ACC Championship: Basketball - Maryland vs NC State - 1974 

David Thompson was just on another level.

Don’t care what they say. This was the National Championship Game.

This is the game that my mother sat both me and my brother in front of the television, and we "officially became University of Maryland fans for life.

I'll never forget this game. It was the greatest ACC game ever played.

This game is the reason multiple teams per conference get in the tournament now. Both these teams were 2 of the best teams in the history of the ACC!

RIP Billy Packer

This was the greatest college basketball game ever and the end result led to the expansion of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament field from 32 teams to 48. That's when the term at-large teams was invented....HISTORIC. The game went to 2 or 3 OTs. ACC still the best basketball conference in the NCAA. The two Mo's, Jim Thacker and Billy Packer, ACC basketball announcers (he later went national), and sponsored by Pilot Life Insurance....just takes me back to a time when I was a little boy and had my dreams in front of me.

This is the very game changed college basketball forever it’s still true to this day. This is exactly the reason why March madness is what it is, the final four, mid-season games, the competition, the upsets, every single team in America with the crowd everything this is what changed it forever this is what made it America’s true spectacle to now as we all have always known it to be since day one.

A historic game and I will never forget it....sitting in the upper deck, near the ceiling in the corner with my parents and brother....Both teams were National Championship contenders and of course, NC State won it....The talent on the court that day was legendary! The Glory days of ACC hoops

I can remember watching the 1995 ACC tournament game between Wake Forest and Duke on Raycom Jefferson Pilot network and Billy Packer made the comment that he had the videotape from this game that he had taken from the broadcast truck after the game was over in a closet at his house.

Haven’t seen this since I saw it live in 74. I was 15 at the time and never forgot DT blocking elmores shot near 1/2 time. Actually goal tending but it fired up the team. What an unbelievable game. Probably the best in BB history. Big pack fan!!

Seriously underrated in a season of amazing upsets, one of the best college basketball games of all time

What everybody else said. I’ve heard about this game for nearly half a century, and it’s the first time I’ve ever seen it. That Maryland team lost by 1 to UCLA at Pauley and they lost this game. Them not even going to the NCAA tournament was a cruel fate. This game was the greatest argument for expanding the field. A classic - probably the most underrated game in basketball history.

I was 15 and a big Terp fan...still am...and this game broke my heart. Best game in NCAA regular season history and it altered the course of NCAA Championship participation opening up invitations to the Dance to non conference winning teams. This was the last year that only the ACC Champ received and invitation.

The greatest game that I have ever seen. I was only 9 at the time and a long time HEELS fan but I remember this like it was yesterday..

One of the greatest games ever.

One of the greatest games ever. Elmore vs. Thompson is awesome to finally see! Thank you so much for uploading this. I have been trying to find it for years.

I was only 11 years old when this game was played but I remember it well. My dad was an NC State alumni and was extremely passionate for his beloved Wolfpack. I remember him watching this game and yelling throughout all the while begging my mom to bring him a fresh towel as he literally sweated out the 2nd half. I believe this game has often been referred to as the greatest ACC tourney game ever played.

I honestly think if Maryland had won this game they would have won the NCAA title in 1974. (They played UCLA in Pauley Pavilion to open the season and lost by 1 POINT--no way UCLA beats Maryland in Greensboro!) Then if Moses Malone (who signed with Maryland) had played in the 1974-75 season rather than go to the ABA Maryland probably wins a second straight title. Lefty Driesell could VERY EASILY have had back to back national championships. Ahhh the PAIN of it all--haunts me to this very day!!

Thanks, Lefty, for getting these guys for the Terps. They lost this and other big games, but Washington area sports were way more exciting than they had been thanks to your recruiting. RIP

Maryland had the third best team in the nation that year, yet didn't qualify for the N.C.A.A. tournament.

One of the best games ever played and very important in the history of the ACC. However, as of 2024, UNC has 6 national titles, Duke has 5, NC State with 2 and Maryland with 1. The last Big Ten team to win the national title was Maryland and that was when they played in the ACC.

Notice the NC State male cheerleader with both glasses and a beard! Also notice there were no on-screen graphics used by the C.D. Chesley production company. I grew up with Thacker and Packer, they were quite a broadcast team. One very important play is missing here. With 9 seconds left in regulation, the game was tied and Maryland had the ball....but the Pack played tremendous defense and prevented the Terps from getting off a shot before time ran out.

Jim Thacker one of the best play by play guys ever. He and Billy made a great team. RIP Jim and Billy.

Incredible jump shooting ability by both teams here. I remember the following year Maryland used Davis to team with Howard and Lucas for a great 3 guard lineup

Damn shame this fine 1973-1974 Maryland Terrapins 🏀 squad did not make the NCAA tourney 😐 Mo Howard smooth guard and reminds me of 6'5 Vern Fleming (University Of Georgia 1980-1984) 👍

Met Mo Howard at a Philly gym once, and he was surprised l remembered that game.

The best 2 teams in the country. MD lost and didn't go to the tournament yet this team is one of the greatest in NCAA history.

I will never forget this game! Daddy was watching it and I was a bored 14 year old but quickly got very interested in this exciting game. I pulled for State, not knowing they were the #1 seed, because they were losing at one point. I followed them all the way to their NCAA win!

Kind of cool that the greatest game in ACC history involved neither the Tar Heels nor Blue Devils.

This is the first time that I have actually seen this game but it might be the most memorable game in my memory. I was 21 at the time and in the Army.

If you get the ACC network on tv they have a documentary on ACC basketball, great to see these guys now talking about the old days and this game.

PROBALY one of the top 3 games ever played in the history of college basketball Terps got the short end of the stick ,Lefty probably had a national championship team

The days of non greed , no transfers and few flunkies.

Can you imagine a team ranked #4 in the nation not invited to March Madness? A guaranteed #1 seed whether they win the conference tournament or not? (Though they didn’t have seeding in 1974) That’s the 1973-74 Maryland Terrapins. 23-5 for the season-a one point loss to #1 UCLA, defending National Championship, on UCLA’s home court. A six-point loss to then-#4 NC State. A nine-point loss to North Carolina in Chapel Hill when NC was ranked #4 (NC State had climbed higher in rankings.) A six-point loss to #2 NC State. They then beat #4 North Carolina by 11 and later in the ACC Tournament blew out #6 North Carolina by 20. In an era with no shot-clock, no 3-point line, and high-scoring games were few & far between, they hit 85 points or more 16 times, 90 points or more 12 times, and 100 or more points 8 times. How many colleges today hit 90 or more 12 times in a season & 100 points 8 times in a season? And this school wasn’t invited to NCAAs because the NCAAs was for Conference Championships only. Now you see why the NCAAs expanded incrementally to today’s 68 teams.

Oh and forgot. There were so many awesome players on all the teams back then. UNC had kupchek, Bobby Jones, Clemson and tree Rollins, Wally walker at Virginia. Loads of talent and I’m sure so many more I can’t even remember now. Anyway. Just my opinion

In 2024 this game is 50 years old

IMO, this was the best college basketball game ever. The only team that would have had a real chance at beating Wooden and UCLA was NC State. But if Maryland kept up its confidence the way it did with ACC teams like NC State, UNC and Virginia, it could have given UCLA all it handled. The mystique of UCLA would shatter any team low in confidence.

This game changed NCAA tourney because up to this point if you didn't win your conference tournament you didn't go to NCAA. Also the game is called by the great Jim Thacker with Billy Packer doing the color commentary. Best duo ever.

Thank you for posting. I have actually searched for this game over the years. A heart-breaking loss for me as a 10-year old. Why does this go from actual broadcast to silent video and also misses some of the late stages of the game?

This is when college ball was sensational nothing with juniors and seniors

Greatest game ever

People were so deprived by the ACC making it illegal for Thompson to dunk. Just imagine what was missed.

Sail with the Pilot!

Every player today palms the basketball. These were such better games.

These players don't have today's muscular build.

Monte Towe takes some ridiculous shots.

when jay bilas suggests that i go check out a basketball game..that's what i do

So good........... Big sized dudes even back then......... Just great stuff

What a game!

I missed this game because of a big date. As a huge Terp fan I was heartbroken getting home after midnight and hearing the score. I hated Monte Towe especially the following season when we should/could have won it all again. BTW, Thompson could easily leap as high or higher than Jordan.

DAMN, WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SOUND AT THE END OF THE GAME!!!

Ref actually called palming. Wouldn't be a game today with ref like that.

Like the guy with a stopwatch at 2:03. The headset with a receiver attached made it look like he was smoking a pipe. LOL

How does a recording like this get put out? Do you go with the janitor into a closet full of tape reels, and transfer it to MP4 files? And why is the last few minutes on silent with a different source? Thanks for putting it up. Curious how this stuff works.

Ball handling has improved drastically over the years! And I agree with Jay Bilas. A little more space between the defenders and the team with the ball. The definition of a "foul" has certainly changed over the years.

Greatest game of all time.

The best MD team ever!! I was a 12 year old kid and thought we had em. I was broken hearted when we lost this one. I thought we could beat Walton and UCLA too!

35:04, a Palming violation. Players today, "What's that"?

Before Dean Smith and Coach K it was Norm Sloan. With the Left Hander right behind him.

Arguably the most important game in NCAA tournament history….# 2 & 3 (behind UCLA) all year, the ACC brass lobbied the entire year that they should change the rules and let both in and the NCAA finally did…..the next year (moral of the story, NC State went to, and won, the NCAA tourney, Maryland went home)

Mo Rivers was a Bricklayer

Wish they could've played in the NCAA Championship game . That would've been epic! Just like the other meetings. Clearly the two best teams in the nation! Any disagreements ?

te - 1974 Final Score: NC State 103 Maryland 100 Often called the greatest college basketball game of all time. Joseph Hewes makes no claim of ownership of this footage, and is not gaining any monetary value from it's posting here. It is posted for the purpose of educating a younger generation of basketball fans of the origins of big time college basketball.

MYLD had a Stacked ass team--Lefty, God Bless his soul, was always a great recruiter! & I'm a 🐺pack fan!

NCAA outta pay reparations to Maryland and all the other schools who belonged in the dance back then,how stupid was that rule,just 32 teams,geez

College basketball needs to do away with the 3 and dunk!!. Then maybe we could see teams again like this. No jumping to the pros either

I think David Thompson was the greatest ACC player in history.

The ncaa dropped the ball during this period of time when they didn't allow the dunk. SMH

DT was a FORWARD!

15:08 Goaltending? Play on!!!

The change from video to film at 1:10:36 has the Zapruder effect on me.

25 teams. Notre Dame was 26-2. Marquette 26-5. Michigan got bye along with Vanderbilt. Conf winners. So both Independant teams play first round games even thiugh they had better records and higher rankings. NC State was going to win. But had nobody in east. UCLA same in west. You had #3 nd. 6 Marq. 10 MICH. 15 Vandy in one bracket. Digger and coach Al were punished for critizing NCAA and their letting Conference winners get byes and easy brackets. No seeding but 7 top 20 teams in mid east and midwest. 2 in east and west. Irish were always given a fair seed. Yet always put in a brutal bracket. Only time at 23- 6 in 79. Got #1 seed. Of course They had to play MSU in reg final. Magic and kelser has 5 6 lobs that irish were so stupid not to get. All they did was move Johnson on wing. Hanzlik played off him instead of him putting ball on floor. Just force him baseline. This was a ream that was in Final 4 year before. Had 8 guys that went Nba. 6 that played. It was a bird magic made tourney. Putting the team that was always sent west with 23-6 23-5 as #1 team was absured. Depaul went west and beat the field. ISU ONLY beat hogs by 2 then Depaul by 2 when with 18 seconds left. Just get the ball to Agurrie down low. Also as a chicagoin Carl Nicks was the 6'4 scrappy guy who got all the points from his hustle .Another player Lou Henson ignored. Hofs Cheeks, hardaway. Wade. Thomas. Cummings. Aguirre.

Who remembers 4 corners? Didn't Carolina start that? Not sure.

It seems like neither team runs any plays at all.

THEE best college game of all-time. Shelby NC, not far from Hickory.

who is here bc of jay bilas ?

Tom Burleson was tall and not much else. Eight inches shorter and he’s nothing more than a business major

Wonder who wins?-lol

Greatest game ever

Greatest game ever