1959 NCAA College Division basketball tournament
The 1959 NCAA College Division basketball tournament involved 32 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's basketball in the NCAA College Division, predecessor to today's NCAA Divisions II and III, as a culmination of the 1958–59 NCAA College Division men's basketball season. It was won by the University of Evansville, and Evansville's Hugh Ahlering was named Most Outstanding Player.

| Teams | 32 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finals site | Evansville, Indiana | ||||
| Champions | Evansville Purple Aces (1st title) | ||||
| Runner-up | Missouri State Bears (1st title game) | ||||
| Semifinalists |
| ||||
| Winning coach | Arad McCutchan (1st title) | ||||
| MOP | Hugh Ahlering (Evansville) | ||||
| Attendance | 22,287 | ||||
| |||||
Regional participants
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Florida A&M | Runner-up | |
| Lincoln (MO) | Third Place | |
| North Carolina A&T | Regional Champion | |
| Tuskegee | Fourth Place | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Adelphi | Third Place | |
| American | Regional Champion | |
| Hofstra | Runner-up | |
| Wesleyan (CT) | Fourth Place | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | Third Place | |
| Le Moyne | Runner-up | |
| St. Michaels | Regional Champion | |
| Williams | Fourth Place | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Belmont Abbey | Third Place | |
| Evansville | Regional Champion | |
| Southern Illinois | Fourth Place | |
| Wittenberg | Runner-up | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Hope | Regional Champion | |
| Loras | Fourth Place | |
| Wabash | Third Place | |
| Wheaton (IL) | Runner-up | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Abilene Christian | Third Place | |
| Centenary (LA) | Runner-up | |
| SW Missouri State | Regional Champion | |
| Western Illinois | Fourth Place | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Augustana (IL) | Fourth Place | |
| Knox | Runner-up | |
| South Dakota State | Regional Champion | |
| Wartburg | Third Place | |
| School | Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Cal State Los Angeles | Regional Champion | |
| Chapman | Runner-up | |
| Sacramento State | Fourth Place | |
| Willamette | Third Place | |
Regionals
South Central - Tuskegee, Alabama
Location: Logan Hall Host: Tuskegee Institute
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 6 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| North Carolina A&T | 107 | ||||||||
| Tuskegee | 87 | ||||||||
| North Carolina A&T | 98 | ||||||||
| Florida A&M | 75 | ||||||||
| Florida A&M | 90 | ||||||||
| Lincoln (MO) | 73 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Lincoln 88, Tuskegee 64
East - Garden City, New York
Location: Woodruff Hall Host: Adelphi College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 6 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| American | 80 | ||||||||
| Adelphi | 73 | ||||||||
| American | 66 | ||||||||
| Hofstra | 65 | ||||||||
| Hofstra | 67 | ||||||||
| Wesleyan (CT) | 48 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Adelphi 69, Wesleyan 63
Northeast - Winooski, Vermont
Location: unknown Host: Saint Michael's College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 6 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| St. Michael's | 53 | ||||||||
| Buffalo | 51 | ||||||||
| St. Michael's | 71 | ||||||||
| Le Moyne | 70 | ||||||||
| Le Moyne | 72 | ||||||||
| Williams | 66 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Buffalo 78, Williams 53
Mideast - Evansville, Indiana
Location: Roberts Municipal Stadium Host: Evansville College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 5 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 6 | ||||||||
| Evansville | 66 | ||||||||
| Belmont Abbey | 54 | ||||||||
| Evansville | 56 | ||||||||
| Wittenberg | 50 | ||||||||
| Wittenberg | 80 | ||||||||
| Southern Illinois | 70 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Belmont Abbey 79, Southern Illinois 70
Great Lakes - Glen Ellyn, Illinois
Location: Glenbard High School Gym Host: Wheaton College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 6 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| Wheaton (IL) | 102 | ||||||||
| Wabash | 83 | ||||||||
| Wheaton | 76 | ||||||||
| Hope | 93 | ||||||||
| Hope | 102 | ||||||||
| Loras | 73 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Wabash 100, Loras 79
Southwest - Springfield, Missouri
Location: McDonald Hall and Arena Host: Southwest Missouri State College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 6 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| SW Missouri State | 87 | ||||||||
| Abilene Christian | 67 | ||||||||
| SW Missouri State | 65 | ||||||||
| Centenary | 62 | ||||||||
| Centenary (LA) | 84 | ||||||||
| Western Illinois | 76 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Abilene Christian 85, Western Illinois 81*
Midwest - Brookings, South Dakota
Location: The Barn Host: South Dakota State College
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 6 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| South Dakota State | 73 | ||||||||
| Augustana (IL) | 56 | ||||||||
| South Dakota State | 106 | ||||||||
| Knox | 80 | ||||||||
| Knox | 88 | ||||||||
| Wartburg | 84 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Wartburg 69, Augustana 66*
Pacific Coast - Los Angeles, California
Location: Eagle's Nest Host: California State University, Los Angeles
| Regional semifinals Round of 32 March 6 | Regional Final Sweet 16 March 7 | ||||||||
| Cal State Los Angeles | 83 | ||||||||
| Sacramento State | 57 | ||||||||
| Cal State Los Angeles | 86 | ||||||||
| Chapman | 82 | ||||||||
| Chapman | 73 | ||||||||
| Willamette | 52 | ||||||||
- Third Place - Willamette 76, Sacramento State 57
*denotes each overtime played
National Finals - Evansville, Indiana
Location: Roberts Municipal Stadium Host: Evansville College
| National Quarterfinals Elite Eight March 11 | National semifinals Final Four March 12 | National Championship March 13 | ||||||||||||
| North Carolina A&T | 87 | |||||||||||||
| American | 70 | |||||||||||||
| North Carolina A&T | 92 | |||||||||||||
| Evansville | 110 | |||||||||||||
| St. Michael's | 63 | |||||||||||||
| Evansville | 82 | |||||||||||||
| Evansville | 83 | |||||||||||||
| SW Missouri State | 67 | |||||||||||||
| Hope | 74 | |||||||||||||
| SW Missouri State | 76 | |||||||||||||
| SW Missouri State | 72 | |||||||||||||
| Cal State Los Angeles | 59 | |||||||||||||
| South Dakota State | 67 | |||||||||||||
| Cal State Los Angeles | 92 | |||||||||||||
- Third Place - North Carolina A&T 101, Cal State Los Angeles 84
*denotes each overtime played
All-tournament team
- Hugh Ahlering (Evansville)
- Paul Benes (Hope)
- Joe Cotton (North Carolina A&T)
- Leo Hill (Cal State-Los Angeles)
- Jack Israel (Southwest Missouri State)