1944–45 NCAA men's basketball season

• Along with the ball on the rim, defensive interference by touching the ball after it had started its downward flight during an opponent's field goal attempt was declared a goal for the shooting team.^[1]
• A player fouls out after committing five fouls, including fouls committed in overtime. Previously, a player fouled out after committing four fouls in regulation or a fifth foul in overtime.^[1] An extra foul was not permitted in overtime games.
• Unlimited substitution is permitted for the first time. Previously, a player could re-enter a game only twice.^[1]
• It became a violation for an offensive player to remain in the free-throw lane for more than three seconds.^[1][2]

• The three-point shot — called a "long goal" at the time — was used experimentally for the first time in a college basketball game, played between Columbia and Fordham on February 7, 1945, with the three-point line 21 feet (6.4 m) from the basket. Columbia made 11 "long goals," while Fordham made nine. The game also experimented with allowing free-throw shooters to take their shots from the normal 15 feet (4.6 m) for one point or to attempt a "long foul" shot from 21 feet (6.4 m) for two points. The teams combined for eight "long fouls" during the game, which Columbia won 73–58.^[3]
• The February 7, 1945, game between Columbia and Fordham also saw the first use of the 12-foot-wide (3.7 m) free-throw lane, an experiment at a time when the free-throw lane was standardized at 6 feet (1.8 m) wide. The 12-foot-wide (3.7 m) free-throw lane eventually was adopted for the 1955–56 season.^[4]
• After its football team won the 1945 Cotton Bowl Classic on January 1, Oklahoma A&M's basketball team won the 1945 NCAA tournament on March 27, making Oklahoma A&M the first school to win both a college football bowl game and the NCAA basketball tournament in the same academic year.^[5]
• More than 18,000 fans attended the final installment of an annual American Red Cross benefit game between the NCAA Tournament and NIT champions at Madison Square Garden. Oklahoma A&M, led by Bob Kurland, defeated George Mikan's DePaul 52–44.^[6] Kurland scored 14 points while Mikan scored 9 before fouling out in only 14 minutes of playing time.^[6]
• In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively selected Iowa as its top-ranked team for the 1944–45 season.^[7]

In 1995, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll retroactively ranked teams during the 1944–45 season as follows by reviewing results, opponents, and margins of victory.^[6][7]

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