15 classic March Madness games you need to watch on YouTube

11. North Carolina vs. Georgetown – 1982 Championship Game

This is our first championship game on the list and it will be remembered for one indelible image. That honor belonged to a young freshman by the name of Michael Jordan, who offered a first glimpse at the legendary career he would have by nailing the game-winning jumper late in regulation.

The Hoyas had a future NBA Hall-of-Famer of their own in center Patrick Ewing and he would play a big role in Georgetown’s national title team in 1984. Ewing was also a freshman in this game and he stepped up in a big way, dropping 23 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in the matchup.

This contest was nip-and-tuck throughout, with North Carolina trailing by one at the half in this game. Jordan wasn’t even the star of his own team, with James Worthy leading the way for the Tar Heels with 28 in the title game.

The hero moment came for Jordan with 15 seconds left, when he hit a jumper to put North Carolina up one. The Tar Heels hung on to that one-point margin to help Dean Smith win his first national championship, cementing his legacy as a true legend.

Smith had come under some intense criticism for failing to win a national championship in his first three trips to the title game, so this victory took a huge monkey off his back. Georgetown would get their own title two years later, but this day belonged to the Tar Heels.