1982 NAIA men's basketball tournament

The 1982 NAIA men's basketball tournament was held in March at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri. The 45th annual NAIA basketball tournament featured 32 teams playing in a single-elimination format. South Carolina-Spartanburg became the champion.

Awards and honors

 * Leading scorers:
 * Leading rebounder:
 * Player of the Year: est. 1994.

1982 NAIA bracket

 * * denotes overtime.

Third-place game
The third-place game featured the losing teams from the national semifinalist to determine 3rd and 4th places in the tournament. This game was played until 1988.