The 1940-41 Wisconsin basketball team got off to a rough start, with a disappointing record of 3-2 through their first five games. But the Badgers only lost one more game in the regular season on their way to a 17-3 record and a championship in the Big Ten. In the third annual NCAA postseason tournament, Wisconsin defeated Dartmouth and Pittsburgh before clinching their only national title in the championship game against Washington State, 39-34. Back in Madison, the team was greeted by over 10,000 fans as they returned from Kansas City early the next morning.