| Teams | 32 | 
|---|---|
| Finals Site | Springfield, Massachusetts | 
| Champions | Florida Southern (1st title) | 
| Runner-Up | Mount St. Mary's (2nd title game) | 
| Semifinalists | |
| Winning coach | Hal Wissel (1st title) | 
| MOP | John Ebeling Florida Southern | 
| Attendance | 64,659 | 
The 1981 NCAA Division II Basketball Tournament involved 32 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college basketball as a culmination of the 1980-1 NCAA Division II men's basketball season. It was won by Florida Southern College and Florida Southern's John Ebeling was the Most Outstanding Player.
*denotes tie
*denotes each overtime played
*denotes each overtime played