1961–62 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team

The 1961–62 Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball team represented University of Cincinnati. Cincinnati won the Missouri Valley Conference regular season title and defended its national championship with a 71–59 defeat of top-ranked in-state foe Ohio State again before 18,469 at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. The head coach was Ed Jucker.

Schedule
!colspan=12 style=|Regular Season

!colspan=12 style=|NCAA Tournament

All-American

 * USBWA First Team: Paul Hogue
 * NABC, NEA Second Team: Paul Hogue
 * AP, NEA Third Team: Paul Hogue

National honors
Helms Foundation College Basketball Player of the Year: Paul Hogue

All-MVC

 * Paul Hogue
 * Tom Thacker
 * Ron Bonham

Source

NBA draft

 * In the spring of 1962, Cleveland Pipers owner George Steinbrenner signed Jerry Lucas to a player-management contract worth forty thousand dollars. With the Lucas signing, Steinbrenner had a secret deal with NBA commissioner Maurice Podoloff. The Pipers would merge with the Kansas City Steers and join the NBA. A schedule was printed for the 1963–64 NBA season with the Pipers playing the New York Knicks in the first game. Steinbrenner and partner George McKean fell behind in payments to the NBA and the deal was cancelled.