 Big South men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Winthrop † 17 – 1   .944 23 – 2   .920 Radford 12 – 6   .667 15 – 12   .556 Campbell 11 – 6   .647 17 – 10   .630 UNC Asheville 9 – 5   .643 10 – 10   .500 Longwood 10 – 10   .500 12 – 17   .414 Gardner–Webb 10 – 10   .500 11 – 15   .423 Hampton 9 – 9   .500 11 – 14   .440 High Point 6 – 11   .353 9 – 15   .375 USC Upstate 5 – 11   .313 5 – 18   .217 Presbyterian 5 – 12   .294 7 – 15   .318 Charleston Southern 2 – 15   .118 3 – 18   .143 † 2021 Big South tournament winner Charleston Southern suspended their season on February 23, 2021.	2020–21 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 4 Michigan 14 – 3   .824 23 – 5   .821 No. 2 Illinois † 16 – 4   .800 24 – 7   .774 No. 8 Iowa 14 – 6   .700 22 – 9   .710 No. 20 Purdue 13 – 6   .684 18 – 10   .643 No. 7 Ohio State 12 – 8   .600 21 – 10   .677 Wisconsin 10 – 10   .500 18 – 13   .581 Rutgers 10 – 10   .500 16 – 12   .571 Maryland 9 – 11   .450 17 – 14   .548 Michigan State 9 – 11   .450 15 – 13   .536 Indiana 7 – 12   .368 12 – 15   .444 Penn State 7 – 12   .368 11 – 14   .440 Northwestern 6 – 13   .316 9 – 15   .375 Minnesota 6 – 14   .300 14 – 15   .483 Nebraska 3 – 16   .158 7 – 20   .259 † Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP poll
2020–21 Big 12 men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 1 Baylor 13 – 1   .929 28 – 2   .933 No. 16 Kansas 12 – 6   .667 21 – 9   .700 No. 21 Texas † 11 – 6   .647 19 – 8   .704 No. 18 West Virginia 11 – 6   .647 19 – 10   .655 No. 19 Oklahoma State 11 – 7   .611 21 – 9   .700 No. 22 Texas Tech 9 – 8   .529 18 – 11   .621 Oklahoma 9 – 8   .529 16 – 11   .593 TCU 5 – 11   .313 12 – 14   .462 Kansas State 4 – 14   .222 9 – 20   .310 Iowa State 0 – 18   .000 2 – 22   .083 † 2021 Big 12 Tournament winner Rankings from AP poll	2020–21 Big West men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT UC Santa Barbara † 13 – 3   .813 22 – 5   .815 UC Irvine 10 – 4   .714 18 – 9   .667 UC Riverside 8 – 4   .667 14 – 8   .636 UC Davis 6 – 4   .600 10 – 8   .556 Cal State Bakersfield 9 – 7   .563 15 – 11   .577 Hawai'i 9 – 9   .500 11 – 10   .524 Cal State Fullerton 5 – 7   .417 6 – 10   .375 Cal State Northridge 5 – 9   .357 9 – 13   .409 Long Beach State 4 – 8   .333 6 – 12   .333 Cal Poly 1 – 15   .063 4 – 20   .167 UC San Diego* 0 – 0   – 7 – 10   .412 † 2021 Big West tournament winner * ineligible for the 2021 NCAA tournament and 2021 Big West tournament due to transition period; Big West games not counted in standings	2020–21 CAA men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT James Madison 8 – 2   .800 13 – 7   .650 Northeastern 8 – 2   .800 10 – 9   .526 Charleston 6 – 4   .600 9 – 10   .474 Hofstra 8 – 6   .571 13 – 10   .565 Delaware 5 – 4   .556 7 – 8   .467 Drexel † 4 – 5   .444 12 – 8   .600 William & Mary 4 – 6   .400 7 – 10   .412 Elon 4 – 7   .364 10 – 9   .526 Towson 3 – 9   .250 4 – 14   .222 UNC Wilmington 1 – 6   .143 7 – 10   .412 † 2021 CAA tournament winner
2020–21 Conference USA men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT East Western Kentucky 11 – 3   .786 21 – 8   .724 Old Dominion 11 – 5   .688 15 – 8   .652 Marshall 9 – 5   .643 15 – 7   .682 Florida Atlantic 7 – 5   .583 13 – 10   .565 Charlotte 5 – 11   .313 9 – 15   .375 Middle Tennessee 3 – 13   .188 5 – 18   .217 FIU 2 – 15   .118 9 – 17   .346 West Louisiana Tech 12 – 4   .750 24 – 8   .750 UAB 13 – 5   .722 22 – 7   .759 North Texas † 9 – 5   .643 18 – 10   .643 UTSA 9 – 7   .563 15 – 11   .577 UTEP 8 – 8   .500 12 – 12   .500 Rice 6 – 10   .375 15 – 13   .536 Southern Miss 4 – 13   .235 8 – 17   .320 † 2021 C-USA Tournament winner	2020–21 Horizon League men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Wright State 16 – 4   .800 18 – 6   .750 Cleveland State † 16 – 4   .800 19 – 8   .704 Detroit Mercy 10 – 6   .625 12 – 10   .545 Northern Kentucky 11 – 7   .611 14 – 11   .560 Oakland 10 – 10   .500 12 – 18   .400 Youngstown State 9 – 11   .450 15 – 12   .556 IUPUI 7 – 9   .438 8 – 10   .444 Milwaukee 7 – 10   .412 10 – 12   .455 Green Bay 8 – 12   .400 8 – 17   .320 UIC 6 – 10   .375 9 – 13   .409 Purdue Fort Wayne 6 – 14   .300 8 – 15   .348 Robert Morris 3 – 12   .200 4 – 15   .211 † 2021 Horizon League tournament winner	2020–21 MAAC men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Siena 12 – 4   .750 12 – 5   .706 Monmouth 12 – 6   .667 12 – 8   .600 Saint Peter's 10 – 8   .556 14 – 11   .560 Marist 10 – 8   .556 12 – 9   .571 Niagara 7 – 9   .438 9 – 11   .450 Canisius 7 – 5   .583 7 – 6   .538 Fairfield 7 – 11   .389 10 – 17   .370 Quinnipiac 7 – 10   .412 9 – 13   .409 Iona † 6 – 3   .667 12 – 6   .667 Manhattan 6 – 12   .333 7 – 13   .350 Rider 5 – 13   .278 6 – 17   .261 † 2021 MAAC tournament winner Note: The MAAC has ordered standings based on league wins, not winning percentage, since all teams did not reach 20 conference games played. These standings were also used for seeding purposes in the 2021 MAAC tournament.[94][95]
2020–21 Mid-American Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Toledo 15 – 4   .789 21 – 9   .700 Buffalo 12 – 5   .706 16 – 9   .640 Akron 12 – 6   .667 15 – 8   .652 Kent State 12 – 6   .667 15 – 8   .652 Ohio † 9 – 5   .643 17 – 8   .680 Bowling Green 10 – 8   .556 14 – 12   .538 Miami (OH) 9 – 8   .529 12 – 11   .522 Ball State 8 – 9   .471 10 – 13   .435 Western Michigan 4 – 12   .250 5 – 16   .238 Eastern Michigan 3 – 11   .214 6 – 12   .333 Central Michigan 3 – 13   .188 7 – 16   .304 Northern Illinois 2 – 12   .143 3 – 16   .158 † 2021 MAC tournament winner	2020–21 MEAC men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Northern Norfolk State † 8 – 4   .667 17 – 8   .680 Coppin State 8 – 4   .667 9 – 13   .409 Morgan State 7 – 5   .583 14 – 8   .636 Delaware State 1 – 11   .083 3 – 16   .158 Howard 0 – 0   – 1 – 4   .200 Southern North Carolina A&T 7 – 1   .875 11 – 10   .524 Florida A&M 7 – 5   .583 8 – 12   .400 North Carolina Central 3 – 5   .375 5 – 9   .357 South Carolina State 1 – 7   .125 1 – 17   .056 † 2021 MEAC tournament winner Howard suspended their season on February 9, 2021 Bethune–Cookman and Maryland Eastern Shore did not play the 2020–21 season due to COVID-19 concerns.	2020–21 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 17 Loyola Chicago † 16 – 2   .889 26 – 5   .839 Drake 15 – 3   .833 26 – 5   .839 Missouri State 12 – 6   .667 17 – 7   .708 Indiana State 11 – 7   .611 15 – 10   .600 Evansville 7 – 11   .389 9 – 16   .360 Valparaiso 7 – 11   .389 10 – 18   .357 Northern Iowa 7 – 11   .389 10 – 15   .400 Bradley 6 – 12   .333 12 – 16   .429 Southern Illinois 5 – 13   .278 12 – 14   .462 Illinois State 4 – 14   .222 7 – 18   .280 † 2021 MVC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll
2020–21 Mountain West Conference men's basketball standings Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 16 San Diego State† 14 – 3   .824 23 – 5   .821 Utah State 15 – 4   .789 20 – 9   .690 Colorado State 14 – 4   .778 20 – 8   .714 Boise State 14 – 6   .700 19 – 9   .679 Nevada 10 – 7   .588 16 – 10   .615 Fresno State 9 – 11   .450 12 – 12   .500 UNLV 8 – 10   .444 12 – 15   .444 Wyoming 7 – 9   .438 14 – 11   .560 San Jose State 3 – 13   .188 5 – 16   .238 Air Force 3 – 17   .150 5 – 20   .200 New Mexico 2 – 15   .118 6 – 16   .273 † Conference tournament winner Rankings from AP poll	2020–21 Northeast Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Wagner 13 – 5   .722 13 – 7   .650 Bryant 10 – 4   .714 15 – 7   .682 Sacred Heart 9 – 7   .563 9 – 9   .500 Mount St. Mary's † 9 – 7   .563 12 – 11   .522 Merrimack* 9 – 9   .500 9 – 9   .500 LIU 9 – 9   .500 9 – 9   .500 St. Francis Brooklyn 9 – 9   .500 9 – 10   .474 Fairleigh Dickinson 8 – 10   .444 9 – 15   .375 Saint Francis (PA) 5 – 13   .278 6 – 16   .273 Central Connecticut 5 – 13   .278 5 – 16   .238 † 2021 NEC tournament winner * ineligible for the 2021 NCAA tournament due to transition period	2020–21 Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Belmont 18 – 2   .900 26 – 4   .867 Morehead State † 17 – 3   .850 23 – 8   .742 Eastern Kentucky 15 – 5   .750 22 – 7   .759 Jacksonville State 13 – 6   .684 18 – 9   .667 Austin Peay 10 – 10   .500 14 – 13   .519 Murray State 10 – 10   .500 13 – 13   .500 Southeast Missouri State 9 – 11   .450 11 – 16   .407 SIU Edwardsville 7 – 12   .368 9 – 17   .346 Eastern Illinois 6 – 14   .300 9 – 18   .333 UT Martin 6 – 14   .300 8 – 16   .333 Tennessee Tech 5 – 15   .250 5 – 22   .185 Tennessee State 3 – 17   .150 4 – 19   .174 † 2021 OVC tournament winner
2020–21 Pac-12 Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Oregon 14 – 4   .778 21 – 7   .750 No. 23 USC 15 – 5   .750 25 – 8   .758 No. 22 Colorado 14 – 6   .700 23 – 9   .719 UCLA 13 – 6   .684 22 – 10   .688 Arizona* 11 – 9   .550 17 – 9   .654 Oregon State † 10 – 10   .500 20 – 13   .606 Stanford 10 – 10   .500 14 – 13   .519 Utah 8 – 11   .421 12 – 13   .480 Arizona State 7 – 10   .412 11 – 14   .440 Washington State 7 – 12   .368 14 – 13   .519 Washington 4 – 16   .200 5 – 21   .192 California 3 – 17   .150 9 – 20   .310 † Conference tournament winner *Ineligible for the conference and NCAA tournaments due to self-imposed postseason ban. Rankings from AP poll	2020–21 Patriot League men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT North Colgate † 11 – 1   .917 14 – 2   .875 Army 7 – 7   .500 12 – 10   .545 Boston University 6 – 10   .375 7 – 11   .389 Holy Cross 5 – 11   .313 5 – 11   .313 Central Lafayette 9 – 5   .643 9 – 6   .600 Bucknell 4 – 6   .400 5 – 7   .417 Lehigh 4 – 10   .286 4 – 11   .267 South Navy 12 – 1   .923 15 – 3   .833 American 4 – 5   .444 4 – 6   .400 Loyola 4 – 10   .286 6 – 11   .353 † 2021 Patriot League tournament winner	2020–21 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 5 Alabama† 16 – 2   .889 26 – 7   .788 No. 10 Arkansas 13 – 4   .765 25 – 7   .781 LSU 11 – 6   .647 19 – 10   .655 Tennessee 10 – 7   .588 18 – 9   .667 Florida 9 – 7   .563 15 – 10   .600 Ole Miss 10 – 8   .556 16 – 12   .571 Missouri 8 – 8   .500 16 – 10   .615 Kentucky 8 – 9   .471 9 – 16   .360 Mississippi State 8 – 10   .444 18 – 15   .545 Georgia 7 – 11   .389 14 – 12   .538 Auburn* 7 – 11   .389 13 – 14   .481 South Carolina 4 – 12   .250 6 – 15   .286 Texas A&M 2 – 8   .200 8 – 10   .444 Vanderbilt 3 – 13   .188 9 – 16   .360 † 2021 SEC tournament winner * Ineligible for postseason due to self-imposed postseason ban.
2020–21 Southern Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT UNC Greensboro † 13 – 5   .722 21 – 9   .700 Wofford 12 – 5   .706 15 – 9   .625 Furman 10 – 5   .667 16 – 9   .640 Chattanooga 9 – 7   .563 18 – 8   .692 East Tennessee State 8 – 7   .533 13 – 12   .520 VMI 7 – 7   .500 13 – 12   .520 Mercer 8 – 9   .471 18 – 11   .621 The Citadel 5 – 11   .313 13 – 12   .520 Western Carolina 4 – 13   .235 11 – 16   .407 Samford 2 – 9   .182 6 – 13   .316 † 2021 SoCon tournament winner	2020–21 Southland Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Nicholls 14 – 2   .875 18 – 7   .720 Abilene Christian † 13 – 2   .867 24 – 5   .828 Sam Houston State 13 – 3   .813 19 – 9   .679 Stephen F. Austin* 12 – 3   .800 16 – 5   .762 Northwestern State 9 – 7   .563 11 – 18   .379 New Orleans 8 – 7   .533 10 – 15   .400 Lamar 6 – 10   .375 10 – 18   .357 Incarnate Word 5 – 9   .357 8 – 14   .364 Southeastern Louisiana 5 – 10   .333 8 – 18   .308 McNeese State 4 – 10   .286 10 – 14   .417 Houston Baptist 4 – 11   .267 6 – 19   .240 Central Arkansas 4 – 12   .250 5 – 19   .208 Texas A&M–CC 2 – 13   .133 5 – 19   .208 † 2021 Southland tournament winner *Ineligible for postseason due to postseason ban	2020–21 SWAC men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Prairie View A&M 13 – 0   1.000 16 – 5   .762 Jackson State 11 – 0   1.000 12 – 6   .667 Texas Southern † 10 – 3   .769 17 – 9   .654 Grambling State 9 – 6   .600 12 – 12   .500 Southern 8 – 6   .571 8 – 11   .421 Alcorn State 6 – 7   .462 6 – 13   .316 Alabama A&M* 4 – 9   .308 6 – 9   .400 Alabama State* 4 – 14   .222 4 – 14   .222 Arkansas–Pine Bluff 3 – 12   .200 4 – 21   .160 Mississippi Valley State 2 – 13   .133 2 – 22   .083 † 2021 SWAC tournament winner *Ineligible for postseason due to APR violations
2020–21 Summit League men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT South Dakota State 9 – 3   .750 16 – 7   .696 South Dakota 11 – 4   .733 14 – 11   .560 North Dakota State 11 – 5   .688 15 – 12   .556 Oral Roberts † 10 – 5   .667 18 – 11   .621 North Dakota 8 – 8   .500 9 – 17   .346 Kansas City 7 – 7   .500 11 – 13   .458 Western Illinois 5 – 9   .357 7 – 15   .318 Omaha 3 – 11   .214 5 – 20   .200 Denver 1 – 13   .071 2 – 19   .095 † 2021 Summit League Tournament winner	2020–21 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT East Georgia State 8 – 4   .667 16 – 6   .727 Coastal Carolina 9 – 5   .643 18 – 8   .692 South Alabama 10 – 7   .588 17 – 11   .607 Appalachian State † 7 – 8   .467 17 – 12   .586 Georgia Southern 7 – 9   .438 13 – 13   .500 Troy 4 – 12   .250 11 – 17   .393 West Texas State 12 – 3   .800 18 – 7   .720 Louisiana 10 – 7   .588 17 – 9   .654 UT Arlington 9 – 8   .529 13 – 13   .500 Arkansas State 7 – 8   .467 11 – 13   .458 Little Rock 7 – 11   .389 11 – 15   .423 Louisiana–Monroe 5 – 13   .278 7 – 19   .269 † 2021 Sun Belt Tournament winner	2020–21 WAC men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT Grand Canyon † 9 – 3   .750 17 – 7   .708 Utah Valley 9 – 4   .692 11 – 11   .500 New Mexico State 7 – 6   .538 12 – 8   .600 California Baptist* 6 – 6   .500 13 – 10   .565 Seattle 4 – 5   .444 12 – 11   .522 Tarleton State* 5 – 7   .417 10 – 10   .500 Dixie State* 4 – 10   .286 8 – 13   .381 Texas–Rio Grande Valley 2 – 5   .286 9 – 10   .474 Chicago State 0 – 0   – 0 – 9   .000 † 2021 WAC tournament winner * Ineligible for the 2021 NCAA tournament due to transition period Chicago State suspended their season on December 23, 2020
2020–21 West Coast Conference men's basketball standings v t e Conf. Overall Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT No. 1 Gonzaga † 15 – 0   1.000 31 – 1   .969 No. 23 BYU 10 – 3   .769 20 – 7   .741 Loyola Marymount 7 – 5   .583 13 – 9   .591 Pepperdine 7 – 6   .538 15 – 12   .556 Pacific 6 – 7   .462 9 – 9   .500 Santa Clara 4 – 5   .444 12 – 8   .600 Saint Mary's 4 – 6   .400 14 – 10   .583 San Francisco 4 – 9   .308 11 – 14   .440 San Diego 2 – 7   .222 3 – 11   .214 Portland 0 – 11   .000 6 – 15   .286 † 2021 WCC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

Award winners

2021 Consensus All-America team

For a more comprehensive list, see 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans.

Consensus First Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Jared Butler	PG	Junior	Baylor
Cade Cunningham	PG/SG	Freshman	Oklahoma State
Ayo Dosunmu	PG	Junior	Illinois
Luka Garza	C	Senior	Iowa
Corey Kispert	SF	Senior	Gonzaga

Consensus Second Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Kofi Cockburn	C	Sophomore	Illinois
Hunter Dickinson	C	Freshman	Michigan
Evan Mobley	PF/C	Freshman	USC
Jalen Suggs	PG/SG	Freshman	Gonzaga
Drew Timme	PF	Sophomore	Gonzaga

Major player of the year awards

• Wooden Award: Luka Garza, Iowa^[96]
• Naismith Award: Luka Garza, Iowa^[97]
• Associated Press Player of the Year: Luka Garza, Iowa^[98]
• NABC Player of the Year: Luka Garza, Iowa^[99]
• Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA): Luka Garza, Iowa^[100]
• Sporting News Player of the Year: Luka Garza, Iowa^[101]

Major freshman of the year awards

• Wayman Tisdale Award (USBWA): Cade Cunningham, Oklahoma State^[102]
• NABC Freshman of the Year: Cade Cunningham, Oklahoma State^[99]
• Sporting News Freshman of the Year: Cade Cunningham, Oklahoma State^[103]

Major coach of the year awards

• Associated Press Coach of the Year: Juwan Howard, Michigan^[104]
• Henry Iba Award (USBWA): Juwan Howard, Michigan^[105]
• NABC Coach of the Year: Mark Few, Gonzaga^[99]
• Naismith College Coach of the Year: Mark Few, Gonzaga^[106]
• Sporting News Coach of the Year: Juwan Howard, Michigan^[107]

Other major awards

• Naismith Starting Five:^[108]
  • Bob Cousy Award (best point guard): Ayo Dosunmu, Illinois
  • Jerry West Award (best shooting guard): Chris Duarte, Oregon
  • Julius Erving Award (best small forward): Corey Kispert, Gonzaga
  • Karl Malone Award (best power forward): Drew Timme, Gonzaga
  • Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award (best center): Luka Garza, Iowa
• Pete Newell Big Man Award (best big man): Luka Garza, Iowa^[99]
• NABC Defensive Player of the Year: Davion Mitchell, Baylor^[99]
• Naismith Defensive Player of the Year: Davion Mitchell, Baylor^[109]
• Senior CLASS Award (top senior on and off the court): Luka Garza, Iowa^[110]
• Robert V. Geasey Trophy (top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Collin Gillespie, Villanova^[111]
• Haggerty Award (top player in NYC metro area): Sandro Mamukelashvili, Seton Hall^[112]
• Ben Jobe Award (top minority coach): Leonard Hamilton, Florida State
• Hugh Durham Award (top mid-major coach): Byron Smith, Prairie View A&M
• Jim Phelan Award (top head coach): Todd Simon, Southern Utah
• Lefty Driesell Award (top defensive player): Davion Mitchell, Baylor
• Lou Henson Award (top mid-major player): Max Abmas, Oral Roberts
• Lute Olson Award (top non-freshman or transfer player): Luka Garza, Iowa
• Skip Prosser Man of the Year Award (coach with moral character): Lew Hill, UTRGV
• Academic All-American of the Year (top scholar-athlete): Corey Kispert, Gonzaga^[113]
• Elite 90 Award (top GPA among upperclass players at Final Four): Russell Stong, UCLA
• Perry Wallace Most Courageous Award: This award was not presented to a Division I basketball figure. The award went to the men's basketball team of NAIA Bluefield College, which decided to kneel during the pregame playing of the national anthem on February 8, 2021, in defiance of orders from the college's president.^[114]

Coaching changes

Fifty-six teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended. Two schools changed coaches between their first practice and first game of the season. One coach resigned and one died.

Team	Former coach	Interim coach	New coach	Reason
Abilene Christian	Joe Golding		Brette Tanner	Golding left Abilene Christian on April 13, 2021, after ten seasons for the head coaching position at UTEP.[115] In his ten seasons as head coach, Golding led his alma mater to their first two Division I NCAA tournament appearances in school history. Associate head coach Tanner was promoted by the Wildcats to fill the vacancy the next day.[116]
Albany	Will Brown		Dwayne Killings	Brown and Albany mutually agreed to part ways on March 1, 2021, after 20 seasons. Brown led the Great Danes to a 315–295 overall record and five America East tournament championships during his tenure.[117] Dwayne Killings, previously an assistant coach at Marquette, was hired to replace Brown on March 15.[118]
Arizona	Sean Miller		Tommy Lloyd	Arizona parted ways with Miller on April 7, 2021, after 12 seasons. Despite his 302–109 record at UA, Miller was linked to alleged violations of NCAA rules stemming from a 2017 federal investigation into corruption in college basketball.[119] Gonzaga associate head coach Tommy Lloyd, who had previously been the designated successor to Gonzaga head coach Mark Few, was hired as the Wildcats next head coach on April 14.[120]
Arkansas–Pine Bluff	George Ivory		Solomon Bozeman	Ivory resigned from UAPB on April 6, 2021, after 13 seasons and a 140–269 overall record.[121] The Golden Lions hired Oral Roberts assistant Bozeman on June 11.[122]
Austin Peay	Matt Figger		Nate James	Figger left Austin Peay on March 29, 2021, after four seasons for the UTRGV head coaching job.[123] On April 2, the Governors named Duke associate head coach Nate James as their new head coach.[124]
Bethune-Cookman	Ryan Ridder		Reggie Theus	Ridder left BCU on March 30, 2021, after three seasons for the head coaching job at UT Martin.[125] On July 3, ESPN reported that BCU had hired former NBA star Theus, also with head coaching experience with the Sacramento Kings, New Mexico State, and Cal State Northridge, in the dual role of head coach and athletic director; BCU's official announcement came on July 7.[126][127]
Binghamton	Tommy Dempsey	Levell Sanders		Binghamton fired Dempsey on March 1, 2021, after nine seasons, in which the Bearcats went 72–194 overall and never finished higher than 6th place in the America East. Assistant coach Sanders was named the interim head coach of the team for the 2021–22 season.[128] On February 17, 2022, Sanders had the interim tag removed and was named permanent head coach of the team.[129]
Boston College	Jim Christian	Scott Spinelli	Earl Grant	Christian was fired on February 15, 2021, after 6½ seasons at Boston College, in which the Eagles were 78–132 overall, including a 3–13 overall record and a 1–9 record in ACC play this season at the time of Christian's dismissal. Assistant coach Spinelli was named interim head coach for the rest of the season.[130] On March 15, Charleston head coach Earl Grant was hired as BC's new coach.[131]
Cal State Northridge	Mark Gottfried	Trent Johnson		Gottfried, who had completed his 3rd season at CSUN, was placed on paid administrative leave by the university, along with his coaching staff, on April 29, 2021, pending an investigation of rule violations within the program.[132] Johnson, who had been serving as the Deputy Analyst and Player Development Director at UC Berkeley for the past 2 years, was named interim head coach of the Matadors for the 2021–22 season on July 22.[133] On March 17, CSUN removed the interim tag from Johnson and named him head coach.[134]
Central Connecticut	Donyell Marshall		Patrick Sellers	Marshall announced his resignation on March 5, 2021, after five seasons and a 43–103 overall record at Central Connecticut.[135] Fairfield assistant coach and CCSU alum Sellers was hired by the Blue Devils on May 10.[136]
Central Michigan	Keno Davis		Tony Barbee	Central Michigan parted ways with Davis on April 5, 2021, after nine seasons and a 142–143 overall record.[137] Kentucky assistant Tony Barbee, formerly the head coach at UTEP and Auburn, was hired by the Chippewas on April 23.[138]
Chicago State	Lance Irvin		Gerald Gillion	Irvin and Chicago State mutually agreed to part ways on July 1, 2021, after three seasons and a 7–63 overall record.[139] Samford assistant Gillion was hired by the Cougars on July 19.[140]
Cincinnati	John Brannen		Wes Miller	Cincinnati fired Brannen after two seasons on April 9, 2021, following an internal review of unspecified allegations related to Brannen and the program. The investigation was triggered after six players entered the NCAA transfer portal within three days of the Bearcats' final game of the season.[141] The Bearcats hired UNC Greensboro head coach Wes Miller as his replacement on April 14.[142]
College of Charleston	Earl Grant		Pat Kelsey	Grant left Charleston on March 15, 2021, after seven seasons for the Boston College head coaching job.[131] The Cougars stayed in-state for their next hire, naming Winthrop head coach Kelsey for the position on March 25.[143]
Delaware State	Eric Skeeters		Stan Waterman	Delaware State parted ways with Skeeters on April 1, 2021, after three seasons and a 15–67 overall record.[144] Stan Waterman, head coach of Sanford School for the past 30 years, was hired by the Hornets on June 3.[145]
Denver	Rodney Billups		Jeff Wulbrun	Denver parted ways with Billups on March 1, 2021, after five seasons and a 48–94 overall record.[146] Stanford associate head coach Wulbrun was hired by the Pioneers as their new coach on March 29.[147]
DePaul	Dave Leitao		Tony Stubblefield	DePaul fired Leitao on March 15, 2021, after six seasons of his second stint as Blue Demons head coach (he had previously held that position from 2002 to 2005), following five straight seasons in which the Blue Demons finished last in the Big East.[148] On April 6, the Blue Demons hired Oregon assistant Stubblefield as their next head coach.[149]
East Tennessee State	Jason Shay		Desmond Oliver	Shay resigned from ETSU on March 30, 2021, almost 11 months after he was promoted to head coach of the team.[150] On April 5, the Buccaneers hired Tennessee assistant coach Desmond Oliver as their next head coach.[151]
Eastern Illinois	Jay Spoonhour		Marty Simmons	Eastern Illinois did not renew Spoonhour's contract on March 4, 2021, ending his nine-year tenure at the school with a 119–157 record.[152] On March 31, the Panthers hired Clemson assistant coach and former Evansville head coach Marty Simmons as Spoonhour's replacement.[153]
Eastern Michigan	Rob Murphy		Stan Heath	Eastern Michigan parted ways with Murphy on March 17, 2021, after ten seasons and a 166–155 record.[154] On April 12, the Eagles announced the hire of former Arkansas and South Florida coach and EMU alumnus Stan Heath as their next head coach.[155]
Eastern Washington	Shantay Legans		David Riley	On March 22, 2021, it was confirmed that Legans would leave Eastern Washington after four seasons for the head coaching job at Portland.[156] On March 25, the Eagles announced that associate head coach Riley would be elevated to the head position.[157]
Fordham	Jeff Neubauer	Mike DePaoli	Kyle Neptune	Neubauer was fired on January 26, 2021, after 5½ seasons at Fordham, in which the Rams went 61–104 overall, including a 1–7 start to the season. Assistant coach DePaoli was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season.[158] On March 30, the school named Villanova assistant coach Kyle Neptune its new head coach.[159]
George Mason	Dave Paulsen		Kim English	George Mason dismissed Paulsen after six seasons on March 16, 2021. He finished with an overall record of 95–91 (46–54 in A-10 play) at the school.[160] On March 23, the Patriots hired former Tennessee assistant Kim English as their next head coach.[161]
Hofstra	Joe Mihalich		Speedy Claxton	On March 19, 2021, Hofstra announced that Mihalich will transition into a new role as special advisor to the director of athletics. Mihalich spent seven seasons with a 141–92 overall record with the program, but missed the entire 2020–21 season due to an unspecified medical issue.[162] Assistant coach and former Pride star player Claxton was promoted to the head coaching position on April 7.[163]
Indiana	Archie Miller		Mike Woodson	Indiana fired Miller on March 15, 2021, after four seasons with a 67–56 record and no NCAA tournament appearances.[164] On March 28, New York Knicks assistant and former NBA head coach Mike Woodson, an Indiana alum, was hired as the Hoosiers next head coach, signing a six-year deal.[165]
Indiana State	Greg Lansing		Josh Schertz	Lansing's 11-year tenure at Indiana State ended on March 8, 2021, after his contract was not renewed, leaving with a 181–164 overall record.[166] On March 17, the Sycamores went to Division II for their new coach, hiring Lincoln Memorial head coach Josh Schertz.[167]
Iowa State	Steve Prohm		T. J. Otzelberger	Iowa State and Prohm mutually agreed to part ways on March 15, 2021, after six seasons and a 97–95 overall record, including a 2–22 overall record and winless record in conference play this season.[168] Iowa State hired Otzelberger, a former Cyclone assistant coach, from UNLV on March 18, 2021.[169]
Jacksonville	Tony Jasick		Jordan Mincy	Jacksonville fired Jasick on March 8, 2021, after seven seasons and a 95–123 overall record.[170] Florida assistant coach Mincy was hired as the Dolphins' new head coach on March 25.[171]
Lamar	Tic Price		Alvin Brooks	Lamar parted ways with Price on March 21, 2021, after seven seasons and a 112–113 record.[172] On April 1, Lamar announced the hiring of former Cardinal player and current Houston associate head coach Brooks as head coach.[173]
Loyola–Chicago	Porter Moser		Drew Valentine	On April 3, 2021, Moser left Loyola–Chicago after ten seasons to accept the head coaching job at Oklahoma.[174] The Ramblers promoted assistant coach Valentine to head coach that same day.[175]
Marquette	Steve Wojciechowski		Shaka Smart	Marquette fired Wojciehowski on March 19, 2021, after seven seasons and a 128–95 overall record.[176] The Golden Eagles hired Texas head coach Shaka Smart to the same position on March 26.[177]
McNeese State	Heath Schroyer		John Aiken	Schroyer stepped down from his head coaching position on March 11, 2021, after three seasons to become the full-time athletic director of McNeese State, having initially served as the interim AD since June 2020. Associate head coach Aiken was promoted to head coach of the Cowboys effective immediately.[178]
Minnesota	Richard Pitino		Ben Johnson	Minnesota fired Pitino on March 15, 2021, after eight seasons. Despite two NCAA tournament appearances, along with an NIT championship, the Golden Gophers were 141–123 overall and 54–96 in conference play during his tenure.[179] On March 22, the school hired Xavier assistant coach and Minnesota alum Ben Johnson as its new head coach.[180]
New Mexico	Paul Weir		Richard Pitino	New Mexico announced on February 26, 2021, that Weir and the school had mutually agreed to part ways at the end of the season. At the time of the announcement, the Lobos were 6–14 overall and 2–14 in conference play this season, and were 58–61 during Weir's four-year tenure.[181] On March 16, the school hired Richard Pitino, who had been fired from Minnesota less than 24 hours earlier, as its new head coach.[182]
North Carolina	Roy Williams		Hubert Davis	On April 1, 2021, Williams announced his retirement after 33 seasons as head coach, the last 18 seasons spent at North Carolina, where the Tar Heels went 485–163 with a trip to five Final Fours and three national championships in 2005, 2009, and 2017.[183] On April 5, UNC assistant coach and former star player Hubert Davis was promoted to head coach, making him the first African-American head coach of the program.[184]
Northern Illinois	Mark Montgomery	Lamar Chapman	Rashon Burno	Montgomery was fired on January 3, 2021, after 9½ years at Northern Illinois, in which the Huskies went 124–170 overall, including a 1–7 start to the season. Assistant coach Chapman was named interim head coach for the rest of the season.[185] Arizona State assistant coach Burno was hired as NIU's new head coach on March 6.[186]
Oklahoma	Lon Kruger		Porter Moser	On March 25, 2021, Kruger announced his retirement after 36 seasons as head coach, the last ten seasons spent at Oklahoma, where the Sooners went 195–128 with a trip to the Final Four in 2016.[187] On April 3, the Sooners hired Loyola–Chicago coach Moser as their next head coach.[174]
Pacific	Damon Stoudamire		Leonard Perry	Stoudemire left Pacific after five seasons to join the coaching staff of the Boston Celtics and was replaced by top assistant Perry on July 7.[188]
Portland	Terry Porter	Ben Johnson	Shantay Legans	After a 43–103 overall record in 4½ seasons, including a 6–11 overall record and 0–8 conference record to start the season, Portland fired Porter on February 5, 2021. Assistant coach Johnson served as the Pilots' interim head coach for the rest of the season.[189] On March 22, it was confirmed that Portland would hire Eastern Washington head coach Legans to the head coaching position.[156]
Portland State	Barret Peery		Jase Coburn	Peery left Portland State on April 6, 2021, after four seasons to become associate head coach at Texas Tech.[190] The Vikings promoted associate head coach Coburn to the head coaching position on April 16.[191]
Radford	Mike Jones		Darris Nichols	Jones left Radford on April 19, 2021, after ten seasons for the head coaching job at UNC Greensboro.[192] Florida assistant coach Nichols was hired by the Highlanders on April 21.[193]
San Jose State	Jean Prioleau		Tim Miles	San Jose State fired Prioleau on March 12, 2021, after four seasons and a 20–93 overall record.[194] The Spartans announced the hire of former North Dakota State, Colorado State, and Nebraska head coach Miles as their next head coach on April 6.[195]
South Carolina State	Murray Garvin		Tony Madlock	SC State parted ways with Garvin on March 15, 2021, after nine seasons and an 82–168 overall record.[196] The Bulldogs named Memphis assistant coach Madlock as their new head coach on March 25.[197]
Texas	Shaka Smart		Chris Beard	Smart left Texas on March 26, 2021, after six seasons to accept the head coaching job at Marquette.[177] The Longhorns announced on April 1 that Texas Tech head coach and Texas alumnus Beard had accepted the head coaching position.[198]
Texas A&M–CC	Willis Wilson		Steve Lutz	The 61-year-old Wilson announced his retirement from coaching on March 24, 2021, after 28 seasons overall as head coach, with the last 11 at A&M–CC.[199] Purdue assistant coach Lutz was hired by the Islanders' as his replacement on April 6.[200]
Texas Tech	Chris Beard		Mark Adams	Beard left Texas Tech on April 1, 2021, after five seasons to accept the head coaching job at Texas.[198] The Red Raiders elevated top assistant Adams to head coach on April 5.[201]
UMBC	Ryan Odom		Jim Ferry	Odom left UMBC on April 5, 2021, after five seasons for the Utah State head coaching position.[202] On April 12, UMBC announced the hire of former Penn State interim coach Ferry as its next head coach.[203]
UNC Greensboro	Wes Miller		Mike Jones	Miller left UNCG after ten seasons to accept the head coaching position at Cincinnati on April 14, 2021.[142] The Spartans hired Radford head coach Mike Jones on April 19.[192]
UNLV	T. J. Otzelberger		Kevin Kruger	Otzelberger left UNLV on March 18, 2021, after two seasons for the Iowa State head coaching job.[169] On March 21, the Runnin' Rebels announced that current assistant coach Kruger will be promoted to the head coaching position.[204]
UT Arlington	Chris Ogden		Greg Young	Ogden left UT Arlington on April 1, 2021, after three seasons to accept an assistant coaching position on Chris Beard's staff at his alma mater Texas.[205] The Mavericks promoted longtime assistant coach Greg Young to the head coaching position on April 6.[206]
UTEP	Rodney Terry		Joe Golding	Terry left UTEP on April 6, 2021, after three seasons to accept an assistant coaching position on Chris Beard's staff at Texas.[207] The Miners announced the hiring of Abilene Christian head coach Golding as its next head coach on April 13.[115]
UT Martin	Anthony Stewart	Montez Robinson	Ryan Ridder	UT Martin announced Stewart's sudden death on November 15, 2020. The 50-year-old was set to start his fifth season as head coach of the Skyhawks, having amassed a 51–73 record during his tenure at the school.[2] Two days later, assistant coach Robinson, who was hired by the team in September, was named interim head coach for the 2020–21 season.[208] After Robinson was not retained at the end of the season, the school hired Bethune–Cookman head coach Ryan Ridder as its new coach on March 30.[125]
UTRGV	Lew Hill	Jai Steadman	Matt Figger	Hill died on February 7, 2021.[209] The 55-year-old was in his fifth season as head coach at Texas–Rio Grande Valley, amassing a record of 67–75 during his tenure at the school and had been preparing to step down after the season due to ongoing medical issues, including a bout with COVID. Four days after Hill's death, assistant coach Steadman was named interim head coach of the Vaqueros for the rest of the season.[210] After the season ended, the school hired Austin Peay head coach Figger on March 29.[123]
Utah	Larry Krystkowiak		Craig Smith	Utah fired Krystowiak on March 16, 2021, after ten seasons with an overall record of 183–139.[211] The Utes hired Craig Smith from cross-state rival Utah State as their next head coach on March 27.[212]
Utah State	Craig Smith		Ryan Odom	Smith left Utah State after three seasons to take the head coaching position at cross-state rival Utah on March 27, 2021.[212] The Aggies announced the hire of UMBC head coach Odom as their next head coach on April 5.[202]
Western Carolina	Mark Prosser		Justin Gray	Prosser left Western Carolina on April 2, 2021, after three seasons for the head coaching position at Winthrop.[213] Ironically enough, the Catamounts hired Justin Gray, a former Winthrop assistant coach who had followed Pat Kelsey to the College of Charleston, on April 13.[214]
Wichita State	Gregg Marshall	Isaac Brown		Marshall, the program's winningest head coach with 331 wins, resigned from Wichita State on November 17, 2020, after 13 seasons following an investigation into reports of physical and verbal abuse of players. Assistant coach Brown was initially named the interim head coach of the Shockers for the 2020–21 season,[215] and had the interim tag removed and was officially named the new head coach on February 26, 2021.[216]
Winthrop	Pat Kelsey		Mark Prosser	Kelsey left Winthrop on March 25, 2021, after nine seasons for the head coaching position at Charleston.[143] On April 2, Winthrop announced the hiring of former Eagle assistant coach Prosser from Western Carolina as their next head coach.[213]

See also

• 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season