1969–70 NCAA University Division men's basketball season

The 1969–70 NCAA University Division men's basketball season began in December 1969, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 1970 NCAA University Division basketball tournament championship game on March 21, 1970, at Cole Field House in College Park, Maryland. The UCLA Bruins won their sixth NCAA national championship with an 80–69 victory over the Jacksonville Dolphins.

Season headlines

 * UCLA won its fourth NCAA championship in a row, sixth overall, and sixth in seven seasons. In the Pacific 8 Conference, it also won its fourth of what ultimately would be 13 consecutive conference titles.
 * The Pacific Coast Athletic Association began play. It was renamed the Big West Conference in 1988.
 * LSU’s Pete Maravich established several NCAA records during his career. Two of the most notable came during this season &mdash; single-season scoring average (44.5 in 1969–70, besting his 44.2 average from the prior season) and career scoring (3,667 points). In addition to leading the NCAA in scoring for the third consecutive season, Maravich was named a consensus first-team All-American and SEC Player of the Year for the third time. He was the first player to score 3,000 or more points in his career (1968–1970), and his career average of 44.2 points per game made him the first player to average more than 40 points a game for his career.

Pre-season polls
The Top 20 from the AP Poll and Coaches Poll during the pre-season.

Final Four

 * Third Place – New Mexico State 79, St. Bonaventure 73

Semifinals & finals

 * Third Place – Army 75, LSU 68

Major player of the year awards

 * Naismith Award: Pete Maravich, LSU
 * Helms Player of the Year: Pete Maravich, LSU
 * Associated Press Player of the Year: Pete Maravich, LSU
 * UPI Player of the Year: Pete Maravich, LSU
 * Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA): Pete Maravich, LSU
 * Sporting News Player of the Year: Pete Maravich, LSU

Major coach of the year awards

 * Associated Press Coach of the Year: John Wooden, UCLA
 * Henry Iba Award (USBWA): John Wooden, UCLA
 * NABC Coach of the Year: John Wooden, UCLA
 * UPI Coach of the Year: John Wooden, UCLA
 * Sporting News Coach of the Year: Adolph Rupp, Kentucky

Other major awards

 * Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award (Best player under 6'0): John Rinka, Kenyon
 * Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Ken Durrett, La Salle
 * NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in New York City metro area): Jim McMillian, Columbia

Coaching changes
A number of teams changed coaches during the season and after it ended.