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Welcome to CollegeHoopedia.com! This tell-it-like-it-is treasure trove of facts, statistical analysis and edgy opinion is unique because it catalogs the matchless performances of uncommon participants. What's new in college hoops from a historical perspective you can't find anywhere else?
- In Memoriam: Major-College Necrology Covering Previous 13 Years
- Five All-Americans Have Gone Unbeaten in 12 NCAA Tournament Games
- List of Active Players Passing Away Before Their Time
- NCAA Tournament Championship Coaches Departing Profession By Age of 60
- Never-Never Land: None of Duke's 47 Different All-Americans Came From North Carolina High School
- Villanova's Eric Dixon Led Nation in Scoring Average With Second-Lowest Mark Since 1948-49
- Classiest Classes: Where Will Duke's Latest Freshman Crop Rank Among Best in NCAA Recruiting History?
- Hammerin' Home Hank Aaron's Connections to College Basketball
- The Past Dunce: Remembering MJ's Ill-Conceived Dalliance With Organized Baseball
- Looks Are Deceiving: Why Don't Recruiting Gurus Pinpoint Majority of Eventual All-Americans?
- Power Play: Buzz Williams Among Coaches Making Rounds Among Power Conferences
- Resume Building: Alan Huss Joins Matt Painter and Buzz Williams As Head-Coaches-in-Waiting For Power-League Members
- Beat 'Em; Then Join 'Em: Willard Joins List of Coaches Switching Jobs to Non-Conference Opponent Defeated Previous Year
- Risky Business: Four SWAC Members Hired Coaches Coming Off Losing Campaign at HBCU Affiliates
- Swallowing Your Pride: Ten Active Mid-Major Coaches Previously Guided Multiple Power-Conference Clubs
- Heisman Hooper Charlie Ward Becomes 13th Former NBA Regular Coaching HBCU at NCAA Division I Level
- World Serious: Fall Classic Participants After Playing Hoops For Current NCAA DI Schools
- In Honor of Jackie's Uniform #: List of Best 42 MLB Players Competing Like Him at Hoops Varsity Level For Four-Year College
- Untimely Deaths: Major-College Head Coaches Who Passed Away While Still Active
- Walking Tall: Florida's Preferred Walk-on 7-9 Olivier Rioux is Tallest Player in College Basketball History
Transferring Talent: > 1/2 of A-As Last Three Years Began Careers Elsewhere
"Stepping onto a brand new path is difficult, but not more difficult than remaining in a situation which is not nurturing." - Maya Angelou
Whether schools are simply filling out a roster with a backup or chasing a pot of gold at the end of a Larry Bird-created rainbow jumper, they seem to be looking around every corner and under every rock for a transfer. Bird left a potential powerhouse at Indiana but never played for the Hoosiers before becoming national player of the year with Indiana State. Bird became a three-time All-American in the late 1970s not long after a 12-season span from 1961-62 through 1972-73 when there was exactly zero A-As who previously played varsity basketball for another four-year university. These days, wining and dining transfers has become more critical than wooing prize high school prospects. Incredibly, the transfer portal led to 27 of the total of 50 All-Americans over past three seasons transferring from other schools - 16 different individuals via mid-major schools comparable to Indiana State (Colorado State/East Carolina/George Mason/Illinois State/Iona/Massachusetts/Morehead State/New Mexico/North Florida/Northern Colorado/Ohio University/Saint Mary's/South Dakota State/Tulsa/UAB/Wyoming).
How many All-Americans over the years actually played varsity basketball for two different four-year schools? The average was about one every two years until the transfer portal yielded at least five such A-As each of the last four campaigns. Duke and Kansas, two of the five schools with the most All-Americans in history, had their first transfer in that category during the previous decade - Duke guard Seth Curry (Liberty) and KU center Jeff Withey (Arizona). Of course, the premier player in this category in 2021-22 was Kentucky center Oscar Tshiebwe, who transferred from West Virginia after averaging 10.6 ppg and 8.9 rpg for the Mountaineers in 2019-20 and first semester of 2020-21. Tshiebwe became the first transfer ever to become national player of the year after competing in games with another four-year school. He was the first player to average more than 15 rpg since Alcorn State's Larry Smith in 1979-80 (15.1). UK lost five players who became A-As elsewhere including one of five such transfers at Gonzaga.
Mississippi State lost a transfer All-American when Ben Hansbrough departed for Notre Dame but the Bulldogs had their own player in this category earlier this century after Lawrence Roberts left Baylor. In an era when transfers have almost become an obsession for various reasons, there was a modest uptick in the ratio with seven All-Americans in this category in a six-year span from 2000 through 2005 before Louisville's Luke Hancock (George Mason) became Final Four Most Outstanding Player. The transfer All-Americans this year - including Jaden Bradley, Graham Ike, Joshua Jefferson, Yaxel Lendeborg and JT Toppin - joined the following alphabetical list of A-As who began their collegiate careers at another four-year school:
*Attended junior college between four-year school stints.
NOTES: Burgess was an Air Force veteran. . . . Clayton, Haggerty, Lanier, Luis, Tonje and Toppin increased the total to 27 of All-Americans who previously played for a mid-major or non-Division I school.
Youth Movement: Boozer is Duke's 7th 1st-Team Frosh A-A in Last 13 Years
Cameron Boozer is the seventh Duke freshman in the last 13 years to be named a first-team All-American (six of them unanimously). Boozer is joined by fellow frosh Arkansas' Darius Acuff Jr. and BYU's AJ Dybantsa as first-team A-As, duplicating trio feat by freshmen Deandre Ayton (Arizona), Marvin Bagley III (Duke) and Trae Young (Oklahoma) in 2017-18.
We may have reached an inflection point in replenishing rosters where experienced transfers - seasoned veterans for "won-and-done" aspirations - are more vital than immature "one-and-done" high school recruits. For instance, Duke and Kentucky ranked 1-2, 1-3 or 2-3 in 10 of the previous 12 recruiting classes with the Blue Devils also ranked #1 in 2022 after UK was #2 in 2021. But it didn't mean squat of late in terms of success reaching the Final Four. Duke, which lost in national semifinals in 2022, is the only one of the two bluebloods advancing to the F4 in the previous eight tourneys. Similarly, Memphis ranked atop the recruiting list twice in a three-year span from 2019 through 2021 but the Tigers garnered a grand total of two playoff triumphs since 2014.
Prior to pathetic playoff performance three years ago, Brandon Miller (Alabama) was outstanding as a freshman in becoming an NCAA consensus second-team All-American. But he fell short of first-team acclaim. Five years ago, Oklahoma State's Cade Cunningham achieved a distinction luminaries Mark Aguirre, Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry, Patrick Ewing, Phil Ford, Tyler Hansbrough, James Harden, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Bernard King, Alonzo Mourning, Shaquille O'Neal, Derrick Rose, Ralph Sampson and Russell Westbrook failed to do. Following is a chronological list of 29 freshmen in this rare-air category named first-team A-A:
| Freshman First-Team All-American | Pos. | College | Year | Freshman All-American Recognition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arnie Ferrin | F | Utah | 1944 | C1 |
| Tom Gola | C-F | La Salle | 1952 | C1 |
| Keith Lee | C | Memphis State | 1982 | C1, AP2 |
| Wayman Tisdale | F-C | Oklahoma | 1983 | AP1, C1, USBWA1, UPI2, NABC3 |
| Chris Jackson | G | Louisiana State | 1989 | AP1, UPI1, USBWA1, NABC2 |
| Kenny Anderson | G | Georgia Tech | 1990 | NABC1, AP3 |
| Kevin Durant | F | Texas | 2007 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Greg Oden | C | Ohio State | 2007 | AP1, NABC2, USBWA2 |
| Michael Beasley | F | Kansas State | 2008 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Kevin Love | C | UCLA | 2008 | AP1, USBWA1, NABC2 |
| DeMarcus Cousins | C | Kentucky | 2010 | AP1, NABC2, USBWA2 |
| John Wall | G | Kentucky | 2010 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Jared Sullinger | F-C | Ohio State | 2011 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Anthony Davis | C | Kentucky | 2012 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Jabari Parker | F | Duke | 2014 | USBWA1 |
| Jahlil Okafor | C | Duke | 2015 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| D'Angelo Russell | G | Ohio State | 2015 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Ben Simmons | F-G | Louisiana State | 2016 | NABC1, USBWA1, AP2 |
| Lonzo Ball | G | UCLA | 2017 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Deandre Ayton | C | Arizona | 2018 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Marvin Bagley III | F-C | Duke | 2018 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Trae Young | G | Oklahoma | 2018 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| R.J. Barrett | G | Duke | 2019 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Zion Williamson | F | Duke | 2019 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Cade Cunningham | G | Oklahoma State | 2021 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Cooper Flagg | F | Duke | 2025 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Darius Acuff Jr. | G | Arkansas | 2026 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| Cameron Boozer | F | Duke | 2026 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
| AJ Dybantsa | F | Brigham Young | 2026 | AP1, NABC1, USBWA1 |
Slow Start: Three All-Americans Averaged < 4 PPG in Their Freshman Years
In a microwave atmosphere of instant expectations, please be aware three All-Americans this season failed to generate national headlines in their freshman campaigns by averaging fewer than 4 ppg - Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. (3.5 ppg in 2023-24), Florida's Thomas Haugh (3.9 ppg in 2023-24) and Iowa State's Joshua Jefferson (2.2 ppg with Saint Mary's in 2022-23).
Iowa's Kris Murray (0.6 ppg in 2020-21), posting the lowest-ever freshman scoring average for an eventual All-American, isn't the only standout enduring growing pains early in college career. The following alphabetical list of players averaged fewer than three points per game as a freshman before eventually earning All-American acclaim:
Eventual All-American Pos. A-A School Freshman Scoring Average Cole Aldrich C Kansas 2.8 ppg in 2007-08 Lorenzo Charles F North Carolina State 2.2 ppg in 1981-82 Rakeem Christmas F Syracuse 2.8 ppg in 2011-12 Keith Edmonson G Purdue 1.3 ppg in 1978-79 Aaron Gray C Pittsburgh 1.7 ppg in 2003-04 Erick Green G Virginia Tech 2.6 ppg in 2009-10 Tom Gugliotta F North Carolina State 2.7 ppg in 1988-89 Rui Hachimura F Gonzaga 2.6 ppg in 2016-17 PJ Haggerty G Memphis 2.8 ppg in 2022-23 with TCU Roy Hamilton G UCLA 1.2 ppg in 1975-76 Joshua Jefferson F Iowa State 2.2 ppg in 2022-23 with Saint Mary's Jeff Jonas G Utah 2.8 ppg in 1973-74 Johnny Juzang G UCLA 2.9 ppg in 2019-20 with Kentucky Frank Kaminsky C-F Wisconsin 1.8 ppg in 2011-12 Ted Kitchel F Indiana 1.7 ppg in 1979-80 Bob Kurland C Oklahoma A&M 2.5 ppg in 1942-43 Tom LaGarde C North Carolina 2.2 ppg in 1973-74 Jock Landale C Saint Mary's 2.1 ppg in 2014-15 Chaz Lanier G Tennessee 1.7 ppg in 2020-21 with North Florida Kenyon Martin C Cincinnati 2.8 ppg in 1996-97 Luke Maye F North Carolina 1.2 ppg in 2015-16 Kris Murray F Iowa 0.6 ppg in 2020-21 John Pilch G Wyoming 2.4 ppg in 1946-47 Thomas Robinson F Kansas 2.5 ppg in 2009-10 Steve Scheffler C Purdue 1.5 ppg in 1986-87 Russ Smith G Louisville 2.2 ppg in 2010-11 Earl Tatum G-F Marquette 1.5 ppg in 1972-73 Kurt Thomas F-C Texas Christian 0.8 ppg in 1990-91 Al Thornton F Florida State 2.8 ppg in 2003-04 B.J. Tyler G Texas 2.9 ppg in 1989-90 with DePaul Scottie Wilbekin G Florida 2.4 ppg in 2010-11 Jeff Withey C Kansas 1.3 ppg in 2009-10 NOTES: Oregon's Wally Borrevik (1.8 ppg in 1940-41), Wisconsin's Gene Englund (2.3 ppg in 1938-39), California's Darrall Imhoff (0.9 ppg in 1957-58), Kansas' Dean Kelley (0.8 in 1950-51), Purdue's Bob Kessler (2.3 ppg in 1933-34), Notre Dame's Leo Klier (2.7 in 1942-43), Oklahoma A&M's Gale McArthur (2.96 ppg in 1948-49), Notre Dame's Bob Rensberger (1.5 ppg in 1940-41) and Stanford's George Yardley (2.9 ppg in 1947-48) averaged fewer than three points per game as sophomores when freshmen weren't eligible to play varsity basketball before becoming All-Americans. . . . Withey originally attended Arizona.
College Exam: Day #5 Regarding One-&-Only NCAA Tourney Trivia Challenge
Unless you're busy hoarding toilet paper for next pandemic, hoping Plagiarist Biledumb makes it up steps of Air Farce One again or cowering in fetal position waiting on recommendation from deity Dr. Fraudci, it's your opportunity to start taking online tests for 23 quarantined days symbolic of normal time frame from Selection Sunday to Monday evening championship contest.
We need something to occupy our minds during quarantine from much of the invective-infected #MessMedia. Emphasizing a "one-and-only" theme for a "one-and-only" event, here is Day 5 of a treasure-trove of tantalizing NCAA Tournament trivia questions from CollegeHoopedia.com tracking the only coach, conference, player or school to be linked to a distinguished or dubious achievement (click here for answers or conduct research digesting historical morsels in CollegeHoopedia's year-by-year highlights):
1. Who is the only player to score more than 30,000 points in his pro career after never appearing in NCAA playoffs? Hint: He is the only former major-college player to become NBA Most Valuable Player after failing to participate in NCAA Tournament. He was 0-2 in the NIT, where he lost his final college game by 41 points, before leaving college for the pros with one season of eligibility remaining.
2. Who is the only person to play for an NBA championship team before coaching an NCAA titlist? Hint: He was a backup to an NBA all-time great after being the leading scorer and rebounder for a team winning an NIT crown.
3. Who became an NCAA playoff coach after being the only player in history to participate with two different schools in the NCAA championship game? Hint: One of the teams he played for was undefeated. He coached two different schools in the tourney.
4. Who is the only coach to engineer a turnaround featuring an NCAA playoff appearance in his first full season at a new job although the school compiled a record of more than 20 games below .500 the previous year? Hint: It was his only year as coach at the school.
5. Name the only mid-major conference to have two different members reach a regional semifinal as at-large teams in the same year, beating opponents from the Big East, Big 12 and SEC in the process. Hint: Two other members of the same league achieved the feat in the previous seven years. Only two of its current members haven't won playoff games when seeded five or more places worse than a major university currently a member of one of the current consensus top six leagues since seeding started in 1979.
6. Name the only former NCAA Tournament champion not to win at least one playoff game since capturing the title. Hint: It's the first NCAA champion to have black players in its starting lineup and is the only school to win the NCAA playoffs and NIT in the same year. The school is also the only former major college to win a Division I Tournament championship.
7. Name the school with the most playoff games decided by one or two points (four) on its way to a championship. Hint: It was the first school to need six victories to claim the national crown and is the only school to have two different coaches capture a national championship after compiling a losing record in their first seasons as a major-college head coach.
8. Who is the only coach to win his first 12 tournament games decided in overtime or by fewer than six points in regulation? Hint: His first of three NCAA championship game teams had four players become NBA first-round draft choices.
9. Name the only state to have more than six different schools reach the Final Four. Hint: The state went 31 years between its two national championships.
10. Name the only person to coach two different universities in back-to-back years when each school made its initial playoff appearance. Hint: He reached the national championship game with one of the schools.
Answers (Day 5)
Day 4 Questions and Answers
Day 3 Questions and Answers
Day 2 Questions and Answers
Day 1 Questions and Answers
No Non-Power League NCAA Consensus All-American First Time Since 2010
NBA success in several years may reveal voter shortcomings as no non-power conference member supplied an NCAA consensus All-American this campaign. However, in excessive transfer era it should be noted that A-As Joshua Jefferson (Iowa State/previously attended Saint Mary's), Yaxel Lendeborg (Michigan/UAB) and JT Toppin (Texas Tech/New Mexico) previously attended mid-majors. Gonzaga's Graham Ike, a transfer from Wyoming, was a third-team selection by AP and NABC.
Gonzaga has a striking number of 11 different players accorded such consensus A-A status thus far this century. Five years ago, the Zags joined Illinois (2004-05) as the only two schools in a 73-season span to feature three consensus All-Americans in same season since Kentucky in 1948-49. Following is a chronological list of mid-level NCAA consensus first- and second-team All-Americans since the ACC was introduced in 1953-54:
NOTE: BYU, Creighton and Houston subsequently joined a power conference.
Playing Race Card: Seven Years in Row With Multiple NCAA A-A Caucasians
The hoop lowdown might not rise to the level of aggressive African-American commentary on Donald Trump or previous POTUS #AudacityofHype lecturing Christians rather than unprincipled marauders. Nonetheless, it could be time to proclaim white players matter. Many white-privilege provocateurs, who should seek reparations of their own for being exposed to race hustlers such as MSDNC's Joyless Reid and "Not So" Sharpton clamoring for "R-E-S-P-I-C-T," seem to care as much about the basketball topic, however, as far-left zealots are outraged about Muslim terrorists murdering saints and believers.
Is this DEI in reverse? A milestone won't trigger White History Month, but last season marked the first time since 1967-68 through 1969-70 (Pete Maravich era) for multiple NCAA consensus first-team All-American white players in three consecutive campaigns. This season was the seventh in a row for multiple NCAA first- and second-team Caucasians. From 1980 through 2012, less than one-fifth of the NCAA consensus first- and second-team All-Americans were Caucasian. Duke, Gonzaga and Purdue each had two white All-Americans in the last four seasons.
Struggling as much as Marxist BLM founder purchasing luxury homes in white neighborhoods, Plagiarist Biledumb ascending Stair Farce One, #MSLSD's "Resist We Much" RevAl and #JoylessReid plus confused Congresswoman #(Mad)Maxine Waters may consider this repulsive racist research. However, they probably should be more concerned about paying fair share of taxes on filing deadline day, candor about hacked computer and concocting conspiratorial claptrap more worthy of April Fool's Day about CIA planting drugs in the hood.
All of America needs more critical thinking than critical race theory. Unless there are some closet Rachel Dolezals in the identity mix or Jussie Smollett's air-head attorney is accurate about an outbreak of white-face escapades, Gonzaga (Dan Dickau, Blake Stepp, Adam Morrison, Kelly Olynyk, Kyle Wiltjer, Corey Kispert, Drew Timme and Chet Holmgren) was alone boasting the most white consensus All-Americans thus far in 21st Century with eight. Duke is runner-up with seven after Cooper Flagg. It might be accurate-but-unacceptable information to cancel-culture leftists indoctrinating students in public schools with critical race theory, but the Zags in 2020-21 and 2021-22 became the first school to feature a set of white consensus All-Americans in same season since Missouri's Steve Stipanovich and Jon Sundvold in 1982-83.
It might not reign purple important as a photograph of Prince in a junior high basketball uniform to African-American Studies majors but we could be in the midst of a modest resurgence for the white player represented each year thus far this century. After all, Duke was the nation's only school to supply a white first-team All-American in a nine-year span from 1987-88 through 1995-96 (Danny Ferry in 1989, Christian Laettner in 1992 and Bobby Hurley in 1993). For those monitoring such identity demographics or who might be a dues-paying member of an alternative version of NAACP (National Association for Advancement of Caucasian Players), following is a list of white NCAA consensus first- and second-team All-Americans since Indiana State's Larry Bird was unanimous national player of the year in 1979:
| Year | Ratio | White NCAA Consensus All-Americans |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 6 of 12 | Indiana State's Larry Bird (1st), Duke's Mike Gminski (1st), North Carolina's Mike O'Koren (2nd), Dayton's Jim Paxson (2nd), Duke's Jim Spanarkel (2nd) and Notre Dame's Kelly Tripucka (2nd) |
| 1980 | 3 of 10 | Duke's Mike Gminski (2nd), Kentucky's Kyle Macy (1st) and North Carolina's Mike O'Koren (2nd) |
| 1981 | 4 of 11 | Brigham Young's Danny Ainge (1st), Virginia's Jeff Lamp (2nd), Notre Dame's Kelly Tripucka (2nd) and Utah's Danny Vranes (2nd) |
| 1982 | 1 of 10 | Notre Dame's John Paxson (2nd) |
| 1983 | 4 of 14 | Notre Dame's John Paxson (2nd), Missouri's Steve Stipanovich (2nd), Missouri's Jon Sundvold (2nd) and Indiana's Randy Wittman (2nd) |
| 1984 | 2 of 11 | Brigham Young's Devin Durrant (2nd) and St. John's Chris Mullin (2nd) |
| 1985 | 3 of 11 | Southern Methodist's Jon Koncak (2nd), St. John's Chris Mullin (1st) and Georgia Tech's Mark Price (2nd) |
| 1986 | 2 of 11 | Indiana's Steve Alford (1st) and Michigan State's Scott Skiles (2nd) |
| 1987 | 1 of 10 | Indiana's Steve Alford (1st) |
| 1988 | 2 of 11 | Duke's Danny Ferry (2nd) and Brigham Young's Michael Smith (2nd) |
| 1989 | 2 of 11 | Duke's Danny Ferry (1st) and Stanford's Todd Lichti (2nd) |
| 1990 | 0 of 12 | |
| 1991 | 1 of 10 | Duke's Christian Laettner (2nd) |
| 1992 | 2 of 10 | Duke's Christian Laettner (1st) and UCLA's Don MacLean (2nd) |
| 1993 | 3 of 12 | Duke's Bobby Hurley Jr. (1st), Vanderbilt's Billy McCaffrey (2nd) and North Carolina's Eric Montross (2nd) |
| 1994 | 1 of 11 | North Carolina's Eric Montross (2nd) |
| 1995 | 0 of 10 | |
| 1996 | 1 of 11 | Utah's Keith Van Horn (2nd) |
| 1997 | 2 of 10 | Kansas' Raef LaFrentz (1st) and Utah's Keith Van Horn (1st) |
| 1998 | 2 of 10 | Notre Dame's Pat Garrity (2nd) and Kansas' Raef LaFrentz (1st) |
| 1999 | 2 of 10 | Northwestern's Evan Eschmeyer (2nd) and Miami of Ohio's Wally Szczerbiak (2nd) |
| 2000 | 2 of 12 | Texas' Chris Mihm (1st) and Notre Dame's Troy Murphy (1st) |
| 2001 | 3 of 10 | Villanova's Michael Bradley (2nd), Stanford's Casey Jacobsen (1st) and Notre Dame's Troy Murphy (1st) |
| 2002 | 3 of 10 | Gonzaga's Dan Dickau (1st), Duke's Mike Dunleavy (2nd) and Stanford's Casey Jacobsen (2nd) |
| 2003 | 2 of 10 | Kansas' Nick Collison (1st) and Creighton's Kyle Korver (2nd) |
| 2004 | 2 of 10 | Oregon's Luke Jackson (2nd) and Gonzaga's Blake Stepp (2nd) |
| 2005 | 2 of 11 | Utah's Andrew Bogut (1st) and Duke's J.J. Redick (1st) |
| 2006 | 3 of 12 | North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough (2nd), Gonzaga's Adam Morrison (1st) and Duke's J.J. Redick (1st) |
| 2007 | 2 of 10 | Nevada's Nick Fazekas (2nd) and North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough (1st) |
| 2008 | 3 of 11 | North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough (1st), Notre Dame's Luke Harangody (2nd) and UCLA's Kevin Love (1st) |
| 2009 | 2 of 11 | North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough (1st) and Notre Dame's Luke Harangody (2nd) |
| 2010 | 3 of 11 | Kansas' Cole Aldrich (2nd), Notre Dame's Luke Harangody (2nd) and Duke's Jon Scheyer (2nd) |
| 2011 | 2 of 11 | Brigham Young's Jimmer Fredette (1st) and Notre Dame's Ben Hansbrough (2nd) |
| 2012 | 2 of 10 | Creighton's Doug McDermott (1st) and North Carolina's Tyler Zeller (2nd) |
| 2013 | 5 of 10 | Creighton's Doug McDermott (1st), Gonzaga's Kelly Olynyk (1st), Duke's Mason Plumlee (2nd), Kansas' Jeff Withey (2nd) and Indiana's Cody Zeller (2nd) |
| 2014 | 2 of 11 | Creighton's Doug McDermott (1st) and Michigan's Nik Stauskas (2nd) |
| 2015 | 3 of 11 | Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky (1st), Northern Iowa's Seth Tuttle (2nd) and Gonzaga's Kyle Wiltjer (2nd) |
| 2016 | 2 of 11 | Utah's Jakob Poeltl (2nd) and Iowa's Jarrod Uthoff (2nd) |
| 2017 | 1 of 10 | Duke's Luke Kennard (2nd) |
| 2018 | 1 of 11 | Saint Mary's Jock Landale (2nd) |
| 2019 | 1 of 10 | Wisconsin's Ethan Happ (2nd) |
| 2020 | 2 of 10 | Iowa's Luka Garza (1st) and Oregon's Payton Pritchard (1st) |
| 2021 | 4 of 10 | Iowa's Luka Garza (1st), Gonzaga's Corey Kispert (1st), Michigan's Hunter Dickinson (2nd) and Gonzaga's Drew Timme (2nd) |
| 2022 | 2 of 11 | Gonzaga's Chet Holmgren (2nd) and Drew Timme (2nd) |
| 2023 | 3 of 10 | Purdue's Zach Edey (1st), Gonzaga's Drew Timme (1st) and Arizona's Azuolas Tubelis (2nd) |
| 2024 | 5 of 10 | Purdue's Zach Edey (1st), Tennesse's Dalton Knecht (1st), Kansas' Hunter Dickinson (2nd), Duke's Kyle Filipowski (2nd) and Marquette's Tyler Kolek (2nd) |
| 2025 | 2 of 10 | Duke's Cooper Flagg (1st) and Purdue's Braden Smith (1st) |
| 2026 | 2 of 11 | Purdue's Braden Smith (1st) and Florida's Thomas Haugh (2nd) |
Player Outcasts: All-Americans MIA Regarding NCAA DI Tourney Competition
It doesn't take a genius to deduce All-American players are all-important to teams. Although a couple of them are sidelined by injuries, all 16 A-As this year are on teams participating in the 2026 NCAA playoffs. Since the national tourney expanded to at least 32 teams in 1975, only three consensus first-team All-Americans never appeared in the NCAA playoffs - Houston guard Otis Birdsong (1977), Minnesota center Mychal Thompson (1978) and LSU swingman Ben Simmons (2016) - until Dayton's Obi Toppin became standout #4 in this category due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Terry Dischinger averaged 28.3 ppg in his three-year varsity career with Purdue in the early 1960s, but he is the only two-time consensus first-team All-American since World War II never to compete in the NCAA Tournament or NIT. Dischinger also endured a star-scorned nine-year NBA career without playing on a squad winning a playoff series. He was named NBA Rookie of the Year as a member of the Chicago Zephyrs in 1962-63 despite playing in only 57 games as he skipped many of the road contests to continue his education. His dedication to the classroom paid off as he became an orthodontist.
Hall of Famer Billy Cunningham averaged 24.8 ppg in his three-year varsity career with North Carolina in the mid-1960s, but he also never appeared in the NCAA tourney or NIT. How good were the players in that era if Cunningham never was a consensus first-team All-American? Auburn's Charles Barkley (defeated by Richmond in 1984) and Florida State's Dave Cowens (East Tennessee State in 1968) were All-Americans but each lost his only NCAA playoff game against a mid-major opponent. Following is a look at Dischinger and three other multiple-year NCAA consensus first-team All-Americans since the mid-1950s never to participate in the NCAA Tournament:
| Two- or Three-Time NCAA Consensus First-Team A-A | Pos. | School | Years 1st-Team A-A | NIT Mark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terry Dischinger | F | Purdue | 1961 and 1962 | DNP |
| Sihugo Green | G | Duquesne | 1955 and 1956 | 6-2 |
| Pete Maravich | G | Louisiana State | 1968 through 1970 | 2-2 |
| Chet Walker | F | Bradley | 1961 and 1962 | 3-1 |
No multiple-season All-American failed to appear in national postseason competition since the NCAA tourney expanded to at least 40 entrants in the late 1970s. The last one shunned in postseason was Centenary's Robert Parish in the mid-1970s. Notre Dame guard Kevin O'Shea is the only four-time A-A never to appear in the NCAA playoffs and National Invitation Tournament. While not an NCAA consensus first-team selection multiple times like Dischinger, following is an alphabetical list including O'Shea and six additional three-time All-Americans never participating in a "Big Dance" (NCAA playoffs and NIT):
| Three- or Four-Time All-American | Pos. | School | Seasons as A-A |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paul Ebert | C | Ohio State | 1952 through 1954 |
| Fred Hetzel | F-C | Davidson | 1963 through 1965 |
| Kevin O'Shea | G | Notre Dame | 1947 through 1950 |
| Robert Parish | C | Centenary | 1974 through 1976 |
| Frank Selvy | F | Furman | 1952 through 1954 |
| Meyer "Whitey" Skoog | F-G | Minnesota | 1949 through 1951 |
| Doug Smart | F-C | Washington | 1957 through 1959 |
NOTE: NCAA playoff field ranged from 22 to 25 entrants during 16-year span from 1955 through 1970.
Pitcher-Hitting Hoopers From Legendary Babe Ruth to Revolutionary Ohtani
When it came to major league pitchers excelling as batters until rule change several seasons ago, there were only a few pitcher/hitters resembling Babe Ruth and Shohei Ohtani. Facing the cold hard facts, it was textbook futility for nearly 50 years as N.L. pitchers tried to hit MLB hurlers. The gap between pitchers' hitting and remainder of MLB players grew exponentially over the years. Several years removed from the N.L. joining the designated-hitter fold as part of MLB's latest CBA (A.L. embraced DH since 1973), it turned out that 2021 was final trip around the bases for N.L. hurlers.
Versatile former college basketball players - majority of them from small schools - were among the minority of big-league pitchers who knew how to handle a bat (only a handful of them since the 1950s). In the aftermath of adopting a universal DH, it might be a good time amid Ohtani seeking another MVP award to not only keep adjusting to a pitch clock but also remember the following alphabetical list of perhaps the 20 best-hitting MLB pitchers previously playing college basketball (including a couple from Swarthmore PA):
| Ex-College Hooper | School(s) | Summary of MLB Pitcher's Batting Prowess |
|---|---|---|
| Elden Auker | Kansas State | Collected two homers and five RBI in single game in mid-August 1937 en route to 30 extra-base hits and 72 RBI in 10-year career. He had three 3-hit games in 1936 with the Detroit Tigers. |
| Ray Benge | Sam Houston State | Seven straight seasons from 1928 through 1934 with at least a dozen hits. Went 4-for-4 with Philadelphia Phillies vs. Chicago Cubs in mid-August game in 1931. |
| Jack Coombs | Colby ME | Collected total of 15 extra-base hits in 1908 (nine doubles/five triples/one homer). Switch-hitter posted .319 batting average in 1911 en route to A.L.-leading 28 victories for Philadelphia Athletics. Went 4-for-4 with three RBI and scored three runs in mid-May 1911 game against the Detroit Tigers en route to posting A.L.-leading 28 victories. Managed 23 RBI in both 1908 and 1911. |
| Jean Dubuc | Saint Michael's VT/Notre Dame | Minimum of 20 hits in each of five straight seasons with the Detroit Tigers from 1912 through 1916 (including high of 36 in 1913 when amassing nine two-hit outings). Posted .230 batting average in nine-year career. |
| George Earnshaw | Swarthmore PA | Hit .230 in nine-year career with more than 25 hits three consecutive campaigns for Philadelphia Athletics from 1930 through 1932. Contributed four hits in each of back-to-back games in June of 1931. |
| Boo Ferriss | Mississippi State | Hit .250 in six-year career with Boston Red Sox featuring at least 24 hits in each of his first three seasons from 1945 through 1947. |
| Bob Gibson | Creighton | Contributed 24 HRs (one of them in 1967 World Series) and 144 RBI in 17-year career with the St. Louis Cardinals. While posting microscopic 1.12 ERA in 34 starts in 1968, Gibby allowed opposing hitters to reach base at precisely the same rate he got on base himself. Hammered five HRs in 1965 and 1972 (also six doubles). Provided 19 RBI in 1965 and 1970 plus 20 ribbies in 1963. Registered .303 batting average with 12 multiple-hit games in 1970. |
| Vern Kennedy | Central Missouri State | Lefthanded swinger hit .244 in 12-year career with seven different franchises. Posted batting average of .283 or higher three times in A.L. in a five-year span (1936-38-40). He had three safeties in back-to-back games in 1935 and hit safely in seven straight starts the next year with the Chicago White Sox. |
| Thornton Lee | Cal Poly | Assembled eight-game hitting streaks with Chicago White Sox in 1940 and 1941. Posted batting averages over .250 three times in four-year span with more than 90 plate appearances (1938-40-41). Collected four HRs and 16 RBI in 1938. |
| Ted Lyons | Baylor | Switch-hitter hit .233 with 63 extra-base safeties and 149 RBI in 21-year career with the Chicago White Sox. Compiled .311 batting average with 38 safeties in 1930 to cap off streak of five straight seasons with at least 20 hits. Assembled eight-game hitting streak in 1942 with five of them including multiple safeties. Supplied three three-hit games in span of a month in 1928. He had four hits in a single game in back-to-back seasons (1940 and 1941). |
| Christy Mathewson | Bucknell | Career batting average of .215 with 69 extra-base hits and 167 RBI. Posted batting average of at least .263 in three seasons with the New York Giants (1906-09-12). Provided 20 RBI in 1903 and eight extra-base hits in 1904. He had six multiple-hit games in last seven weeks of 1912. |
| Curly Ogden | Swarthmore PA | Hit .244 in five-year A.L. career. In 1924, he hit safely in nine of 12 starts for the Washington Senators from end of May to late August. |
| Claude Passeau | Millsaps MS | Pounded 15 career HRs in 13-year N.L. career. Hit .282 as Philadelphia Phillies rookie in 1936. His grand slam in mid-May 1941 was first of three homers in span of five starts. A year later, he homered in back-to-back starts for the Chicago Cubs. |
| Jim Perry | Campbell | Compiled eight-game hitting streak as rookie starter for the Cleveland Indians in 1959 through all of August until mid-September, provided eight two-hit outings in 1960 with the Tribe and posted a .556 batting average in six of his starts for the Minnesota Twins in June of 1970. |
| Gary Peters | Grove City PA | Lefthander collected 19 HRs and 102 RBI in 14-year career. Belted multiple HRs in six different seasons (1963-64-67-68-69-71). He had 19 RBI along with 11 extra-base hits (seven doubles and four HRs) in 1964. Homered in nine consecutive campaigns from 1963 through 1971. Eleven-game hitting streak as starting pitcher with the Chicago White Sox in 1966. |
| Nelson "Nels" Potter | Mount Morris IL/Manchester IN | Eight multiple-hit games with the St. Louis Browns in 1945 when posting a .304 batting average (28-of-92). |
| Hal Schumacher | St. Lawrence NY | Accumulated 15 homers and 102 RBI in 13-year career with the New York Giants. Smacked six HRs in 1934 along with six other extra-base hits. Hit safely in all but one of 12-game starting span in mid-season of 1935. Provided pair of homers and five RBI in a game early in 1934. |
| Joe "Lefty" Shaute | Mansfield PA | Eight-game hitting streak in 1924, igniting a streak of hitting over .300 for the Cleveland Indians three times in a four-year span with at least 20 safeties. Also had eight-game hitting streak in 1926. Posted .258 batting average in 13-year career. |
| Wilfred "Sonny" Siebert | Missouri | Secured six HRs and 15 RBI while posting .266 batting average in 1971 as All-Star with the Boston Red Sox. Went "batty" against the Baltimore Orioles in two games in 1971 with five RBI in late-June game before smacking pair of round-trippers just over two months later in early September. |
| Tom Zachary | Guilford NC | Hit .226 in 19-year career with annual average of 19 safeties in seven-season span from 1920 through 1926. Manufactured six-game hitting streak in 1928. Went 4-for-4 with the Washington Senators in a game in back-to-back seasons (1921 and 1922). |
Family Guys: Duke's Boozer Clan Comprises Latest Playoff Father-Son Legacy
You can't escape the distinguished DNA. Carlos Boozer, the second-leading rebounder and third-leading scorer for Duke's 2001 NCAA champion, averaged 12.7 ppg and 7.5 rpg while playing in 10 playoff games from 2000 through 2002 (8-2 record; missed first two games in 2001 because of an injury). If his twins (Cameron and cayden) help propel the Blue Devils to this year's Final Four, the Boozer clan will become the seventh father-son combination in NCAA history to win at least 12 tourney games.
Kentucky's Reed Sheppard, perhaps the nation's premier freshman two years ago, is the son of former Wildcats star Jeff Sheppard, the Final Four Most Outstanding Player in 1998. If Reed had shepherded UK to a national title, they would have become the winningest father-son combination at same school in NCAA playoff history. Alas, Reed incurred growing pains and made only one field goal in upset loss to Oakland. Jeff averaged 9.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 2.6 apg in 17 NCAA Tournament games from 1994 through 1998 (16-1 record; did not play in one game in 1994). If the Wildcats had reached the national semifinals last year, they would have become the third father-son tandem to crack the 20-win plateau, joining UCLA's Marques/Kris Johnson and Georgetown's Patrick Sr./Patrick Jr. Ewing.
A majority of the fathers averaged more points per game in NCAA playoff competition than their sons in this family category. Princeton is the only mid-major school with a father-son combination collecting total of more than four NCAA playoff triumphs (father Ed Hummer 6/son Ian Hummer 0). BYU also had a couple of additional duos (Craigs and Christensens) among the following father-son combos playing for same school in NCAA tourney (listed by number of family victories):
| Family (Overall Record) | School | Summary of Father's NCAA Playoff Career | Summary of Son's NCAA Playoff Career |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnsons (21-6) | UCLA | Marques, the national player of the year as a senior, averaged 14.6 ppg and 8.6 rpg in 16 NCAA Tournament games from 1974 through 1977 (13-3 record including three Final Four teams) with high-scoring game of 35 points against Arizona State in 1975. | Kris averaged 9.5 ppg and 3.6 rpg in 11 NCAA Tournament games from 1995 through 1998 (8-3 record; DNP in three contests as freshman) with high-scoring game of 25 points against Michigan in 1998. |
| Ewings (20-5) | Georgetown | Patrick Sr., the national player of the year as a senior, averaged 14.2 ppg and 8 rpg in 18 NCAA Tournament games from 1982 through 1985 (15-3 record including three Final Four teams). | Patrick Jr. averaged 4.9 ppg and 3.3 rpg in seven NCAA Tournament games with the Hoyas in 2007 and 2008 (5-2 record including one Final Four team) after transferring from Indiana. |
| Sheppards (16-2) | Kentucky | Jeff, the Final Four Most Outstanding Player in 1998, averaged 9.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg and 2.6 apg in 17 NCAA Tournament games from 1994 through 1998 (16-1 record; did not play in one game in 1994). | If Reed, perhaps the nation's premier freshman in 2023-24, had shepherded UK to a national title, they would have become the winningest father-son combination at same school in NCAA playoff history. Alas, Reed incurred growing pains and made only one field goal in upset loss to Oakland. |
| Mills (15-5) | Kentucky | Terry averaged 7.4 ppg and 2 rpg in five NCAA Tournament games from 1969 through 1971 (1-4 record; DNP in 1969 Regional Third-Place game). | Cameron averaged 5.9 ppg and 1.6 rpg in 15 NCAA Tournament games from 1995 through 1998 including three straight Final Four teams (14-1 record; DNP in seven playoff games as freshman and sophomore). As a junior, he led the Wildcats in 3FG%. |
| Howards (14-3) | Michigan | Juwan averaged 17.4 ppg and 7.9 rpg in 16 NCAA Tournament games from 1992 through 1994 (13-3 record). | Jace scored two points in one game vs. Florida State in 2021 (1-0 record). |
| Richardsons (13-2) | Michigan State | Jason, going scoreless in three consecutive playoff games as a freshman for 2000 NCAA titlist, averaged 6.5 ppg and 4.5 rpg in compiling a 10-1 playoff record in two college seasons prior to 13-year NBA career. | Jase, the Spartans' runner-up in scoring as a freshman in 2024-25, averaged 13 ppg and 4 rpg in four playoff games (3-1) before also declaring early for NBA draft. |
| Valentines (11-5) | Michigan State | Carlton, the Spartans' leading scorer and rebounder as a senior in 1987-88, averaged 3 ppg and 2 rpg in three NCAA Tournament games in 1986 (2-1 record). | Denzel, co-National Player of the Year as a senior after reaching Final Four the previous season, averaged 9.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg and 3.9 apg in 13 NCAA Tournament games from 2013 through 2016 (9-4 record). |
| Morningstars (10-6) | Kansas | Roger, runner-up in scoring for 1974 Final Four team, averaged 10.6 ppg and 4.8 rpg in five NCAA Tournament games in 1974 and 1975 after transferring from a junior college (2-3 record). | Brady averaged 5.5 ppg in 11 NCAA Tournament games from 2007 through 2011 (8-3 record; 2008 redshirt DNP in two games as freshman). Scored team-high 18 points against Richmond in 2011. |
| Eiferts (8-5) | Purdue | Greg averaged 1.3 ppg and 2 rpg in three NCAA Tournament games in 1983 and 1984 (1-2 record). | Grady averaged 2.6 ppg in 10 NCAA Tournament games from 2017 through 2019 (7-3 record). |
| Williams (8-5) | Illinois | Frank, an All-American in 2000-01, averaged 16.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg and 4.7 apg in nine NCAA Tournament games from 2000 through 2002 (6-3 record). | Da'Monte averaged 2 ppg and 4 rpg in four NCAA tourney games in 2021 and 2022. |
| Childress (6-5) | Wake Forest | Randolph, an All-American as a senior, averaged 17.6 ppg, 3 rpg and 4.9 apg in 10 NCAA Tournament games in 1991 and from 1993 through 1995 (6-4 record) with high-scoring contest of 25 points against Iowa. | Brandon scored 7 points in one NCAA Tournament game in 2017. |
| Hummers (6-3) | Princeton | Ed, a Final Four teammate of All-American Bill Bradley in 1965 before becoming an All-Ivy League second-team selection, averaged 10.4 ppg and 9.3 rpg in eight NCAA Tournament games in 1965 and 1967 (6-2 record). His brother, John Hummer, scored 28 points in a 1969 NCAA playoff game against St. John's. | Ian, a three-time All-Ivy League selection, collected 11 points and 8 rebounds in two-point loss against Kentucky in 2011 NCAA playoffs. |
| Marbles (6-5) | Iowa | Roy, a three-time All-Big Ten Conference selection, averaged 16.3 ppg and 6 rpg in 10 NCAA Tournament games from 1986 through 1989 (6-4 record) with high-scoring contest of 28 points against UTEP in 1987. | Roy Devyn collected 7 points and 5 assists in one NCAA Tournament game in 2014. |
| Suttons (6-3) | Oklahoma State | Eddie averaged 6.7 ppg and 3.7 rpg in three NCAA Tournament games in 1958 (2-1 record). | Sean, a transfer from Kentucky, averaged 14.3 ppg, 2.5 rpg and 4.7 apg in six NCAA Tournament games in 1991 and 1992 (4-2 record). He led the Cowboys in assists and three-point shooting both seasons playing under his father/coach. |
| Coffeys (5-4) | Minnesota | Richard averaged 5 ppg and 6.5 rpg in six NCAA Tournament games in 1989 and 1990 (4-2 record; DNP in 1989 opener) including two outings with more than 10 rebounds. | Amir averaged 20.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 3.3 apg in three NCAA Tournament games in 2017 and 2019 (1-2 record). Scored more than half of the Gophers' points with 27 in a 70-50 setback against Michigan State in 2019. |
| Rautins (5-3) | Syracuse | Leo, who led the Orangemen in rebounds and assists as a senior when named an All-Big East Conference third-team selection, averaged 18.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg and 3 apg in two NCAA Tournament games in 1983 (1-1 record) after transferring from Minnesota. | Andy, an All-Big East Conference second-team selection as a senior, averaged 13.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg and 3.7 apg in six NCAA Tournament games in 2009 and 2010 (4-2 record). |
| Polites (5-4) | Florida State | Michael averaged 9 ppg and 6.3 rpg in three NCAA Tournament games in 1988 and 1991 (1-2 record). | Anthony averaged 8.7 ppg and 2.7 rpg in six NCAA Tournament games in 2019 and 2021 (4-2 record). He scored a career-high 22 points and contributed game-high 4 steals in second-round triumph against #5 seed Colorado in 2021. |
| Brewers (4-3) | Arkansas | Ron, an All-American as a senior for the Hogs' 1978 Final Four team, averaged 19.2 ppg and 4 rpg in six NCAA Tournament games in 1977 and 1978 (4-2 record) with high of 22 points against Cal State Fullerton. | Ronnie, a two-time All-SEC selection, collected 14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals in one NCAA Tournament game in 2006 before declaring early for the NBA draft. |
| Craigs (4-5) | Brigham Young | Robert, a member of the Cougars' 1951 NIT titlist, averaged 1.3 ppg in three NCAA Tournament games in 1950 and 1951 (1-2 record; DNP in two games in 1951). | Steve, a teammate of All-American Danny Ainge, averaged 6.3 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 2.7 apg and 1.2 spg in six NCAA Tournament games from 1979 through 1981 (3-3 record). |
| McKies (4-3) | South Carolina | BJ averaged 20 ppg and 3 rpg in two NCAA Tournament defeats in 1997 and 1998. | Justin averaged 4 ppg in five NCAA Tournament games for 2017 Final Four team (4-1 record). |
| Hardaways (4-4) | Memphis | Penny averaged 17.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5 assists in five NCAA Tournament games in 1992 and 1993 (3-2 record). | Jayden was scoreless in four minutes in 2022 opener before DNP in loss against Gonzaga. Scored nine points in opening-round defeat in 2023. |
| Wessons (4-4) | Ohio State | Keith averaged 0.8 ppg and 1.8 rpg in four NCAA Tournament games in 1983 and 1987 (2-2 record; redshirt in 1984-85). | Andre averaged 3 ppg and 4.3 rpg in four NCAA Tournament games in 2018 and 2019 (2-2 record). Kaleb averaged 9.8 ppg and 5.3 rpg in four NCAA Tournament games in 2018 and 2019 (2-2 record). |
| Boeheims (3-3) | Syracuse | Jim averaged 14.5 ppg and 2 rpg in two NCAA Tournament games in 1966 (1-1 record). | Buddy averaged 17.3 ppg and 3.8 rpg in four NCAA Tournament games in 2019 and 2021, exploding for total of 55 points in his first two outings in 2021. |
| Stephens (3-4) | Purdue | Everette averaged 11.7 ppg and 7 apg in six NCAA Tournament games from 1986 through 1988 (3-3 record) including four contests with at least eight assists. | Kendall, who led the Boilermakers in three-pointers as a freshman and sophomore, scored 5 points in one NCAA Tournament game in 2015 (DNP in 2016) before transferring to Nevada. |
| Christensens (2-5) | Brigham Young | Hal, a member of 1951 NIT titlist, averaged 4.3 ppg and 1.7 rpg in three NCAA Tournament games the same year (1-2 record). He was chosen by the Minneapolis Lakers in 1953 NBA draft before having three sons play for the Cougars (two of them in NCAA playoffs). | Craig was scoreless in three NCAA Tournament games in 1979 and 1981 (1-2 record; DNP in two contests). Kurt was scoreless in one NCAA Tournament game in 1993 (0-1 record; DNP in opener). |
| Haws (2-6) | Brigham Young | Marty, an All-WAC first-team selection as a senior when leading the Cougars in scoring with 18.5 ppg, averaged 9.3 ppg and 3.3 apg in four NCAA Tournament games in 1987, 1988 and 1990 (1-3 record). | Tyler, BYU's all-time scoring leader (2,720 points) who ranked among the nation's top seven scorers each of his last three seasons, averaged 18.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 2.3 apg in four NCAA Tournament games in 2010, 2014 and 2015 (1-3 record) with high-scoring game of 33 against Ole Miss in 2015. |
| Henrys (2-2) | Kansas | Carl, a two-time All-Big Eight Conference selection after transferring from OCU, averaged 11.5 ppg and 6.5 rpg in two NCAA Tournament games in 1984 (1-1 record). | Xavier averaged 9.5 ppg and 7 rpg in two NCAA Tournament games as a freshman in 2010 before leaving early for the NBA draft. |
| Kornets (2-4) | Vanderbilt | Frank, an All-SEC second-team selection as a senior before playing a couple of seasons in the NBA, averaged 11.3 ppg, 5.8 rpg and 2.8 apg in four NCAA Tournament games in 1988 and 1989 (2-2 record). | Luke averaged 11 ppg, 7 rpg and 2.5 bpg in two NCAA Tournament games in 2016 and 2017 (0-2 record). |
| Lindseys (2-3) | Baylor | Dennis scored 5 points in one NCAA Tournament game in 1988. | Jake averaged 3 ppg and 2.8 apg in four NCAA Tournament games in 2016 and 2017 (2-2 record). |
| Murrays (2-5) | Iowa | Kenyon averaged 10.3 ppg and 4.3 rpg in four NCAA playoff games in 1993 and 1996 under coach Tom Davis (2-2 record). | Twins Keegan and Kris DNP in 2021 opener against Grand Canyon. Keegan averaged 13.5 ppg and 6.5 rpg in two tourney defeats (2021 and 2022). Kris averaged 6 ppg and 5 rpg in three tourney defeats (2021 through 2023). |
| Perrys (2-2) | Holy Cross | Ronnie Sr. averaged 16.7 ppg in three NCAA Tournament games in 1953 (2-1 record). | Ronnie Jr., a three-time All-American, scored 24 points in one NCAA Tournament game in 1980 (missed 1977 playoffs because of ankle injury). |
| Hammonds (1-4) | Middle Tennessee | Kerry Sr. averaged 13.3 ppg and 9.8 rpg in four NCAA Tournament games in 1985, 1987 and 1989 (1-3 record). | Kerry II collected 10 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists in one NCAA Tournament game in 2013. |
| Mayes (1-3) | Florida State | Tharon averaged 18.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg and 2 apg in two NCAA Tournament games in 1988 and 1989. | Xavier Rathan-Mayes averaged 13 ppg, 6 rpg and 4 apg in two NCAA Tournament games in 2017 (1-1 record). |
| Browns (0-3) | Louisiana | Dion averaged 12.5 ppg and 7.5 rpg in two playoff games in 1982 and 1983. | Jordan collected 16 points and 7 rebounds in opening-round defeat in 2023. |
| Burtts (0-2) | Iona | Steve Sr., a two-time MAAC MVP and the Gaels' all-time leading scorer (2,534 points), collected 28 points and 4 rebounds in one NCAA Tournament game in 1984. | Steve Jr., a three-time All-MAAC selection and the Gaels' runner-up in career scoring (2,034 points), tallied 23 points in one NCAA Tournament game in 2006. |
| Parkinsons (0-2) | Purdue | Bruce, an All-Big Ten Conference first-team selection as a junior, collected 10 points and 2 assists in one NCAA Tournament game in 1977. | Austin grabbed 2 rebounds in one NCAA Tournament game in 2003 (0-1 record; DNP in second round). |
| Paytons (0-4) | Oregon State | Gary Sr., an NCAA unanimous first-team All-American as a senior, averaged 18 ppg, 4 rpg and 7 apg in three NCAA Tournament games from 1988 through 1990 (0-3 record). | Gary II, a juco transfer who became a two-time All-Pac-12 Conference first-team selection/Defensive Player of the Year collected 19 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals in one NCAA Tournament game in 2016. |
| Springers (0-2) | Iona | Gary Sr., a three-time All-MAAC selection, collected 8 points and 8 rebounds in one NCAA Tournament game in 1984. | Gary Jr., an All-MAAC third-team selection as a senior in 2008-09, scored 4 points in one NCAA Tournament game in 2006. |
College Exam: Day #4 Regarding One-&-Only NCAA Tourney Trivia Challenge
Unless you're busy hoarding toilet paper prior to next pandemic or cowering in fetal position worried about bloodbath or next pandemic, it's your opportunity to start taking online tests for 23 quarantined days symbolic of normal time frame from Selection Sunday to Monday evening championship contest.
Emphasizing a "one-and-only" theme for a "one-and-only" event, here is Day 4 of a treasure-trove of tantalizing NCAA Tournament trivia questions from CollegeHoopedia.com tracking the only coach, conference, player or school to be linked to a distinguished or dubious achievement (click here for answers or conduct research digesting historical morsels in CollegeHoopedia's year-by-year highlights):
1. Name the only conference to have five different members win the national championship although it has only one title in the previous 24 years. Hint: One of the five members to capture a title didn't participate in the NCAA playoffs from 1948 through 1993. The league came within eight points of going 0-11 in the tournament in 1995 and 1996.
2. Name the only conference to have all of its current members win at least one NCAA Tournament game in the 1990s. Hint: It's the only league to have all of its current members participate in at least 10 NCAA playoff games.
3. Who is the only coach to have more than 15 of his teams appear in the playoffs but none reach the Final Four? Hint: He has the worst record in NCAA Tournament history for any coach with at least 25 decisions and was also 1-5 in the NIT. He has more victories as a pitcher in the College World Series for his alma mater than basketball Final Four appearances. He is the only coach with more than 700 victories never to advance to the national semifinals.
4. Who is the only retired major college coach with more than 700 victories never to reach Final Four? Hint: He is the only coach to go at least 20 years between NCAA Tournament appearances with same school.
5. Who is the only coach to leave an NCAA champion before the next season for another coaching job? Hint: He is the only coach to earn a trip to the Final Four in his first college season despite finishing the season with at least 10 defeats. He is also the only coach to reach the NCAA final after finishing fourth or lower in regular-season conference standings. Moreover, he is one of just two coaches, both were also NBA head coaches, to take two different schools to the NCAA playoff championship game.
6. Who is the only coach to direct teams to the NCAA Final Four and the NBA Finals and compile a winning NCAA playoff career record? Hint: His son coached at three Division I schools, taking two of them to the NCAA playoffs.
7. Name the only school to become NCAA champion despite losing five home games during the regular season. Hint: The school didn't participate in nine consecutive NCAA Tournaments and twice in a four-year span in the mid-1970s lost a first-round game after reaching the national final the previous season.
8. Name the only coach of an NCAA titlist to previously play major league baseball. Hint: The Hall of Famer's 18-year college head coaching career was all at one university.
9. Who is the only coach to compile NCAA playoff records at least three games above .500 at two different schools (minimum of five victories at each school) before Rick Pitino arrived at Louisville? Hint: The coach earned a doctorate.
10. Name the only school to have six different coaches take the university to the Final Four. Hint: Of the schools winning at least two national championships, it's the only one in the select group to go more than 25 years between titles.
Answers (Day 4)
Day 3 Questions and Answers
Day 2 Questions and Answers
Day 1 Questions and Answers
Degrees of Success: Educational Backgrounds of 2026 NCAA Tourney Coaches
NCAA Tournament head coaches need to draw upon all of their resources to motivate their respective clubs in postseason play. Following is an alphabetical list assessing the educational backgrounds of majority of the 68 mentors in 2026 NCAA playoffs:
| 2026 NCAA Tourney Coach | School | Bachelor's | Master's |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bill Armstrong | McNeese | Justice Sciences | |
| Rick Barnes | Tennessee | Health & Physical Education | |
| Randy Bennett | Saint Mary's | Biology | |
| Kenny Blakeney | Howard University | unavailable | |
| Brad Brownell | Clemson | History | |
| Mark Byington | Vanderbilt | Physical Education | Sports Psychology |
| Jerrod Calhoun | Utah State | Criminal Justice | |
| John Calipari | Arkansas | Marketing | |
| Craig "Speedy" Claxton | Hofstra | unavailable | |
| Flynn Clayman | High Point | Social Science | Interdisciplinary Studies in Sports Conditioning and Performance, Communications and Leadership |
| Mick Cronin | UCLA | History | |
| Scott Cross | Troy | Marketing | |
| Rick Croy | California Baptist | Recreation Administration | Education/Physical Education |
| Hubert Davis | North Carolina | Criminal Justice | |
| Johnny Dawkins | UCF | Political Science | |
| Jake Diebler | Ohio State | Marketing | Business Administration |
| Jamie Dixon | Texas Christian | Finance | Economics |
| Andy Enfield | Southern Methodist | Economics | Business Administration |
| Jim Ferry | Maryland-Baltimore County | Safety Studies | |
| Mark Few | Gonzaga | Physical Education | Athletic Administration |
| Eran Ganot | Hawaii | Economics and Sociology/Anthropology | |
| Greg Gard | Wisconsin | Physical & Health Education | Counselor Education |
| Dennis Gates | Missouri | Sociology | Adult Education & Human Resource Development |
| Todd Golden | Florida | Business Administration | |
| John Groce | Akron | Mathematics | |
| Bryan Hodgson | South Florida | Sports Management | |
| Fred Hoiberg | Nebraska | Finance | |
| Dan Hurley | Connecticut | Business | |
| Tom Izzo | Michigan State | Health and Physical Education | |
| Ben Jacobson | Northern Iowa | Physical Education | |
| Pat Kelsey | Louisville | Business Administration & Marketing | |
| Grant Leonard | Queens (N.C.) | Psychology | Psychology |
| Tommy Lloyd | Arizona | Biology | |
| Jai Lucas | Miami (Fla.) | Corporate Communication | |
| Phil Martelli Jr. | Virginia Commonwealth | Marketing | |
| Dusty May | Michigan | Business Administration | |
| Fran McCaffery | Penn | Economics | Education |
| Grant McCasland | Texas Tech | Entrepreneurship and Management | |
| Ben McCollum | Iowa | Business Finance | Athletic Administration |
| Henry "Bucky" McMillan III | Texas A&M | Education Services | |
| Gerry McNamara | Siena | Communication and Rhetorical Studies | |
| Sean Miller | Texas | Communications | |
| Nate Oats | Alabama | Math Education | Kinesiology & Exercise Science |
| Ryan Odom | Virginia | Economics | |
| T.J. Otzelberger | Iowa State | Business Administration | Curriculum & Instruction |
| Matt Painter | Purdue | Sociology | |
| Antoine Pettway | Kennesaw State | Business | Sport Management |
| Rick Pitino | St. John's | Political Science | |
| Mark Pope | Kentucky | English | |
| Alex Pribble | Idaho | Sociology | |
| Dr. Brett Reed | Lehigh | Literature | Instructional Technology |
| Bob Richey | Furman | Business Management | |
| David Richman | North Dakota State | Physical Education | Sport and Recreation Management |
| Kelvin Sampson | Houston | Health & Physical Education | Coaching & Administration |
| Clint Sargent | Wright State | unavailable | |
| Josh Schertz | Saint Louis | unavailable | Education |
| Jon Scheyer | Duke | History | |
| Bill Self | Kansas | Business | Athletic Administration |
| Herb Sendek | Santa Clara | Industrial Management | |
| Byron Smith | Prairie View A&M | unavailable | Health and Physical Education |
| Nolan Smith | Tennessee State | unavailable | |
| Travis Steele | Miami of Ohio | Business | |
| Rod Strickland | Long Island | Sports Leadership | |
| Brad Underwood | Illinois | Radio & TV Communications | |
| Frank "Will" Wade | North Carolina State | unavailable | |
| Mike White | Georgia | Business | |
| Kevin Willard | Villanova | unavailable | |
| Kevin Young | Brigham Young | Education |
Mighty Mites: Shortest Subjects Blossoming Into Big-Time Playoff Performers
Freshman Chance Mallory (5-10), leading Virginia in assists and steals, probably is the premier player in this year's NCAA Tournament shorter than 6-0. But there have been even shorter players make a big impact on the NCAA tourney. When diminutive dandy Tyrone Bogues isn't on the list (scoreless in three playoff games as a Wake Forest freshman in 1983-84), you know the small packages are something big. A couple of North Carolina State playmakers - Monte Towe and Spud Webb - spearhead the following ranking of the 25 most impactful pint-sized players in playoff history even shorter than 5-8:
| Rank | Mighty Mite (Height) | School/Tourney Year(s) | Summary of NCAA Playoff Performance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Shawnta Rogers (5-4) | George Washington 96-98-99 | averaged 20.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 5 apg and 2.7 spg in three defeats vs. power-league opponents |
| 2. | Monte Towe (5-7) | North Carolina State 74 | averaged 15.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.3 apg and 2 spg in four contests with national titlist |
| 3. | Anthony "Spud" Webb (5-7) | North Carolina State 85 | juco transfer averaged 17 ppg and 6.3 apg in four contests for regional finalist |
| 4. | Earl Boykins (5-6) | Eastern Michigan 96-98 | averaged 17 points, 3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.3 spg in three contests vs. schools winning national title at some point |
| 5. | Keith "Mister" Jennings (5-7) | East Tennessee State 89-90-91 | averaged 12 ppg and 8.3 apg in three defeats |
| 6. | Drew Lavender (5-6) | Oklahoma 05/Xavier 07-08 | averaged 10.9 ppg, 3 rpg and 5 apg in eight contests (four outings with > 5 assists) |
| 7. | Willie Worsley (5-6) | Texas Western 66-67 | averaged 10.8 ppg and 2.6 rpg in eight contests (scored game-high 24 points vs. Seattle in opener for defending NCAA titlist) |
| 8. | Demontrae Jefferson (5-7) | Texas Southern 17-18 | averaged 19.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 4 apg and 2.7 spg in three contests |
| 9. | Tajuan Porter (5-6) | Oregon 07-08 | averaged 16.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg and 2 apg in five contests (including 33 points vs. UNLV) |
| 10. | Jackie Crawford (5-7) | SW Missouri State 92 | juco transfer collected team highs of 16 points and 7 assists in defeat vs. Michigan State |
| 11. | Chico Fletcher (5-6) | Arkansas State 99 | scored team-high 21 points in defeat vs. Utah |
| 12. | Greg Brown (5-7) | New Mexico 93-94 | juco transfer averaged 11 ppg, 4.5 rpg and 2.5 apg in two losses |
| 13. | Jeremiah Dominguez (5-6) | Portland State 08-09 | Portland transfer averaged 12 ppg, 3 rpg and 3 apg in two defeats |
| 14. | Dick Hickox (5-6) | Miami (Fla.) 60 | scored team-high 17 points vs. Western Kentucky |
| 15. | Otto Petty (5-7) | Florida State 72 | averaged 8.2 ppg, 2 rpg and 5 apg in five contests for national runner-up (three outings with > 5 assists) |
| 16. | Junior Robinson (5-7) | Mount St. Mary's 17 | averaged 15 ppg, 3 apg and 1.5 spg in two contests |
| 17. | Jason Harrison (5-5) | Mississippi 99-01-02 | averaged 6 ppg, 4 apg and 1.3 spg in six contests (five outings vs. power-league opponents) |
| 18. | Chris Lykes (5-6) | Miami (Fla.) 18/Arkansas 22 | collected 10 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals with the Hurricanes in loss vs. Loyola of Chicago before averaging 3.3 ppg in four contests with the Hogs' regional finalist |
| 19. | Arnold Bernard (5-5) | SW Missouri State 90 | juco transfer contributed 7 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals in reversal vs. North Carolina |
| 20. | Wat Misaka (5-7) | Utah 44 | averaged 6 ppg in three contests for NCAA titlist |
| 21. | Casey Jones (5-7) | Northeast Louisiana 90-91 | averaged 8.5 ppg and 2.5 rpg in two defeats (vs. Purdue and Duke) |
| 22. | Chuck Rolles (5-6) | Cornell 54 | averaged 5.5 ppg, 3 rpg and 1.5 apg in three contests |
| 23. | Gene Duffy (5-7) | Notre Dame 58 | averaged 5.7 ppg and 2.7 rpg in three outings |
| 24. | "Little" Johnny Campbell (5-6) | Arkansas 49 | averaged 5.5 ppg in two games for West Regional third-place team |
| T25. | Sherry Marshall (5-7) | Columbia 48 | averaged 4.5 ppg in two contests |
| T25. | Calvin Rayford (5-7) | Kansas 93-94-96 | collected total of 8 points, 11 rebounds and 15 assists in nine tourney tilts |
| T25. | Jim Reilly (5-7) | Georgetown 43 | averaged 2 ppg in three contests |
| T25. | Eric Bell (5-6) | Stephen F. Austin 09 | supplied 3 assists and two steals in setback vs. Syracuse |
Lasting Memories: Ten Most Magical Moments in NCAA Tournament History
If it's March, it's time for Madness to take center stage. For those who adore basketball, this is an invigorating time, commencing at postseason conference tournaments and climaxing at the Final Four. It's a month-long tantalizing tableau energizing you, making one wish the charm and intensity of playoff basketball would last forever.
The fanfare leaves memories etched indelibly in your mind. One can't possibly forget on-court excellence stemming from North Carolina's triple-overtime win against Wilt Chamberlain-led Kansas; Villanova's stunning upset of Georgetown; Indiana becoming the last undefeated champion; Danny (Manning) and the Miracles at Kansas; Bill Walton's 21 of 22 field-goal shooting against Memphis State during UCLA's string of championships; Jack Givens' scoring outburst for Kentucky against Duke; Bobby Joe Hill's layups after steals to spur Texas Western's all-black regular rotation to a victory over Kentucky's all-white lineup; ballyhooed matchup between Indiana State's Larry Bird and Michigan State's Magic Johnson, and mid-major Butler's back-to-back Cinderella trips to title tilt.
Off the court, it's difficult to forget watching scalpers maneuver at the Final Four, announcer Brent Musburger's firing by CBS on April Fool's Day, a scheduling dilemma after the unsettling assassination attempt on President Reagan, and the emotional award presentations for the USBWA's Most Courageous Athlete.
Still, the aforementioned don't possess a single defining moment leaving a perpetual image describing the action. That's because the great moments in sports don't arrive gradually. They just happen spontaneously, in what seems like one unforgettable soaring second. They touch onlookers and leave an everlasting imprint. What were those impressionable moments in the NCAA playoffs making your brain holler "Freeze It!" like impassioned analyst Dick Vitale?
Naturally, most of them stem from replays occurring since TV gained a foothold on the extravaganza. There must be an abundance of splendid moments when the final cut doesn't include U.S. Reed's half-court game-winning basket for Arkansas in the 1981 Midwest Regional and Providence playmaker Ernie DiGregorio's mind-numbing behind-the-back pass traveling more than half the length of the court at 1973 Final Four. Here is CollegeHoopedia's view of the 10 most magical moments in NCAA Tournament history (in reverse order):
10. BEAM IT UP, SCOTTY!
Great Scott! Rallying from a 10-point second-half deficit against Duke in the heart of ACC country (Charlotte, N.C.) at the 1994 NCAA final, the pressure couldn't have been more intense on Arkansas' Scotty Thurman at the moment he received a pass on the right wing from teammate Dwight Stewart. The shot clock was winding down and the score tied (70-70) with 40 seconds remaining when the swingman lofted a three-point attempt over 6-8 Antonio Lang that hit nothing but net.
Thurman attributed his ability to get off such a high arc shot to an age-old drill shooting over a defender with a broomstick his coach at Ruston (La.) High School employed during practices.
"He's a class player," Duke guard Chris Collins said of Thurman after the Razorbacks' 76-72 victory. "He made a great play. The national championship, less than a minute left, tie game - he made a great shot."
9. HERE'S TO YOU, MR. ROBINSON
The national title was at stake with three seconds remaining in overtime in 1989 when Michigan guard Rumeal Robinson stood at the free-throw line in Seattle. But what is the pressure of a one-and-one opportunity for a 65.6 percent free-throw shooter after he has gone one-on-one with the street?
Robinson will forever live in the hearts of Wolverine fans after converting two free throws to give Michigan an 80-79 victory over Seton Hall. Previously, the Jamaican-born Robinson had no place to live at all. He was a 12-year-old street urchin deserted by his mother after they moved to Cambridge, Mass., a Boston suburb.
"Somewhere along the line," Robinson said. "I think I was blessed. I feel no bitterness. I have not been cheated. I do not know why my mother did not want me. I do not know why my biological father died the day before I was to meet him. But I also do not know why I was so lucky to find my adoptive parents. It is not so much bad luck or good luck. It is ... only how it is ... how God wants it."
The NCAA final capped a bizarre series of events for the Wolverines. Just prior to the start of the tourney, Michigan coach Bill Frieder announced that he would become head coach at Arizona State the following season. Miffed Michigan athletic director and former football coaching legend Bo Schembechler promptly announced that assistant Steve Fisher would take over for the duration of the playoffs. Fisher inherited a squad including Robinson and three other future NBA first-round draft choices--Glen Rice, Terry Mills and Loy Vaught.
Robinson's heroics obscured a marvelous performance by Seton Hall guard John Morton. In the first overtime final since 1963, Morton had the highest scoring output (17 of game-high 35 points in the last eight minutes of regulation) for any player from a losing team in an NCAA championship game.
Robinson's storybook tale didn't have a happy ending, however. He was sentenced in early 2011 to 6 1/2 years in jail for financial fraud. The charges against him were bank bribery, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and making a false statement to a financial institution. The two-time All-Big Ten Conference selection borrowed more than $700,000 from a bank in Iowa in 2004, claiming it was for a business. Robinson used the money for personal purposes instead (buying a condomium, cars, furniture and investing in an energy company). Sparking outrage in his Cambridge, Mass., hometown, he reportedly caused his adoptive mother to be forcibly removed from her home after being tricked into signing a deed that sold a house to Robinson's business associate while receiving no money.
8. PHILADELPHIA STORY
The most indisputable playoff upsets come when a team ranked in the top three or four of a national poll is eliminated before it reaches a regional semifinal. DePaul was the nation's top-ranked team in back-to-back seasons when the Blue Demons lost their opening tournament game each year (77-71 against UCLA in the 1980 West Regional and 49-48 against St. Joseph's in the 1981 Mideast Regional). Unanimous first-team All-American forward Mark Aguirre, who averaged 24.5 points and 7.9 rebounds in his three-year DePaul career, collected a total of 21 points and four rebounds in the 1980 and 1981 opening-game tourney setbacks.
Philadelphia-based St. Joseph's gained its only lead in the second half when an inexcusably unguarded Hawks player named John Smith sank a layup with three seconds left after DePaul's most accurate foul shooter, Skip Dillard, the guy they called "Money" because when he shot 'em, they were as good as in the bank, missed the front end of a one-and-one with 12 seconds remaining.
DePaul did not score a point or take a shot in the final 6 1/2 minutes. A stunned Aguirre, the national player of the year, didn't even throw the ball inbounds and finished the game with one rebound, one assist, no blocked shots, no steals and the only sub-10 scoring output of his college career (eight points). He must have saved his energy for throwing the game ball into Dayton's Great Miami River after the game.
Smith, a Philly native, felt no remorse for Aguirre and venerable DePaul coach Ray Meyer. "Aguirre? Why should I? I know one thing, he didn't light us up, did he? And, he did all the (trash) talking. That made me want to dig in and put it to this guy. Who in the hell does he think he is? He sure wasn't doing anything."
The Blue Demons also lost their opening playoff game as a No. 1 seed in the 1982 Midwest Regional (82-75 against Boston College) when they were ranked second nationally behind eventual champion North Carolina. Dillard and forward Terry Cummings were DePaul starters all three years. Dillard, who made a school record 45 free throws in a row, subsequently saw his life really turn sour when he was sentenced to serve time in federal prison for attempted bank robbery.
7. HIGH-WIRE ACT
He was Michael Jordan before there was a Michael Jordan. It's inconceivable to think that North Carolina State would have won the 1974 crown if high-flying David Thompson didn't recover from a nasty fall to the floor after attempting to block a shot by Pitt in the East Regional final. Thompson, cartwheeling over the shoulders of a teammate, landed with a sickening thud on the back of his head and did not move for four minutes. He regained consciousness, was taken to a hospital and, after getting 15 stitches to mend a head wound, was permitted to return to the arena and watch the end of the Wolfpack's 100-72 romp.
The mild concussion didn't keep him from being ready for the Final Four, where the junior forward was named Most Outstanding Player. Thompson is the only undergraduate non-center to average more than 23 points per game for an NCAA titlist (26 ppg). A 76-64 NCAA final win against Marquette in N.C. State's home state (Greensboro) was almost anticlimatic. In the national semifinals, the Wolfpack avenged an 18-point loss to UCLA earlier in the season on a neutral court in St. Louis by ending the Bruins' 38-game playoff winning streak (80-77 in overtime). N.C. State erased an 11-point deficit midway through the second half and a seven-point deficit in the extra session behind Thompson's 28 points and 10 rebounds to halt UCLA's string of seven consecutive NCAA championships.
"It was the most disappointing, embarrassing event of my life," Bruins All-American center Bill Walton said. "I think about it almost daily. If I had one week to bring back and live over, that would be it."
As for Thompson, he went on to disappointing/embarrassing incidents involving a well-publicized involvement with cocaine, accusations of assaulting his wife, filing for bankruptcy and suffering a knee injury in a dispute at Studio 54 in New York.
6. GOING-AWAY PRESENT
Colorful Al McGuire made a tearful farewell in Atlanta. The first 38 NCAA national champions, from Oregon (29-5 record in 1938-39) through Indiana (the last unbeaten team with a 32-0 mark in 1975-76), averaged barely over two defeats per season. None of the titlists sustained more than six setbacks until Marquette's McGuire-coached squad won the 1977 title with a 25-7 worksheet.
McGuire's eight previous teams incurred fewer defeats and he professed to believe his team wouldn't receive an at-large bid to the tourney after lost five home games, including its last three in Milwaukee Arena, where during one period McGuire's teams were 145-7, including an 81-game winning streak. But given a reprieve, Marquette overcame halftime deficits to win their first three playoff games against Cincinnati, Kansas State and Wake Forest before trailing most of the second half against UNC Charlotte in the national semifinals.
The Warriors blew a 12-point halftime lead against North Carolina in the final before recovering to win 67-59. McGuire, leaving the bench before the game was even over with tears running down his cheeks, pulled away from a hug by long-time assistant Hank Raymonds and made his way to the silence of the locker room.
"I want to be alone," McGuire said. "I'm not afraid to cry. All I could think about at the end was--why me? After all the jocks and socks. All the odors in the locker room. All the fights in the gyms. Just the wildness of it all. And to have it end like this ..."
5. GETTING SMART
In a six-game surge that propelled Indiana to the 1987 NCAA championship, the Hoosiers had at least four starters score in double figures in every game, five in two contests. The squad was coach Bob Knight's first to have all five starters average in double digits. The team's fifth-leading scorer with 11.2 points per game was junior college recruit Keith Smart. He didn't receive even honorable mention in voting by coaches for the All-Big Ten team. But the 6-1 guard scored 15 per game in the NCAA playoffs and supplied 21 in a 74-73 final against Syracuse, including a basket that will live forever--a game-winning jumper from the left baseline with five seconds remaining.
Smart, who tallied 12 of the Hoosiers' last 15 points, is the only former junior college alumnus to become Final Four Most Outstanding Player. Indiana looked to All-American Steve Alford for the final shot, but he was covered.
"I wasn't surprised I got the ball," Smart said. "I was surprised it went in." The biggest surprise might have been that he ever enrolled at a major college. As a junior in high school in Baton Rouge, La., he was only 5-3. He grew to 5-7 as a senior, but that season ended early when Smart broke his wrist.
Before attending Garden City (Kan.) Community College, he spent a year flipping hamburgers at a fast-food restaurant.
4. A STAR IS SCORNED
Chris Webber's baffling call for a timeout with 11 seconds remaining after dribbling down the court in the 1993 title game when Michigan was out of timeouts prevented the Wolverines from having an opportunity to tie the score or take the lead against North Carolina. Actually, Webber should have been assessed for traveling after grabbing a missed free-throw attempt. The Tar Heels wound up winning, 77-71, despite Webber's team-high 23 points and game-high 11 rebounds.
Webber's family accepted the well-chronicled boner in stride and showed time heals all wounds when his father, Mayce, acquired a vanity license plate saying "Timeout," a reference to his son's excruciating blunder.
"It's no big deal," the younger Webber said shortly before he became the first pick in the 1993 NBA draft after leaving college early. "I'm not happy it happened. But I know it's going to help me in some way. It made me a man. It made me grow up a lot faster than if it hadn't happened."
But Webber's penchant for controversy surfaced again when he forced a trade from projected playoff contender Golden State to a moribund Washington franchise. Moreover, it certainly was a big deal when Webber was subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in Detroit in September, 2002, on four felony counts of conspiracy to obstruct justice and lying to federal investigators regarding money laundering linked to a shady Wolverines booster convicted of tax evasion and robbery.
3. I AM NOT (SUPPOSED TO PASS TO) WORTHY
Georgetown guard Fred Brown's errant pass directly to North Carolina forward James Worthy prevented the Hoyas from attempting a potential game-winning shot in the closing seconds of the 1982 championship game. Brown's untimely pass came moments after freshman guard Michael Jordan's jumper from the left wing put North Carolina ahead, 63-62.
The site of massive Georgetown coach John Thompson Jr. embracing and encouraging Brown after the game showed a sensitive dimension to his occasionally volatile character. Two years later, they embraced again after a game, but this time it stemmed from the jubilation of a national crown.
"I enjoy what I'm doing," Thompson said. "I'm not a person that's going to run around and say `I'm here for the children.' I run from people like that. I try and deal with the relationships and responsibilities I have with the players."
2. DUNK YOU VERY MUCH
Lorenzo Charles, a muscular sophomore forward averaging a modest 8.1 points per game for North Carolina State, converted guard Dereck Whittenburg's off-line desperation shot from well beyond the top of the free-throw circle into a decisive gentle dunk in a 54-52 championship game victory over heavily-favored Houston in 1983. Wolfpack coach Jim Valvano pranced all over the court looking for someone to hug as stunned fans at The Pit in Albuquerque, N.M., and the millions watching on TV had witnessed a miracle.
No one gave the Pack a chance against the Phi Slama Jamma Cougars in the title game. Joe Henderson of the Tampa Tribune said before the game, "Blindfold? Cigarette? Last Words? Sayonara, N.C. State. There'll be no reprieve. The noose drops at 9:12 p.m. (starting time)."
N.C. State was an overwhelming underdog after Houston's dunkathon in a 94-81 triumph over Louisville in the semifinals. In the second half alone against the Cardinals, Houston accounted for 22 points on stuffs. After a mind-boggling flight of fancy by the Cougars' Clyde Drexler, longtime Notre Dame publicist Roger Valdiserri passed this note along press row: "Welcome to the 21st Century." Oddly, Drexler and Charles each scored a mere four points in the final.
N.C. State, the first school to require six victories to earn the crown and the first champion with a double-digit loss total, became the only team ever to have as many as four playoff games decided by one or two points en route to a title. The Wolfpack capitalized on its six victims combining to shoot an anemic 56.8% from the free-throw line.
Sadly, Charles was working for a limousine and bus company based in Apex, N.C., when he was killed in June 2011 after the charter bus the 47-year-old was driving with no passengers aboard crashed along Interstate 40 in Raleigh.
1. BETTER LATE THAN NEVER
Christian Laettner, who helped Duke compile a 21-2 playoff mark in his four years, stomped on Kentucky literally and figurately when he scored his playoff high of 31 points against the Wildcats in a 104-103 overtime victory in the 1992 East Regional final. Laettner capped a flawless offensive performance, hitting all 10 of his field-goal attempts and all 10 of his free throws, by scoring Duke's last eight points in overtime, including a dramatic 18-foot turnaround jumper at the buzzer after catching teammate Grant Hill's pass from the baseline on the opposite end of the court. A flaw in Laettner's abrasive personality that affected his NBA career surfaced, however, in what many believe was the greatest game of all-time when he intentionally stepped on a prone UK player.
It wasn't the first time Laettner supplied a buzzer-beating basket to win a playoff game in overtime. He hit what probably was an even more difficult shot to give Duke a 79-78 win against Connecticut in the 1990 East Regional final. Laettner became the NCAA Tournament's all-time leading scorer and teammate Bobby Hurley became the tourney's all-time leader in assists as the Blue Devils became the first school to win back-to-back titles since UCLA in 1973.
Laettner scored 28 points in a 79-77 victory over previously undefeated UNLV in the 1991 semifinals to avenge a 30-point loss against the Rebels in the 1990 final. Hurley took up the slack with 26 points when Laettner was limited to eight points in an 81-78 decision over Indiana in the 1992 national semifinals.
Laettner's ability to survive pressure-packed situations recently was put to the test again. He and Duke teammate Brian Davis faced huge financial and legal hudles stemming from a loan their real estate company failed to repay nearly $700,000 to former Duke captain/assistant coach and current Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins. Court documents obtained by the Wall Street Journal indicated that Laettner and Davis were defendants in several civil lawsuits seeking repayment of about $30 million.
Nostalgia 87: 1 to 87 Ranking of Greatest Games in NCAA Tournament History
"It is not enough that we do our best; sometimes we must do what is required." - Winston Churchill
The NCAA Tournament spectacle speaks to your sports soul, leaving you sitting on the edge of your seat yearning for more. Perhaps the most amazing stretch in NCAA playoff history was an eight-year span from 1982 through 1989 when seven finals were decided by an average of two points. All of those close title contests, surely measuring up to Churchill's "best" quote, must be included in any celebratory ranking of the most stimulating games in tourney history.
Since some of the most entertaining games are somewhat overshadowed because they came in earlier rounds, it's difficult to decide what were the premier outings in playoff history. There is inspiration everywhere one turns - so many entertaining contests to choose from with so many divergent opinions on a seemingly endless list of stellar candidates.
Nothing provokes disagreements among ardent hoop fans more than healthy what's-the-best-in-history dialogue. In deference to the introduction of playoff parties 87 years ago, following is a ranking of the top 87 games remembered the most. You wouldn't wonder what all the fuss is about if you had the good fortune to witness firsthand or learn from ardent fans about much of the following drama:
1. 1992 East Regional Final (Duke 104, Kentucky 103 in OT)
Duke's Christian Laettner hit a decisive last-second shot near the head of the key against UK in overtime after receiving a long in-bounds pass from Grant Hill in the East Regional final. The game is acknowledged as one of the most suspenseful in NCAA history.
2. 1985 Championship Game (Villanova 66, Georgetown 64)
Villanova became the worst seed (#8 in the Southeast Regional) to win a national championship by shooting a championship game-record 78.6% from the floor against the nation's top-ranked team. The Hoyas, powered by national player of the year Patrick Ewing, had defeated the Wildcats twice by a total of nine points in Big East Conference competition.
3. 1983 Championship Game (North Carolina State 54, Houston 52)
Sophomore forward Lorenzo Charles scored only four points, but two of them came when he converted guard Dereck Whittenburg's off-line desperation shot from well beyond the top of the free-throw circle into a decisive dunk as North Carolina State upset heavily-favored Houston. The Cougars, featuring Clyde Drexler and Akeem Olajuwon, entered the final with a 26-game winning streak.
4. 1982 Championship Game (North Carolina 63, Georgetown 62)
North Carolina freshman guard Michael Jordan swished a 16-foot jumper from the left side with 16 seconds remaining to provide the title contest's final points before Georgetown guard Fred Brown's errant pass directly to Tar Heels forward James Worthy prevented the Hoyas from attempting a potential game-winning shot in the closing seconds. Also memorable was was a stream of intimidating goal-tending calls early in the contest against Hoyas freshman center Patrick Ewing.
5. 1987 Championship Game (Indiana 74, Syracuse 73)
Junior college recruit Keith Smart, a guard who was Indiana's fifth-leading scorer for the season, tallied 12 of the Hoosiers' last 15 points, including a 15-foot jumper from the left baseline with five seconds remaining.
6. 1957 Championship Game (North Carolina 54, Kansas 53 in 3OT)
Carolina center Joe Quigg sank two free throws with six seconds remaining in third overtime to tie score and provide decisive point against the Wilt Chamberlain-led Jayhawks. Although Lennie Rosenbluth was the unbeaten Tar Heels' leading scorer in 27 of their 32 contests, they won the NCAA final despite him fouling out with 1:45 remaining in regulation.
7. 2016 Championship Game (Villanova 77, North Carolina 74)
On the heels of a miraculous, double-clutch game-tying three-pointer by Carolina's Marcus Paige with fewer than five ticks remaining, Jenkins nailed a trey off a nifty pass and brush screen by Final Four MOP Ryan Arcidiacono. Unsung hero Phil Booth Jr. led the Wildcats in scoring in the final with 20 points while Jenkins, Nova's #2 scorer on the season (13.6 ppg) behind Josh Hart, chipped in with 14.
8. 1966 Championship Game (Texas Western 72, Kentucky 65)
Texas Western (28-1), featuring an all-black starting lineup with three players 6-1 or shorter in the NCAA final, stunned top-ranked and all-white Kentucky (27-2), putting the finishing touches on dismantling the prejudiced myth that black athletes couldn't play disciplined basketball. Junior college transfer Bobby Joe Hill, one of the tiny trio, converted steals into layups on consecutive trips down the floor by flustered UK guards to give the Miners a lead they never relinquished.
9. 1975 Mideast Regional Final (Kentucky 92, Indiana 90)
Indiana, undefeated entering the tourney (29-0), lost against Kentucky despite center Kent Benson's 33 points and tourney-high 23 rebounds. The Wildcats (26-5) prevailed despite 6-of-19 field-goal shooting by leading scorer Kevin Grevey. UK guards Jimmy Dan Conner and Mike Flynn combined to outscore IU counterparts Quinn Buckner and Bobby Wilkerson, 39-22.
10. 1991 National Semifinals (Duke 79, UNLV 77)
Duke's shocking win over defending champion UNLV (34-1) was the Rebels' lone defeat. Christian Laettner scored 28 points for the Blue Devils (32-7).
11. 1989 Championship Game (Michigan 80, Seton Hall 79 in OT)
Former street urchin Rumeal Robinson sank two pressure free throws against Seton Hall (31-7) with three seconds remaining in overtime to give the win to Michigan (30-7), which was guided by interim coach Steve Fisher.
12. 1957 National Semifinals (North Carolina 74, Michigan State 70 in 3OT)
The lead changed hands 31 times and the score was tied on 21 occasions. The Spartans' Jack Quiggle made a last-second, half-court shot at the end of regulation but it was disallowed. The end-of-game rule at the time was that the ball had to reach the apex of its arc before the buzzer. The officials ruled that the ball was still ascending. Teammate Johnny Green missed a free throw with 11 seconds remaining in the first overtime that would have sealed the verdict. Carolina's Pete Brennan grabbed Green's miss. Rather than tossing the ball out to a guard as Brennan normally would do, he dribbled down-court and hit a game-tying jumper just to the right of the foul line at the buzzer.
13. 1994 Championship Game (Arkansas 76, Duke 72)
The pressure was intense on Arkansas' Scotty Thurman with the shot clock winding down and score tied with 40 seconds remaining when he lofted a three-point attempt over Duke defender Antonio Lang that hit nothing but net.
14. 1974 National Semifinals (North Carolina State 80, UCLA 77 in 2OT)
The final in N.C. State's home state at Greensboro was anti-climatic after the Wolfpack avenged an 18-point loss against UCLA earlier in the season on a neutral court by ending the Bruins' 38-game playoff winning streak. N.C. State erased an 11-point deficit midway through the second half and a seven-point deficit in the second extra session behind David Thompson's 28 points and 10 rebounds to halt UCLA's string of seven consecutive NCAA championships.
15. 1990 East Regional Final (Duke 79, Connecticut 78 in OT)
Two days after UConn escaped Clemson on a controversial last-second shot, Duke turned the tables on the Huskies when Christian Laettner inbounded the ball with 2.6 seconds remaining, received a return pass and sank a leaning jumper from the left side at the buzzer.
16. 1981 Mideast Regional Second Round (St. Joseph's 49, DePaul 48)
St. Joseph's gained its only lead in the second half when inexcusably unguarded Hawks player John Smith sank a layup with three seconds left after DePaul's most accurate foul shooter, Skip Dillard, the guy they called "Money" because when he shot 'em, they were as good as in the bank, missed the front end of a one-and-one with 12 seconds remaining. The top-ranked Blue Demons did not score a point or take a shot in the final 6 1/2 minutes. A stunned Mark Aguirre, the national player of the year, didn't even throw the ball inbounds and finished the game with one rebound, one assist, no blocked shots, no steals and the only single-digit scoring output of his DePaul career (eight points).
17. 1981 Midwest Regional Second Round (Arkansas 74, Louisville 73)
Defending champion Louisville lost when Arkansas' U.S. Reed received an in-bounds pass with five seconds remaining, criss-cross dribbled up the sideline and heaved a mid-court shot from right side that went through the net at the buzzer.
18. 1993 Championship Game (North Carolina 77, Michigan 71)
George Lynch, North Carolina's top rebounder and second-leading scorer, made four big plays in the closing moments of title game. With Michigan leading, 67-66, he and Eric Montross blocked away a driving layup by Jimmy King. That led to a fast-break basket by Derrick Phelps and put the Tar Heels ahead to stay with just over three minutes remaining. After a missed UM shot, Lynch hit a turnaround jumper from the middle of the lane with 2:28 remaining to increase Carolina's lead to 70-67. On an inbounds play after UNC regained possession, Lynch lofted a perfect pass to Montross for a dunk. The Wolverines rallied to trim the deficit to 73-71 before Lynch and Phelps trapped Chris Webber along the right sideline with only 11 seconds remaining and Michigan's consensus first-team All-American called a fateful timeout his team did not have, a "whopper" of a mistake long before his Burger King commercial.
19. 1973 Championship Game (UCLA 87, Memphis State 61)
UCLA's Bill Walton, aided by Greg Lee's 14 assists, erupted for a title game-record 44 points. Walton, the only player to have as many as 20 field goals in an NCAA final, hit all but one of 22 shots from the floor.
20. 1958 East Regional First Round (Manhattan 89, West Virginia 84)
West Virginia, ranked No. 1 in the country at the end of the regular season, was upset at New York when Jack Powers, who went on to become executive director of the NIT, collected 29 points and 15 rebounds for Manhattan (16-10). Jerry West scored just 10 points in his first NCAA Tournament game for the Mountaineers, who finished the season with the best winning percentage in school history (26-2, .929).
21. 2021 National Semifinals (Gonzaga 93, UCLA 90 in OT)
Freshman guard Jalen Suggs banked in a long heave at the buzzer near the Final Four logo to elevate the Zags to within one win of an unbeaten campaign. The contest featured 15 ties and 19 lead changes as the Bruins halted streak of 27 straight double-digit triumphs by nation's top-ranked team.
22. 1983 Mideast Regional final (Louisville 80, Kentucky 68 in OT)
The first meeting between in-state rivals Kentucky and Louisville in more than 24 years was memorable as the Cardinals outscored the Wildcats in overtime, 18-6, to reach the Final Four.
23. 1963 Championship Game (Loyola of Chicago 60, Cincinnati 58 in OT)
Forward Vic Rouse leaped high to redirect center Les Hunter's shot from the free-throw line into the basket to climax the Ramblers' first year in the playoffs. Loyola, using its starting lineup the entire final, overcame 27.4% field-goal shooting by committing just three turnovers. The Ramblers trailed the defending NCAA champion by 15 points in the second half before knotting the score at 54-54 when Jerry Harkness hit a 12-foot jumper with four seconds remaining in regulation.
24. 1988 Championship Game (Kansas 83, Oklahoma 79)
The two Big Eight Conference members were deadlocked, 50-50, at intermission in the highest-scoring first half in title game history. The Jayhawks' Danny Manning poured in 31 points.
25. 1979 Championship Game (Michigan State 75, Indiana State 64)
Undefeated Indiana State lost against Michigan State when the Sycamores' Larry Bird, who hit 53.2% of his field-goal attempts on the season, made just one-third of his shots from the floor (7 of 21) as a sore thumb limited his shooting effectiveness. Magic Johnson scored a game-high 24 points for the Spartans. The ballyhooed matchup between icons Bird and Magic failed to live up to billing but aroused fans and generated the largest-ever TV share for an NCAA final.
26. 1989 East Regional First Round (Georgetown 50, Princeton 49)
No. 16 seed Princeton pushed No. 1 seed Georgetown to the limit in the East Regional before the patient and precise Tigers bowed when a last-second shot was blocked by All-American center Alonzo Mourning.
27. 1996 Southeast Regional First Round (Princeton 43, UCLA 41)
Princeton coach Pete Carril bowed out in style with a decisive perfectly executed back-door layup reminiscent of how many games were played several decades ago. It was UCLA's lowest-scoring output in 99 playoff outings, and the lowest score for a Bruins team in a regulation game in more than 55 years.
28. 1977 Championship Game (Marquette 67, North Carolina 59)
Tears of joy flowed for coach Al McGuire when Marquette won the championship in his farewell. McGuire, leaving the bench before the game was even over with tears running down his cheeks, pulled away from a hug by long-time assistant Hank Raymonds and made his way to the silence of the locker room. "I want to be alone," McGuire said. "I'm not afraid to cry. All I could think about at the end was - why me? After all the jocks and socks. All the odors in the locker room. All the fights in the gyms. Just the wildness of it all. And to have it end like this ..."
29. 1971 Mideast Regional Semifinals (Western Kentucky 107, Kentucky 83)
WKU, long regarded as poor country cousins by Kentucky, whipped the Wildcats in their first-ever meeting when All-American Jim McDaniels poured in 35 points for the Hilltoppers.
30. 1975 National Semifinals (UCLA 75, Louisville 74 in OT)
Three Louisville regulars shooting better than 50% from the floor for the season (swingman Junior Bridgeman, center Ricky Gallon and guard Phillip Bond) combined to hit 25% (6 of 24) in a loss against UCLA. Adding insult to injury for the Cardinals was reserve guard Terry Howard missing the front end of a one-and-one free-throw opportunity in the closing seconds of overtime after he converted all 28 of his previous foul shots that season.
31. 1997 Championship Game (Arizona 84, Kentucky 79 in OT)
Arizona, the only team to win an NCAA crown after finishing as low as fifth place in its league, capitalized on a 34-9 edge in free throws made to upend favored Kentucky although Zona did not make a field goal in the extra session.
32. 1995 West Regional Second Round (UCLA 75, Missouri 74)
Playmaker Tyus Edney played the role of Wizard of Westwood II with a series of breathtaking drives and baskets in UCLA's first five playoff games, including a length-of-the-court game-winner against Mizzou.
33. 1990 East Regional Semifinals (Connecticut 71, Clemson 70)
It was difficult for Clemson fans to fathom how UConn's Tate George had sufficient time with one second on the clock to receive a full-court pass, come down, square up and get off a game-winning jumper from the right baseline.
34. 1990 West Regional Second Round (Loyola Marymount 149, Michigan 115)
The record for most three-point field goals in a playoff game was set by Loyola Marymount senior guard Jeff Fryer with 11. Fryer (41) and Bo Kimble (37) became the only set of teammates to score more than 35 points in the same tourney game when they combined for 78 vs. Michigan in the highest-scoring game in NCAA playoff history.
35. 1981 East Regional Semifinals (Brigham Young 51, Notre Dame 50)
BYU's Danny Ainge went coast-to-coast driving through the heart of No. 2 seed Notre Dame's defense for a layup at the buzzer to give the Cougars the victory.
36. 1983 West Regional First Round (N.C. State 69, Pepperdine 67 in 2OT)
NCAA champion-to-be North Carolina State (26-10) defeated Pepperdine (20-9) in two extra sessions after trailing by six points with 24 seconds remaining in regulation.
37. 1978 Championship Game (Kentucky 94, Duke 88)
Jack Givens sank 18 of 27 field-goal attempts against upstart Duke's zone defense and scored Kentucky's last 16 points of the first half en route to a 41-point performance.
38. 2001 National Semifinals (Duke 95, Maryland 84)
The Blue Devils (35-4) overcame a 22-point deficit against the Terrapins (25-11), the biggest comeback in Final Four history. Mike Dunleavy Jr. hit three consecutive three-pointers in a 45-second span of the second half after Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski told his squad to quit calling plays and just go out and play the game.
39. 2003 West Regional Second Round (Arizona 96, Gonzaga 95 in 2OT)
Gonzaga's Tony Skinner and Blake Stepp tied for game-high scoring honors with 25 points but each of them missed an open shot in the last four seconds of the second overtime for the Zags (24-9) against No. 1 seed Arizona (28-4). Wildcats standout guard Jason Gardner contributed a pair of three-pointers after missing 17 consecutive shots from beyond the arc in his previous three outings.
40. 1970 Mideast Regional First Round (Notre Dame 112, Ohio University 82)
Guard Austin Carr became the only player to score more than 60 points in a single playoff game. Carr tallied 35 of Notre Dame's 54 first-half points en route to a school-record 61 against OU.
41. 1952 East Regional Final (St. John's 64, Kentucky 57)
St. John's (25-6), sparked by center Bob Zawoluk's 32 points, avenged a 41-point rout at UK (29-3) earlier in the season (81-40) by ending the 23-game winning streak of the nation's No. 1 team.
42. 1969 National Semifinals (UCLA 85, Drake 82)
Guard John Vallely, averaging a modest 10.2 points per game entering the Final Four, erupted for 29 points and the Bruins (29-1) needed all of them. They had a nine-point lead with 70 seconds remaining dwindle to one before defeating Drake (26-5) after the Bulldogs missed a go-ahead basket in the waning moments. UCLA star center Lew Alcindor grabbed 21 rebounds.
43. 1945 National Semifinals (New York University 70, Ohio State 65 in OT)
NYU (14-7), featuring just one senior on its roster, erased a 10-point deficit in the final two minutes of regulation against Ohio State (15-5).
44. 1968 Midwest Regional First Round (Houston 94, Loyola of Chicago 76)
UH's Elvin Hayes became the only player in tournament history to collect more than 40 points and 25 rebounds in the same game when he garnered 49 points and 27 rebounds. Hayes led the tournament in scoring and rebounding by wide margins for the fourth-place Cougars (31-2), but he wasn't named to the all-tournament team.
45. 1998 Midwest Regional First Round (Valparaiso 70, Mississippi 69)
Valpo's Jamie Sykes, an outfield prospect late for spring training with the Arizona Diamondbacks, inbounded from the opposite baseline with 2.5 seconds remaining. He hurled a baseball pass that Bill Jenkins leaped to catch. Jenkins delivered a touch pass to guard Bryce Drew on the right wing, and the son of coach Homer Drew drilled a game-winning three-pointer for the Crusaders (23-10).
46. 1970 Mideast Regional Final (Jacksonville 106, Kentucky 100)
JU's Artis Gilmore collected 24 points and 20 rebounds to help eliminate the nation's top-ranked team. Teammate Rex Morgan contributed 28 points while outshining UK's backcourt.
47. 1951 East Regional First Round (Illinois 79, Columbia 71)
Columbia, undefeated entering the tourney (21-0), blew a seven-point, halftime lead and lost to eventual national third-place finisher Illinois (22-5). The Lions' John Azary was outscored by the Illini's Don Sunderlage (25-13) in a battle of All-American candidates.
48. 1965 National Third-Place Game (Princeton 118, Wichita 82)
Princeton's Bill Bradley set the mark for most points in a single Final Four game with a school-record 58. He scored 39 of them in the second half of the consolation contest.
49. 1971 Mideast Regional Semifinals (Ohio State 60, Marquette 59)
Marquette, undefeated entering the tourney (26-0), lost against Ohio State (20-6) after the Warriors' playmaker, unanimous first-team All-America Dean "The Dream" Meminger, fouled out with five minutes remaining. Teammate Allie McGuire, the coach's son, committed a costly turnover in the closing seconds before Buckeyes guard Allan Hornyak converted a pair of crucial free throws to end Marquette's 39-game winning streak.
50. 2005 Midwest Regional Final (Illinois 90, Arizona 89 in OT)
Illini (37-2) overcame a 14-point deficit with just over three minutes remaining in regulation and nine-point deficit in the last 1 1/2 minutes before defeating Arizona (30-7) in an extra session.
51. 1999 West Regional First Round (Weber State 76, North Carolina 74)
No. 3 seed North Carolina (24-10) lost its playoff opener for the first time in 19 years when the Tar Heels succumbed against No. 14 Weber State (25-8). Junior college transfer Harold Arceneaux contributed five three-pointers en route to 36 points for the Wildcats. His output matched the highest ever in the playoffs against Carolina.
52. 1965 Championship Game (UCLA 91, Michigan 80)
UCLA's Gail Goodrich became the only guard to score more than 35 points in an NCAA final, erupting for 42 points on 12 of 22 field-goal shooting and 18 of 20 free-throw shooting. His free throws made and attempted remain championship game records.
53. 1976 West Regional Semifinals (Arizona 114, UNLV 109 in OT)
Each team had four players score at least 18 points as UNLV (29-2), ranked third by AP and fourth by UPI entering the tourney, was eliminated by Arizona (24-9) when Jim Rappis had more assists (12) than the Rebels' entire team.
54. 1981 West Regional Second Round (Kansas State 50, Oregon State 48)
K-State (24-9) upset second-ranked Oregon State (26-2) on Rolando Blackman's 17-foot buzzer beater from the right baseline.
55. 1959 Mideast Regional Semifinals (Louisville 76, Kentucky 61)
Second-ranked Kentucky (24-3) hit less than one-third of its field-goal attempts in blowing a 15-point lead against intra-state rival Louisville (19-12).
56. 1976 Championship Game (Indiana 86, Michigan 68)
Trailing Michigan (25-7) by six points at intermission and playing without Bobby Wilkerson after the starting guard sustained a concussion early in the game, the Hoosiers shot 60% from the floor in the second half to come from behind and earn recognition as the nation's last undefeated team. Scott May, Kent Benson and Quinn Buckner collaborated for 36 of IU's first 38 second-half points.
57. 2005 West Regional Final (Louisville 93, West Virginia 85)
West Virginia set a regional final record with 18 three-pointers but still lost against Louisville.
58. 1977 West Regional Semifinals (Idaho State 76, UCLA 75)
The visiting Bruins, ranked fourth by UPI entering the tourney, finished with a 24-5 record when guards Roy Hamilton and Brad Holland combined to hit just 8 of 24 field-goal attempts. Idaho State (25-5), prevailing despite shooting a modest 40.6% from the floor, received 27 points and 12 rebounds from center Steve Hayes.
59. 1981 Midwest Regional Second Round (Kansas 88, Arizona State 71)
Third-ranked Arizona State (24-4), featuring four upperclassmen who combined for a total of more than 35 seasons in the NBA (guards Fat Lever and Byron Scott, center Alton Lister and forward Sam Williams), was clobbered by Kansas (24-8) when Tony Guy poured in 36 points for the Jayhawks. The Sun Devils fell behind by 16 points at intermission.
60. 1979 Midwest Regional Final (Indiana State 73, Arkansas 71)
Larry Bird-led Indiana State became the only school to reach the Final Four in its one and only NCAA Tournament appearance in the 20th Century when the Sycamores' Bob Heaton shifted the ball from his normal right hand to his left for a short shot that bounced twice on the rim before going down.
61. 1971 West Regional Final (UCLA 57, Long Beach State 55)
The closest result for UCLA (29-1) during the Bruins' 38-game playoff winning streak from 1967 through 1973 came when they had to erase an 11-point deficit despite 29% field-goal shooting to edge Jerry Tarkanian-coached Long Beach State (24-5).
62. 1977 National Semifinals (North Carolina 84, UNLV 83)
Mike O'Koren became the first freshman to score more than 30 points in a national semifinal or championship game when the UNC forward tallied 31. O'Koren and his teammates enjoyed a 28-5 edge over the Rebels in free-throw attempts.
63. 1978 Midwest Regional Semifinals (DePaul 90, Louisville 89)
DePaul center Dave Corzine tallied 46 points in double overtime game to become the only individual to score at least 45 in the NCAA playoffs and never be an NCAA first- or second-team consensus All-American or Final Four Most Outstanding Player.
64. 1959 Championship Game (California 71, West Virginia 70)
Two-time first-team All-American swingman Jerry West of West Virginia (29-5) was denied an NCAA championship ring when California (25-4) junior center Darrall Imhoff, West's teammate with the Los Angeles Lakers for four seasons in the mid-1960s, tipped in a basket with 17 seconds remaining.
65. 2006 East Regional Final (George Mason 86, Connecticut 84)
The #11 seed Patriots (27-8) advanced to the national semifinals with overtime win against UConn (30-4), which was their third victim featuring a coach who previously won an NCAA title.
66. 1979 East Regional Second Round (Penn 72, North Carolina 71)
No. 1 seed Carolina (23-6) lost its opener in the Tar Heels' home state (Raleigh, N.C.) when Penn's Tony Price poured in a game-high 25 points for the Quakers (25-7).
67. 1984 East Regional Semifinals (Indiana 72, North Carolina 68)
Many observers predicted Georgetown would meet the top-ranked Tar Heels in the national final, but they were upset by IU when national player of the year Michael Jordan was limited to 13 points, one rebound and one assist.
68. 1993 West Regional First Round (Santa Clara 64, Arizona 61)
In terms of point spreads, No. 2 seed Arizona's defeat against 20-point underdog Santa Clara (19-12), a No. 15 seed, was the biggest upset in NCAA playoff history. The Wildcats (24-4), ranked fifth by AP entering the tournament, lost although they scored 25 consecutive points in a 10-minute span bridging the first and second halves.
69. 2004 St. Louis Regional Second Round (UAB 76, Kentucky 75)
UAB (22-10), after outlasting Washington (102-100) in first round, used its frenetic pressure defense to frustrate No. 1 seed Kentucky (27-5).
70. 1956 East Regional Semifinals (Temple 65, Connecticut 59)
Guard Hal Lear manufactured 61.5% of Temple's offense by scoring 40 points. The most rebounds ever in a playoff game were grabbed by teammate Fred Cohen, who retrieved a school-record 34 missed shots.
71. 2005 Second Round (West Virginia 111, Wake Forest 105 in 2OT)
Mike Gansey scored 19 of his 29 points after the end of regulation when West Virginia (24-11) outlasted #2 seed Wake Forest (27-6) in double overtime.
72. 1975 Championship Game (UCLA 92, Kentucky 85)
Coach John Wooden's farewell resulted in his 10th NCAA title for the Bruins.
73. 1981 Midwest Regional Semifinals (Wichita State 66, Kansas 65)
Mike Jones hit two long-range baskets in the last 50 seconds for Wichita State (26-7) in the first duel between the intrastate rivals in 36 years.
74. 1980 Midwest Regional Second Round (Missouri 87, Notre Dame 84 in OT)
Mizzou (25-6) backup swingman Mark Dressler, entering the NCAA playoffs with an eight-point scoring average, erupted for 32 points on 13 of 16 field-goal shooting against the 22-6 Irish (ranked No. 9 by AP).
75. 1989 Southeast Regional First Round (South Alabama 86, Alabama 84)
In an exciting intrastate battle, South Alabama (23-9) erased a 16-point halftime deficit. Jeff Hodge and Gabe Estaba combined for 55 points to lead USA against 'Bama (23-8).
76. 1980 Mideast Regional First Round (Virginia Tech 89, Western Kentucky 85 in OT)
Virginia Tech, sparked by Dale Solomon's 10-of-13 field-goal shooting, became the only school to erase a halftime deficit of at least 18 points to win a playoff game in the 20th Century. The Hokies, Metro Conference runner-up to eventual NCAA champion Louisville, trailed WKU at intermission, 48-30, in a duel between two 21-8 teams.
77. 2023 East Regional First Round (Fairleigh Dickinson 63, Purdue 58)
Most pronounced upset in playoff annals by point spread (23 1/2), team seeding (#16 vs. #1) or any viable viewpoint.
78. 2008 Midwest Regional Second Round (Davidson 74, Georgetown 70)
Stephen Curry, a son of former NBA standout Dell Curry, poured in 25 of his 30 points in the second half as Davidson (29-7) erased a double-digit deficit to upset the Hoyas (28-6).
79. 2016 West Regional Second Round (Texas A&M 92, Northern Iowa 88 in 2OT)
In perhaps the most remarkable comeback in tourney history, A&M rallied from 12 points down with 44 seconds remaining in regulation and 10 down with less than 30 seconds. UNI committed four turnovers in that 44-second span.
80. 2024 South Regional First Round (Colorado 102, Florida 100)
First Four survivor CU squandered a 13-point lead with 4 1/2 minutes remaining but guard KJ Simpson sank a right baseline jumper that bounced around the rim and in with 1.7 seconds remaining. Guard Walter Clayton Jr. scored UF's final 16 points to spearhead the Gators' furious rally.
81. 1978 West Regional First Round (Cal State Fullerton 90, New Mexico 85)
Cal State Fullerton (23-9) had four players score from 18 to 23 points and made 62.1% of its field-goal attempts to erase a six-point, halftime deficit and upend fourth-ranked New Mexico. Future Lakers standout Michael Cooper had an off-game for the Lobos (24-4), sinking just six of 15 field-goal attempts.
82. 1986 Midwest Regional First Round (UALR 90, Notre Dame 83)
UALR, a 17 1/2-point underdog, shocked No. 3 seed Notre Dame by shooting 62.3% from the floor. Pete Meyers scored 29 points in 29 minutes for the Trojans.
83. 1984 East Regional First Round (Virginia Commonwealth 70, Northeastern 69)
Jim Calhoun-coached Northeastern hit 75% of its field-goal attempts (33 of 44), including 15-of-17 by freshman Reggie Lewis, but still bowed to VCU.
84. 2018 South Regional Second Round (Nevada 75, Cincinnati 73)
Nevada erased a 22-point deficit in final 11 minutes, taking its first lead with nine seconds remaining. The comeback came only two days after the Wolf Pack rallied from 14 points down to topple Texas.
85. 1967 Midwest Regional Semifinals (SMU 83, Louisville 81)
Charles Beasley was limited to nine points, but fellow SWC first-team selection Denny Holman took up the slack with 30 points, including a decisive basket with three seconds remaining, to spark SMU (20-6) past second-ranked Louisville (23-5).
86. 1991 East Regional First Round (Richmond 73, Syracuse 69)
No. 15 seed UR stunned No. 2 seed Cuse to help Spiders coach Dick Tarrant enhance his reputation as a giant killer.
87. 2002 West Regional Second Round (UCLA 105, Cincinnati 101 in 2OT)
The Bruins, powered by Dan Gadzuric's career-high 26 points and game-high 13 rebounds, overcame an 11-point deficit midway through the second half. The two teams combined for an NCAA playoff-record 66 three-point field-goal attempts - UCLA (36) and UC (30).
Nostalgia 87: 1 to 87 Ranking of Greatest Players in NCAA Tourney History
"It is not the critic who counts, not the one who points out how the strong man stumbled or how the doer of deeds might have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred with sweat and dust and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, if he wins, knows the triumphs of high achievement; and who, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat." - Theodore Roosevelt
For those who eat, sleep and breathe the NCAA Tournament although it came after Teddy Roosevelt's presidency, the sensory overload of the playoffs is a banquet and every year is a feast. Nourishing your appetite for assessing postseason play, the following questions linger although the 82nd event was cancelled six years ago: Who were the most pristine postseason players in the nation's premier multiple-week sports spectacle? Who always seemed hot and who was not? Who was a stud instead of a dud? Will Iona transfer Walter Clayton Jr. eventually be ranked after Florida guard was named Final Four MOP in 2025?
It's a cop-out to simply accept the instant visibility of one-name icons such as Magic, Bird and Michael and cite them among the greatest players in tourney history. The prolific pro careers of Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, a trio combining to win nine consecutive NBA Most Valuable Player awards from 1983-84 through 1991-92 (three apiece), somewhat distorts their impact in college postseason play. Notwithstanding the TV appeal of the Bird/Magic championship game match-up in 1979 and Jordan's game-winning basket as a freshman in the 1982 national final against Georgetown, a closer examination of the facts than what was exhibited in 75th-anniversary polls several years ago by ESPN, Sports Illustrated and Sporting News shows that other collegians were more efficient more often in the NCAA Tournament. Consider the following tourney trauma for Johnson (ESPN 5/SN 7/SI 8), Bird (SI 5/ESPN 15/SN 24) and Jordan (SN 32/ESPN 57/SI 70) before accepting as gospel they were among the premier performers in NCAA playoff play:
Johnson shot a meager 27.8% from the floor (10-of-36) in three 1978 tourney games as a freshman for Michigan State before leading the Spartans to the NCAA title the next year. He had more turnovers (six) than assists (five) in the over-hyped 1979 final, a mediocre contest paling in comparison to the last eight finals of the 1980s when seven of them were decided by an average of two points. Johnson outscored and outrebounded teammate Greg Kelser in just one of eight playoff games they played together. Kelser simply contributed more than Magic to the Spartans' cause in NCAA tourney competition.
Bird boosted Indiana State to the 1979 final in his lone NCAA tourney, but put the 'oops' in hoops by committing a Final Four-record 17 turnovers. He hit just 7-of-21 field-goal attempts and had three times as many turnovers (six) as assists (two) against Michigan State in the championship game, which was essentially the equivalent of a boring Super Bowl failing to live up to hype.
Jordan's NBA playoff scoring average with the Chicago Bulls more than doubled the NCAA Tournament scoring average he compiled for North Carolina. Jordan averaged 16.5 points per NCAA playoff game with the Tar Heels, scoring 20 or more in just two of 10 postseason games from 1982 through 1984. His Airness scored fewer than 18 points in two of the four playoff contests he led Carolina in scoring. Most people don't remember his inauspicious playoff debut when he collected six points, one rebound, no assists and no steals in 37 minutes of a 52-50 opening-round victory against James Madison in the East Regional. And Jordan's final NCAA Tournament appearance before he left school early for the NBA was nothing to write home about, either. The college player of the year was restricted to six points in the first 35 minutes of his collegiate swan song in the East Regional semifinals against Indiana, finishing with 13 points, one rebound, one assist and one steal in 26 foul-plagued minutes when the top-ranked Tar Heels were eliminated (72-68). He's atop Vince Carter and Antawn Jamison, but a total of 25 different Carolina players - including Ranzino Smith with modest career average of 6.5 ppg - posted NCAA playoff scoring highs matching or greater than Jordan's best of 27.
Duke's Christian Laettner, the all-time playoff scoring leader with 407 points from 1989 through 1992, tallied fewer than 15 points in six of his first seven tournament games. Just four of the top 20 in career scoring in the NCAA playoffs accumulated more than 10 points in every tourney game they participated - UCLA's Lew Alcindor (1967-68-69), Princeton's Bill Bradley (1963-64-65), Arizona's Sean Elliott (1986-87-88-89) and Cincinnati's Oscar Robertson (1958-59-60).
Is an Amber Alert necessary for Len Chappell, Adrian Dantley, Tom Gola, Alex Groza, David "Big Daddy" Lattin, Jim McDaniels, Jeff Mullins, Cazzie Russell, Dennis Scott, Rony Seikaly, etc., etc., etc.? How could anyone forget the footprint (size-22) Bob Lanier left on postseason play? The NCAA, exhibiting all the expertise of voters claiming they can't provide identification, unveiled a stunning error-prone list several years ago of foremost NCAA Tournament players over the first 75 years. Were relatives of guards Shelvin Mack and Keith Smart on the nominating panel for such amateurish choices? Do backcourters B.J. Armstrong, Terry Dehere, Allen Iverson, Wally Jones, Brevin Knight, Bo Lamar, Mark Macon, Lawrence Moten, Anthony Peeler and Mitch Richmond mean anything to the misinformed? The NCAA, apparently incapable of discerning what comprises a "moment" rather than numerous playoff-pressure games or putting too much stock in input from self-serving media, probably needs to go back to focusing on event cancellation insurance premiums and vital task of shedding Indian nicknames from as many schools as possible.
In former POTUS Obama's State of the Union addresses, the basketball buff probably should have cared more about mental inequality in hoopdom rather than income inequality in his "I-have-a-phone-and-pen" and willing-accomplices-in-the-media kingdom. An NCAA probe similar to IRS targeting needs to be conducted stemming from the most glaring omission among impact players failing to be acknowledged. Incredibly, the shunned included Bob Pettit, who averaged 30.5 points in six outings with LSU in 1953 and 1954. Pettit is perhaps the most consistent big scorer in NCAA playoff annals with a single-digit differential between his high game (36 points) and low contest (27).
The Chris Webber Award for playoff competition brain lock goes to SN for fanciful assertion citing Tom Thacker, a nice versatile player for Cincinnati teams participating in three consecutive NCAA championship contests, as #15 on its all-time list. Thacker committed a toxic total of 13 turnovers (with only four assists) in two Final Four games in 1963 after scoring only two points in 1962 national semifinals and shooting a paltry 8-of-28 from the floor at 1961 Final Four. UCLA by itself has had at least 15 more influential tourney players than Thacker, who was unranked by ESPN and SI. The only logical answer for this absurdity is a Cincinnati connection of some sort among the voting delegation or the fishy selection is a byproduct for why SN's print edition went belly up.
Michigan State All-American Draymond Green posted back-to-back triple doubles in 2011 and 2012 but still doesn't rank among the all-time best players in tourney history. If some of these historical facts aroused your curiosity, here is additional tournament insight that should fuel debates concerning who should be on college basketball's Mount Rushmore after excelling the most as NCAA playoff performers (minimum of six tourney games):
1. Lew Alcindor, C, UCLA
The only individual selected the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player three times averaged 25.7 points and 18.8 rebounds and shot 64.1% from the floor in six Final Four games from 1967 through 1969. Alcindor, who later changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, is the only player to couple three unanimous first-team All-American seasons with three NCAA titles. Of the 10 different individuals to average more than 23 points per game for a national champion a total of 12 times, Alcindor achieved the feat all three of his seasons with the Bruins. He is also the only player to hit better than 70% of his field-goal attempts in two NCAA title games. UCLA '67, the first varsity season for Alcindor, set the record for largest average margin of victory for a champion when the Bruins started a dazzling streak of 10 consecutive Final Four appearances. They won their 12 NCAA playoff games with Alcindor manning the middle by an average margin of 21.5 points. The three Alcindor-led UCLA teams rank among the seven NCAA champions with average margins of victory in a tournament of more than 19 points per game. He led the Bruins in scoring in 10 of 12 playoff contests. It's no wonder a perceptive scribe wrote that the acronym NCAA took on a new meaning during the Alcindor Era - "No Chance Against Alcindor."
2. Bill Walton, C, UCLA
Averaged 28.8 points and 17.8 rebounds per game at the Final Four in 1972 and 1973. His championship game-record 44 points against Memphis State in 1973 when he hit 21-of-22 field-goal attempts will probably never be duplicated. On the other hand, he had one playoff game of fewer than 10 points each of the three seasons he was national player of the year.
3. Jerry West, G-F, West Virginia
He is the only player to score at least 25 points in eight consecutive tournament games (all of which he led in scoring). West is also the only player to rank among the top five in scoring average in both the NCAA Tournament (30.6 points per game) and NBA playoffs (29.1 ppg). He was denied a championship ring with West Virginia in his only Final Four appearance in 1959 when Cal center Darral Imhoff, a player who would become an Olympic and NBA teammate, tipped in a decisive basket in the closing seconds.
4. Elvin Hayes, F, Houston
He is the only player to lead a tournament in scoring by more than 60 points. Lew Alcindor and his UCLA teammates helped hold Hayes to 10 points in 1968 national semifinals, but the Big E finished with 167 points in five games with Houston that year in finishing with the highest-ever scoring average for a Final Four player (36.8 ppg). Alcindor was runner-up with 103 points in four contests. Hayes became the only player in tournament history to collect more than 40 points and 25 rebounds in the same game when he amassed 49 points and 27 rebounds in a 94-76 decision over Loyola of Chicago in first round of 1968 Midwest Regional. He holds the records for most rebounds in a playoff series (97 in five games as a senior in 1968) and career (222 in 13 games). Hayes had five games with at least 24 rebounds, including the first three playoff games in 1968, before being held to five in a 101-69 national semifinal loss against UCLA. He also holds the record for most playoff field goals in a career with 152.
5. Gail Goodrich, G, UCLA
Despite standing at least three inches shorter than both standout opponents, the 6-1 lefthander outscored consensus second-team All-American Jeff Mullins of Duke, 27-22, in 1964 final and unanimous first-team All-American Cazzie Russell of Michigan, 42-28, in 1965 final. Goodrich, the only guard to score more than 35 points in an NCAA final, averaged 35 points per game for UCLA in 1965 tourney. He was also the Bruins' leading scorer the previous year (21.5-point average as a junior) when he became the shortest undergraduate to average more than 20 points per game for an NCAA titlist. Goodrich and Walt Hazzard (18.6 ppg) represent the only backcourt duo to be the top two scorers on the season for an NCAA championship team. Of the eight times a school successfully defended its major college championship, Goodrich is the only guard to be the team's leading scorer in back-to-back years. The Bruins won 58 of 60 games in those two championship seasons although they didn't have a regular taller than 6-7.
6. Bill Bradley, F, Princeton
The former U.S. Senator (D-N.J.) and 2000 presidential candidate holds the record for most points in a single Final Four game (58 against Wichita State in 1965 national third-place game). He scored 39 points in the second half of the consolation game. The Rhodes Scholar was the only player to have a double-digit season scoring average (30.5 points per game) for Princeton's Final Four team. Bradley also holds the career playoff record for highest free-throw percentage (minimum of 50 attempts). He was 89 of 96 from the foul line (90.6%) from 1963 through 1965. In five of his nine playoff games, Bradley made at least 10 free throws while missing no more than one attempt from the charity stripe. He made 16 of 16 free throws against St. Joseph's in first round of 1963 East Regional and 13 of 13 foul shots against Providence in 1965 East Regional final to become the only player to twice convert more than 12 free throws without a miss in playoff games. He was the game-high scorer in eight of nine tourney contests.
7. Bill Russell, C, San Francisco
Grabbed an incredible 50 rebounds for USF at 1956 Final Four (23 against SMU in semifinals and 27 against Iowa in championship game). No other player has retrieved more than 41 missed shots in two Final Four games or more than 21 in the final. Averaged 23.2 points and 18.3 rebounds in winning all nine NCAA tourney contests.
8. Oscar Robertson, G-F, Cincinnati
Averaged at least 29 points and 10 rebounds per game each of his three years in the tourney with the Bearcats. The Big O isn't picked higher because California restricted him to a total of 37 points in two Final Four games (1959 and 1960). He hit just nine of 32 from the floor against the Bears. Robertson, the nation's leading scorer all three of his varsity seasons with averages of more than 32 points per game, is the only team-leading scorer to twice go more than 13 points below his season scoring average when his school lost in the national semifinals or final. He is the only Final Four participant to twice register a season scoring average in excess of 30 ppg (32.6 in 1958-59 and 33.7 in 1959-60).
9. Sean Elliott, F, Arizona
Of the more than 60 different players to score at least 2,500 points and/or rank among the top 25 in career scoring average, Elliott is the only one to have a winning NCAA playoff record in his career plus post higher scoring, rebounding and field-goal shooting playoff averages than he compiled in the regular season. Elliott scored at least 17 points in all 10 of his NCAA playoff games with the Wildcats from 1986 through 1989.
10. Christian Laettner, F, Duke
Only player to start in four Final Fours became the tourney's all-time leading scorer (407 points) in helping the Blue Devils compile a 21-2 playoff mark in his career. Laettner's highest-scoring game was 31 against Kentucky in a 104-103 victory in 1992 East Regional final. Laettner capped a flawless offensive performance, hitting all 10 of his field-goal attempts and all 10 of his free throws against the Wildcats, by scoring Duke's last eight points in overtime, including a stunning 18-foot turnaround jumper at the buzzer after catching a pass from the baseline on the opposite end of the court. He also hit what probably was an even more difficult off-balance, last-second shot to give Duke a 79-78 win against Connecticut in 1990 East Regional final. Tallied fewer than 15 points in six of his first seven playoff contests.
11. Bob Pettit, F-C, Louisiana State
Of the more than 40 different players to score more than 225 points in the NCAA playoffs and/or average over 25 points per tournament game (minimum of six games), he is the only one to score more than 22 points in every postseason contest (six games with LSU in 1953 and 1954). He was perhaps the most consistent big scorer in NCAA Tournament history with a single-digit differential between his high game (36 points) and his low game (27). Pettit wasn't named to the 1953 All-Tournament team despite leading the Tigers to the Final Four and averaging 30.5 points per game in four NCAA playoff contests. He averaged the same number of points in two tourney games the next year.
12. Bobby Hurley, G, Duke
The 6-0 guard was selected Most Outstanding Player at the 1992 Final Four. He was the shortest player to earn the award since 5-11 Hal Lear helped Temple to a national third-place finish in 1956. The only Final Four Most Outstanding Player shorter than Hurley from a championship team was 5-11 Kenny Sailors of Wyoming in 1943. Hurley shot a mediocre 41% from the floor in his college career, but he was the Blue Devils' linchpin with his playmaking and intangible contributions. He holds the career record for most playoff assists (145) and three-pointers (42) although his bid to become the first player to start four consecutive NCAA finals was thwarted when California upset Duke in the second round of 1993 Midwest Regional despite Hurley's career-high 32 points. After averaging just 5.4 points per game in his first eight NCAA Tournament contests, he averaged 22.8 in his last five playoff outings.
13. Steve Alford, G, Indiana
Averaged 21.3 points in 10 NCAA Tournament games in 1984, 1986 and 1987 (8-2 record). He led the Hoosiers in scoring in seven of the contests.
14. Larry Johnson, F, UNLV
Juco jewel averaged 20.2 points and 11.5 rebounds in 11 games in 1990 and 1991 (10-1 record).
15. Miles Simon, G, Arizona
Averaged 18.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 14 games from 1995 through 1998 (11-3 record). He was game-high scorer in his last three playoff contests.
16. Patrick Ewing, C, Georgetown
The Hoyas compiled a glittering 15-3 playoff record from 1982 through 1985 during his four-year reign of terror although he never scored as many as 25 points in a tournament game.
17. David "Big Daddy" Lattin, C, Texas Western
Averaged 19.4 ppg and 10.6 rpg in eight games in 1966 and 1967 (7-1 record). He averaged 21 points and 13 rebounds in first three games of 1966 playoffs, powering champion-to-be Miners to Final Four. Playoff scoring average was five points higher than his regular-season mark.
18. Clyde Lovellette, C, Kansas
The only individual to lead the nation in scoring average in the same season he played for a team reaching the NCAA Tournament championship game. Averaging 35.3 points per game in the 1952 tourney, he was the first player to score more than 30 points in a Final Four contest and the only player to crack the 30-point plateau in the national semifinals and final in the same season.
19. Dennis Scott, G-F, Georgia Tech
Averaged 25.9 ppg and 5.9 rpg in eight playoff games from 1988 through 1990 (5-3 record). He was game-high scorer in four of five contests in 1990 when the Yellow Jackets reached the Final Four.
20. David Thompson, F, North Carolina State
The last player to score the most points in a single game of a tournament and play for a championship team (40 against Providence in 1974 East Regional semifinals). He is the only undergraduate non-center to average more than 23 ppg for a national champion.
21. Austin Carr, G, Notre Dame
After scoring only six points in his first tournament game as a sophomore (re-injured against Miami of Ohio in 1969), Carr averaged 47.2 points in his last six playoff contests to finish with a tourney record 41.3-point mark. However, the Irish won only two of the seven games.
22. David Robinson, C, Navy
Averaged 28.6 points and 12.3 rebounds in seven games from 1985 through 1987 (4-3 record). He was game-high scorer in four playoff contests, including a school-record 50 points against Michigan in his final appearance.
23. Bob Kurland, C, Oklahoma A&M
Only player to score more than half of a championship team's points in a single NCAA Tournament (total of 72 accounted for 51.8% of the Aggies' output in three playoff games in 1946).
24. Jerry Lucas, C, Ohio State
Two-time NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player averaged 22.8 ppg and 12 rpg at the Final Four in 1960 and 1961. But he was limited to nine points in both of his tourney openers when earning national player of the year awards in 1961 and 1962.
25. Sean May, F-C, North Carolina
Final Four Most Outstanding Player for 2005 champion averaged 19.9 points and 9.9 rebounds in eight NCAA Tournament games in 2004 and 2005 (7-1 record).
26. Alex Groza, C, Kentucky
Two-time Final Four Most Outstanding Player is only individual appearing at a minimum of two Final Fours (1948 and 1949) and be the game-high scorer in every Final Four contest he participated.
27. Len Chappell, F-C, Wake Forest
Averaged 27.6 ppg and 17.1 rpg in eight games in 1961 and 1962 (6-2 record). He was the Demon Deacons' leading scorer in all eight contests.
28. Bob Lanier, C, St. Bonaventure
Averaged 25.2 points and 14.2 rebounds in six games in 1968 and 1970 (4-2 record; missed 1970 Final Four after tearing a knee ligament in East Regional final).
29. Drew Timme, F-C, Gonzaga
Averaged 23.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 13 games from 2021 through 2023 (10-3). Scored more than 20 points in tourney-record 10 contests.
30. Corliss Williamson, F, Arkansas
Two-time All-NCAA Tournament selection averaged 20.2 points and 7.4 rebounds while shooting 59.4% from the floor in 15 games from 1993 through 1995 (13-2 record).
31. Al Wood, F, North Carolina
Averaged 20.1 points and 8.3 rebounds in eight games from 1978 through 1981 (4-4 record). He was the Tar Heels' leading scorer in six of those playoff contests.
32. Tim Duncan, C, Wake Forest
Averaged 17.6 points, 15 rebounds and 4.5 blocked shots in 11 games from 1994 through 1997 (7-4 record).
33. Glen Rice, F, Michigan
Averaged 23.7 points and 6.3 rebounds in 13 games from 1986 through 1989 (10-3 record). As a senior, he was the Wolverines' leading scorer in all six contests during their championship run when setting a single-tourney record with 184 points.
34. Danny Manning, F, Kansas
The only player to score more than 62% of his team's points in an NCAA Tournament game (42 in the Jayhawks' 67-63 victory against Southwest Missouri State in second round of 1987 Southeast Regional). He was the game-high scorer in all six of their contests en route to the 1988 national title as a senior. Averaged 20.5 points and 7.3 rebounds in 16 playoff games (13-3 record).
35. Bob Houbregs, F-C, Washington
Averaged 27.4 ppg in seven games in 1951 and 1953 (5-2 record). He averaged nearly nine more points per contest in postseason play than during the regular season.
36. Tom Gola, F, La Salle
The only individual to earn NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player and NIT Most Valuable Player awards in his career. He averaged 22 ppg in 10 NCAA playoff games in 1954 and 1955 (9-1 record).
37. Rumeal Robinson, G, Michigan
Averaged 17.5 points and 8.5 assists in 11 games from 1988 through 1990 (9-2 record).
38. Lawrence Moten, G, Syracuse
Averaged 23.3 points and 4.7 rebounds in seven games in 1992, 1994 and 1995 (4-3 record).
39. Ray Allen, G, Connecticut
Averaged 19.5 points and 7 rebounds in 10 playoff games from 1994 through 1996 (7-3 record).
40. Isiah Thomas, G, Indiana
Averaged 19.7 points and 7.9 assists in seven games in 1980 and 1981 (6-1 record).
41. Greg "Bo" Kimble, F-G, Loyola Marymount
Averaged 29.1 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.3 steals in seven games from 1988 through 1990 (4-3 record). Scored at least 37 points for LMU in three of his last four playoff outings.
42. Randy Foye, G, Villanova
Averaged 22.1 points and 6.4 rebounds in seven games in 2005 and 2006 (5-2 record). He scored at least 24 points in four contests en route to posting 7.5 ppg more in tourney competition than regular-season play.
43. B.J. Armstrong, G, Iowa
Averaged 19.8 points and 4.9 assists in nine games from 1987 through 1989 (6-3 record; did not play in 1986 playoffs). He averaged seven more points per contest in postseason than during the regular season.
44. Jim McDaniels, C, Western Kentucky
Averaged 29.3 points and 12.2 rebounds in six games in 1970 and 1971 (4-2 record). He was WKU's leading scorer in five of the six playoff contests.
45. Brevin Knight, G, Stanford
Averaged 20 points, 4.6 rebounds and 6.6 assists in seven games from 1995 through 1997 (4-3 record).
46. Rony Seikaly, C, Syracuse
Averaged 18.8 ppg, 8.7 rpg and 2.8 bpg in 12 games from 1985 through 1988 (8-4 record). He averaged nearly seven more points per contest in postseason play than during the regular season.
47. Jeff Mullins, F, Duke
Averaged 25 ppg and 7.9 rpg in the playoffs for two Final Four teams in 1963 and 1964 (6-2 record). He scored more than 20 points in seven of eight tourney contests.
48. Mark Macon, G, Temple
Averaged 23.3 points and 5.1 rebounds in nine games in 1988, 1990 and 1991 (6-3 record.)
49. Mike Maloy, C, Davidson
Averaged 22.3 ppg and 12.4 rpg in seven games from 1968 through 1970 (4-3 record).
50. Adrian Dantley, F, Notre Dame
Averaged 25.4 points and 8.3 rebounds in eight games from 1974 through 1976 (4-4 record). Averaged 29.8 points in his last six playoff contests.
51. Dan Issel, C, Kentucky
Averaged 29.3 ppg and 11.3 rpg in splitting six contests from 1968 through 1970. He had at least 36 points in half of the tourney games.
52. Allen Iverson, G, Georgetown
Averaged 23.9 points and 4 rebounds in seven games in 1995 and 1996 (5-2 record). He was the Hoyas' leading scorer in all seven contests.
53. Ollie Johnson, C, San Francisco
Averaged 25.8 points and 16.2 rebounds in six games from 1963 through 1965 (3-3 record). Averaged six points per game higher in playoffs than regular season.
54. Paul Hogue, C, Cincinnati
Averaged 19 points and 16 rebounds in six Final Four games from 1960 through 1962. Posted higher averages (18.4 ppg and 13.3 rpg) in 12 NCAA Tournament contests (11-1 record) than his respective career marks.
55. Jameer Nelson Sr., G, St. Joseph's
Averaged 22.4 points, 6 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 2.3 steals in seven games in 2001, 2003 and 2004 (4-3 record). He scored at least 24 points in four of his last five playoff contests.
56. Richard Hamilton, G-F, Connecticut
Averaged 23.4 points and 4.7 rebounds in 10 games in 1998 and 1999 (9-1 record). He led UConn in scoring in nine of the 10 contests.
57. Chuck Person, F, Auburn
Averaged 20.3 points and 9 rebounds in eight games from 1984 through 1986 (5-3 record). Scored at least 20 points in six of his last seven playoff contests.
58. Don Schlundt, C, Indiana
Averaged 27 points in six games in 1953 and 1954 (5-1 record). He was the Hoosiers' leading scorer in five of the playoff contests.
59. Cazzie Russell, G, Michigan
Averaged at least 24 ppg each of his three years in the tourney (5-3 record). Leading scorer for third-place team in 1964 NCAA playoffs and 1965 national runner-up.
60. Jamal Mashburn, F, Kentucky
Averaged 21.4 points and 8 rebounds in nine games in 1992 and 1993 (7-2 record). He was the Wildcats' leading scorer in five consecutive playoff contests.
61. Les Hunter, C, Loyola of Chicago
Averaged 18.9 points and 13.3 rebounds in eight games in 1963 and 1964 (7-1 record).
62. Henry Finkel, C, Dayton
Averaged 27.8 points and 13.8 rebounds in six games in 1965 and 1966 (3-3 record). He was game-high scorer in five of the six contests.
63. Johnny Green, F-C, Michigan State
Averaged 16.2 points and 19.7 rebounds in six games in 1957 and 1959 (3-3 record). He was the leading rebounder in all four contests as a sophomore in 1957 when the Spartans reached the Final Four.
64. Anthony Peeler, G, Missouri
Averaged 24.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 6.3 assists in six games in 1989, 1990 and 1992 (3-3 record). His scoring average was almost eight points higher in the postseason than regular season.
65. Dwight "Bo" Lamar, G, Southwestern Louisiana
Averaged 29.2 points in six Division I Tournament games in 1972 and 1973 (3-3 record). Supplied game-high point total in all six contests, including 35 plus a tourney-high 11 assists in a 112-101 victory against Marshall as the Ragin' Cajuns scored the most points in tourney history for a school in its playoff debut.
66. Greg Kelser, F, Michigan State
Leading scorer and rebounder as a senior for 1979 NCAA titlist averaged 24 ppg and 11.3 rpg in eight playoff contests (7-1 record). His scoring average was almost seven points higher in the postseason than regular season. Celebrated teammate Magic Johnson outscored and outrebounded Kelser only once in their eight postseason outings together.
67. Barry Kramer, F, New York University
Averaged 25.2 points and 9.3 rebounds in six games in 1962 and 1963 (3-3 record).
68. Nick Collison, F, Kansas
Leading scorer and rebounder as senior for 2003 NCAA Tournament runner-up (30-8 record) and second-leading scorer and rebounder for 2002 Final Four team (33-4). Averaged 16.7 points and 11.3 rebounds in 16 games (12-4 record).
69. Juan Dixon, G, Maryland
After struggling as a redshirt freshman, Dixon averaged 21.2 points in his last 13 games from 2000 through 2002. The Terrapins won 10 of the last 11 of those playoff contests when he was the leading scorer for back-to-back Final Four teams.
70. Mitch Richmond, G-F, Kansas State
J.C. recruit averaged 23.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists in six games in 1987 and 1988 (4-2 record).
71. George Thompson, F, Marquette
Averaged 23.2 points and 5.7 rebounds in six games in 1968 and 1969 (4-2 record). He was the Warriors' leading scorer in five of the six playoff contests.
72. John Wallace, F, Syracuse
Averaged 20.3 points and 8.8 rebounds in 11 games from 1994 through 1996 (8-3 record). Leading scorer and rebounder for Syracuse's national runner-up as a senior was the top point producer for the Orangemen in his last eight playoff contests.
73. Jimmy Collins, G, New Mexico State
Averaged 19.9 points and 3.8 rebounds in 11 games from 1968 through 1970 (7-4 record). He at least shared the Aggies' team-high scoring output in all 11 contests.
74. Tony Price, F, Penn
Averaged 21.9 ppg and 9 rpg in eight games in 1978 and 1979 (5-3 record). He was the Quakers' leading scorer in all six contests when they finished fourth in the nation in 1979. Price's playoff scoring average was 6.5 points higher than his regular-season mark.
75. Wally Jones, G, Villanova
Two-time All-East Regional selection averaged 22.5 ppg and 5.5 rpg in six games in 1962 and 1964 (4-2 record). He scored a game-high 25 points as a sophomore in a regional final loss against Wake Forest and a game-high 34 points as a senior in a 74-62 victory over Bill Bradley-led Princeton in a third-place contest. It was the only time in Bradley's nine playoff games that he wasn't the leading scorer. Jones outscored All-American Len Chappell in the Wake Forest contest.
76. Mel Counts, C, Oregon State
Averaged 23.2 points and 14.1 rebounds in nine games from 1962 through 1964 (5-4 record), averaging 25 points and 15 rebounds in two West Regional finals.
77. Terry Dehere, G, Seton Hall
Averaged 23.2 points in nine games from 1991 through 1993 (6-3 record). He paced the Pirates in scoring in all nine outings.
78. Kenny Anderson, G, Georgia Tech
The only freshman to score more than 20 points in four playoff games averaged 27 ppg in his first four outings. Averaged 25.7 points and 5 assists in seven NCAA tourney games in 1990 and 1991 (5-2 record).
79. Zach Edey, C, Purdue
Despite going scoreless in playoff debut as a freshman, two-time national POY averaged 21.5 points, 11.5 rebounds and 1.8 blocked shots in 11 playoff games from 2021 through 2024 (7-4 record).
80. Acie Earl, C, Iowa
Averaged 19.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.7 blocked shots in six games from 1991 through 1993 (3-3 record). Eight of his rejections came against NCAA champion-to-be Duke in 1992. His scoring average in the playoffs was more than four ppg higher than his mark during the regular season.
81. Kevin Pittsnogle, F, West Virginia
Averaged 17.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in seven games in 2005 and 2006 (5-2 record). In six of the contests, he scored more than his career average of 13.3 ppg.
82. Don May, F, Dayton
Averaged 20.1 points and 12.9 rebounds in eight games in 1966 and 1967 (5-3 record).
83. Rex Walters, G, Kansas
Averaged 18.6 ppg and 5.1 apg in seven contests in 1992 and 1993 (5-2 record). He was game-high scorer in the Jayhawks' first three playoff outings as a senior.
84. Stacey King, C, Oklahoma
Averaged 20.5 points 7.8 rebounds in 12 games from 1987 through 1989 (9-3 record).
85. Howard Porter, F, Villanova
Final Four Most Outstanding Player as a senior averaged 24.1 ppg and 12.4 rpg in nine playoff games from 1969 through 1971 (6-3 record.)
86. Tom Hawkins, F, Notre Dame
Averaged 23.5 ppg and 13 rpg in six contests in 1957 and 1958 (4-2 record). Grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds against eventual 1958 champion Kentucky in Mideast Regional final after scoring at least 30 points and corralling double digits in caroms in previous two outings.
87. Rodney Monroe, G, North Carolina State
Averaged 24 points and 4 rebounds in six games in 1988, 1989 and 1991 (3-3 record).
Texas Tech Lost Three Times to NCAA Tourney Titlist in Last Seven Tourneys
A total of 10 power-conference members - Boston College, Clemson, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Northwestern, Rutgers, South Carolina, Tennessee and Washington - never have incurred an NCAA tourney setback against an opponent capturing the NCAA title that season. On the other end of the spectrum, Kansas has an all-time high 13 such reversals (1940-53-57-66-71-91-93-97 and 2002-03-12-16-18). Right behind KU are Duke (12 defeats), Utah (11), North Carolina (11) and Oklahoma (10).
Texas Tech was eliminated three times by NCAA champion in the last seven tourneys. The Red Raiders, losing in back-to-back playoffs against titlists Villanova (2018) and Virginia (2019) before 2020 tourney cancellation, earned an at-large bid five seasons ago. If Arkansas had won the national title that year, the Red Raiders would have been eliminated by the eventual national champion for the third consecutive NCAA playoff. They would have joined the following chronological list of schools in rare category of bowing out in back-to-back-to-back tourneys against kingpin:
| School | Coach (Vital Players All Three Years) | Tourney Defeats vs. NCAA Champion in Three Straight Seasons |
|---|---|---|
| New Mexico State | Lou Henson (Jimmy Collins/Sam Lacey) | Lost to UCLA in 1968 (Regional Semifinal), 1969 (Regional Semifinal) and 1970 (National Semifinal) |
| Long Beach State | Jerry Tarkanian (no player in regular rotation all three seasons) | Lost to UCLA in 1970 (Regional Semifinal), 1971 (Regional Final) and 1972 (Regional Final) |
| Louisiana State | Dale Brown (Greg Cook/Ethan Martin/Willie Sims) | Lost to Michigan State in 1979 (Regional Semifinal), Louisville in 1980 (Regional Final) and Indiana in 1981 (National Semifinal) |
| Houston | Guy Lewis (Eric Dickens/Reid Gettys/Akeem Olajuwon/Michael Young) | Lost to North Carolina in 1982 (National Semifinal), North Carolina State in 1983 (National Final) and Georgetown in 1984 (National Final) |
| Duke | Mike Krzyzewski (Danny Ferry/Billy King/John Smith/Quin Snyder/Kevin Strickland) | Lost to Louisville in 1986 (National Final), Indiana in 1987 (Regional Semifinal) and Kansas in 1988 (National Semifinal) |
| Michigan | Steve Fisher (Juwan Howard/Ray Jackson/Jimmy King/Jalen Rose) | Lost to Duke in 1992 (National Final), North Carolina in 1993 (National Final) and Arkansas in 1994 (Regional Final) |
College Exam: Day #3 Regarding One-&-Only NCAA Tourney Trivia Challenge
Unless you're still busy hoarding toilet paper or cowering in fetal position waiting for next pandemic, it's your opportunity to start taking online tests for 23 quarantined days symbolic of normal time frame from Selection Sunday to Monday evening championship contest.
Emphasizing a "one-and-only" theme for a "one-and-only" event, following is Day 3 of a treasure-trove of tantalizing NCAA Tournament trivia questions from CollegeHoopedia.com tracking the only coach, conference, player or school to be linked to a distinguished or dubious achievement (click here for answers or conduct research digesting historical morsels in CollegeHoopedia's year-by-year highlights):
1. Who is the only coach to lose as many as five games in the 20th Century to teams with double-digit seeds? Hint: Four of the defeats in this category were in consecutive years.
2. Name the only historically black college and university to win multiple NCAA Tournament games in the 20th Century. Hint: It posted the first three HBCU victories in the early 1980s.
3. Who was the coach of the only University of Detroit team to win an NCAA playoff game until the Titans defeated St. John's in 1998? Hint: Detroit lost to an in-state rival in a regional semifinal four days after posting its first tournament victory. The coach of that squad is the only Seton Hall graduate to win an NCAA tourney game.
4. Name the only school with more than 30 NCAA Tournament appearances to compile a losing playoff record and never appear in the national championship game. Hint: It's the only school to finish more than 10 seasons ranked in an AP Top 10 since the wire service's first poll in 1949 to never win an NCAA Tournament title.
5. Name the only first-time entrant to be seeded better than fifth since the field expanded to at least 48 teams in 1980. Hint: The school reached the Final Four in its playoff debut.
6. Name the only conference to have three representatives at a single Final Four by winning regional finals against three members from another league. Hint: No player scored more than 20 points in the three Final Four games that year.
7. Who is the only coach with six or more NCAA playoff appearances to reach a regional final every time? Hint: His school is the only one to win back-to-back NCAA championships in its first two appearances in the tournament. His son was coach of a school in the same conference when the institution participated in the tourney for the initial time.
8. Name the only school to win at least one playoff game in a year it entered the tournament with a losing record after suffering 14 consecutive defeats during one stretch of the regular season. Hint: The school participated in the national championship game the previous year and was once runner-up in the NCAA Tournament and NIT in the same season. The school has also won just one playoff game since 1955, the season it finished with its worst overall record in a 53-year span and became only team ever to enter playoffs with a record of more than 10 games under .500.
9. Name the only school to have as many as seven different coaches compile losing NCAA playoff records. Hint: The school is more games under .500 in tournament play than any institution, but pulled off a first-round upset of a defending champion behind a star player who subsequently entered the coaching profession and compiled a 6-3 NCAA Tournament record with another university in the same state from 1989-90 through 1991-92.
10. Name the only school to advance to a regional semifinal in three consecutive campaigns despite having a double-digit seed each year. Hint: The school defeated teams from the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, C-USA, Pacific-10 and SEC during the NCAA playoffs in that span.
Answers (Day 3)
Day 2 Questions and Answers
Day 1 Questions and Answers
Long & Winding Road: 2026 Tourney Transfers Playing For > Three Schools
More than one-third of NCAA DI players have switched schools at least once. But how about nomads attending four or five major universities before competing in this year's NCAA Tournament? Incredibly, North Carolina State forward Ven-Allen Lubin is playing for his third different ACC member (previously Notre Dame and North Carolina), Gonzaga remained a Final Four contender after adding guards Tyon Grant-Foster and Adam Miller as their fourth pit stop and Villanova's Devin Askew is on roster of his fourth different power-conference member. Askew and High Point's Cam'Ron Fletcher were freshman recruits for Kentucky in 2020-21. They are among the following alphabetical list of vagabonds in this year's playoffs after attending four or five different DI schools:
| Nomadic Player | Pos. | First School | Second School | Third School | Fourth School | Fifth School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devin Askew | G | Kentucky 21 | Texas 22 | California 23-24 | Long Beach State 25 | Villanova 26 |
| Jerrell Colbert | F | Louisiana State 22 | Kansas State 24 | Southern Methodist 25 | McNeese 26 | |
| Cam'Ron Fletcher | F | Kentucky 21 | Florida State 22-24 | Xavier 25 | High Point 26 | |
| Tyon Grant-Foster | G | Kansas 21 | DePaul 22 | Grand Canyon 24-25 | Gonzaga 26 | |
| Dante Harris | G | Georgetown 21-22 | Virginia 24 | Memphis 25 | Tennessee State 26 | |
| Ven-Allen Lubin | F | Notre Dame 23 | Vanderbilt 24 | North Carolina 25 | North Carolina State 26 | |
| Adam Miller | G | Illinois 21 | Louisiana State 23 | Arizona State 24-25 | Gonzaga 26 |
Shootouts at NCAA Corral: Is Another Edey/Knecht Eruption on Horizon?
There was a quarantine for scoring outbreaks in NCAA Tournament this century until NCAA unanimous first-team All-Americans Zach Edey (Purdue) and Dalton Knecht (Tennessee) lived up to billing in 2024 Midwest Regional final. Prior to the Edey/Knecht shootout, there hadn't been an NCAA playoff game since 1998 where an individual scored at least 40 points and opponent had team-high scorer with at least 30 points.
The only playoff game in history when each squad supplied a player scoring more than 40 points was Kentucky beating Notre Dame in 1970 regional semifinals. It doesn't seem possible, but Irish All-American guard Austin Carr erupted for at least 45 points in three NCAA tourney defeats in 1970 and 1971.
A couple of relatively-obscure guards - Michigan's Garde Thompson (career scoring average of 7.2 ppg) and Fairleigh Dickinson's Elijah Allen (10 ppg) - are included among the 14 NCAA playoff shootouts - three in 1990 - when an individual scored at least 40 points while an opponent had team-high scorer with at least 30 points:
| Year (Tourney Round) | Result of Playoff Game When Player Scored At Least 40 and Foe Tallied At Least 30 |
|---|---|
| 1953 (National Third) | Washington 88 (Bob Houbregs game-high 42), Louisiana State 69 (Bob Pettit team-high 36) |
| 1961 (National Third) | St. Joseph's 127 (Jack Egan 42), Utah 120 (Billy McGill 34)**** |
| 1970 (Regional Semifinals) | Kentucky 109 (Dan Issel 44), Notre Dame 99 (Austin Carr 52) |
| 1970 (Regional Third) | Iowa 121 (Chad Calabria/John Johnson 31), Notre Dame 106 (Austin Carr 45) |
| 1971 (Regional Third) | Houston 119 (James "Poo" Welch 38), Notre Dame 106 (Austin Carr 47) |
| 1984 (Second Round) | #10 seed Dayton 89 (Roosevelt Chapman 41), #2 Oklahoma 85 (Wayman Tisdale 36) |
| 1987 (First Round) | #9 Michigan 97 (Garde Thompson 33), #8 Navy 82 (David Robinson 50) |
| 1988 (First Round) | #8 Auburn 90 (Chris Morris 36), #9 Bradley 86 (Hersey Hawkins 44) |
| 1989 (Second Round) | #5 North Carolina State 102 (Rodney Monroe 40), #4 Iowa 96 (Ed Horton 32)** |
| 1990 (First Round) | #10 Texas 100 (Travis Mays 44), #7 Georgia 88 (Alec Kessler 33) |
| 1990 (Regional Final) | #4 Georgia Tech 93 (Dennis Scott 40), #6 Minnesota 91 (Willie Burton 35) |
| 1990 (Regional Final) | #1 UNLV 131 (Stacey Augmon 33), #11 Loyola Marymount 101 (Greg "Bo" Kimble 42) |
| 1998 (First Round) | #2 Connecticut 93 (Richard "Rip" Hamilton 30), #15 Fairleigh Dickinson 85 (Elijah Allen 43) |
| 2024 (Regional Final) | #1 Purdue 72 (Zach Edey 40), #2 Tennessee 66 (Dalton Knecht 37) |
**Double Overtime.
****Four Overtimes.
In 1963, St. Joseph's became the only school to win back-to-back NCAA tourney contests despite an individual opponent erupting for at least 40 points. Seven years ago, Purdue guard Carsen Edwards became the ninth different all-in-vain scoring machine to be on the losing end despite supplying at least 40 points in a single playoff game. In addition to the five different players acknowledged in summary above, following is a list including Edwards and three other such all-for-naught individuals:
| Year (Tourney Round) | Result of NCAA Playoff Game When Player on Losing Team Scored At Least 40 Points |
|---|---|
| 1963 (First Round) | St. Joseph's 82 (Steve Courtin 21), Princeton 81 (Bill Bradley 40)* |
| 1963 (Regional Semifinals) | St. Joseph's 97 (Jim Boyle/Tom Wynne 23), West Virginia 88 (Rod Thorn 44) |
| 1976 (Regional Final) | Michigan 95 (Rickey Green 23), Missouri 88 (Willie Smith 43) |
| 2019 (Regional Final) | Virginia 80 (Kyle Guy 25), Purdue 75 (Carsen Edwards 42)* |
*Overtime.
Martelli, Odom & Willard Sons Enjoy Success in First Season at New Schools
No matter how hard Bruce Pearl tried in the closing weeks this season, he was unable to promote his Auburn successor and offspring (Steven Pearl) enough to enable them to become the 20th father/son combination to both coach in the NCAA Tournament. Meanwhile, three sons of famous coaching fathers - Phil Martelli Jr. (Virginia Commonwealth), Ryan Odom (Virginia) and Kevin Willard (Villanova) - reached the playoffs in their initial campaigns at new destinations. For the second time in eight years a season ago, Hall of Famer Rick Pitino (Louisville and St. John's) was joined in NCAA tourney by his son Richard (Minnesota and New Mexico). They are the only father-son "chip-off-the-old-block" duo in the same tourney in playoff history.
Following in the NCAA dance-party footsteps of their respective fathers, John Thompson Jr. and John III represent the only one of 19 "Like Father/Like Son" tandems to each win more than six NCAA playoff games:
Gene Bartow (Memphis State, UCLA and UAB; 14-12 record in 1973-76-77-81-82-83-84-85-86-87-90-94)/Murry Bartow (UAB and East Tennessee State; 0-4 in 1999 and 2004-09-10)
Dick Bennett (Wisconsin-Green Bay and Wisconsin; 5-6 in 1991-94-95-97-99-00)/Tony Bennett (Washington State and Virginia; 16-11 in 2007-08-12-14-15-16-17-18-19-21-23-24)
Jeff Capel Jr. (North Carolina A&T and Old Dominion; 1-3 in 1994-95-97)/Jeff Capel III (Virginia Commonwealth, Oklahoma and Pittsburgh); 6-4 in 2004-08-09-23)
Tom Davis (Boston College and Iowa; 18-11 in 1981-82-87-88-89-91-92-93-96-97-99)/Keno Davis (Drake; 0-1 in 2008)
Homer Drew (Valparaiso; 2-7 in 1996-97-98-99-00-02-04)/Scott Drew (Baylor; 21-12 in 2008-10-12-14-15-16-17-19-21-22-23-24-25) and Bryce Drew (Valparaiso, Vanderbilt and Grand Canyon; 2-8 in 2013-15-16-17-21-23-24-25)
Clarence Iba (Tulsa; 1-1 in 1955)/Gene Iba (Houston Baptist and Baylor; 0-2 in 1984 and 1988)
Hank Iba (Oklahoma State; 15-7 in 1945-46-49-51-53-54-58-65)/Moe Iba (Nebraska; 0-1 in 1986)
Bob Knight (Indiana and Texas Tech; 45-25 in 1973-75-76-78-80-81-82-83-84-86-87-88-89-90-91-92-93-94-95-96-97-98-99 and 2000-02-04-05-07)/Pat Knight (Lamar; 0-1 in 2012)
Phil Martelli Sr. (Saint Joseph's) (7-7 in 1997 and 2001-03-04-08-14-16)/Phil Martelli Jr. (Bryant) 0-1 in 2025 before making first appearance with Virginia Commonwealth in 2026
Ray Meyer (DePaul; 14-16 in 1943-53-56-59-60-65-76-78-79-80-81-82-84)/Joey Meyer (DePaul; 6-7 in 1985-86-87-88-89-91-92)
Don Monson (Idaho; 1-2 in 1981 and 1982)/Dan Monson (Gonzaga, Minnesota and Long Beach State; 3-4 in 1999 and 2005-12-24)
Bill Musselman (Minnesota and South Alabama; 1-2 in 1972 and 1997)/Eric Musselman (Nevada and Arkansas; 10-6 in 2017-18-19-21-22-23)
Dave Odom (Wake Forest and South Carolina; 10-9 in 1991-92-93-94-95-96-97-01-04)/Ryan Odom (UMBC, Utah State and Virginia Commonwealth; 1-3 in 2018-23-25 before making first appearance with Virginia in 2026)
Rick Pitino (Boston University, Providence, Kentucky, Louisville, Iona and St. John's; 55-22 in 1983-87-92-93-94-95-96-97-03-04-05-07-08-09-10-11-12-13-14-15-17-21-23-25-26)/Richard Pitino (Minnesota and New Mexico; 2-4 in 2017-19-24-25)
Eddie Sutton (Creighton, Arkansas, Kentucky and Oklahoma State; 39-26 in 1974-77-78-79-80-81-82-83-84-85-86-87-88-91-92-93-94-95-98-99 and 2000-01-02-03-04-05)/Scott Sutton (Oral Roberts; 0-3 in 2006-07-08)
John Thompson Jr. (Georgetown; 34-19 in 1975-76-79-80-81-82-83-84-85-86-87-88-89-90-91-92-94-95-96-97)/John Thompson III (Princeton and Georgetown; 9-10 in 2001-04-06-07-08-10-11-12-13-15)
Butch van Breda Kolff (Princeton; 7-5 in 1963-64-65-67)/Jan van Breda Kolff (Vanderbilt and Pepperdine; 1-2 in 1997 and 2000)
Ralph Willard (Western Kentucky and Holy Cross; 2-6 in 1993, 1994 and 2001-02-93-07)/Kevin Willard (Seton Hall and Maryland; 4-7 in 2016-17-18-19-22-23-25 before making first appearance with Villanova in 2026)
Solo Acts: Wally's World Featured Doing More Than His Fair Share of Scoring
It's a good thing Miami of Ohio wasn't on the bracket chopping block in 1999. Wally was in a hoops world of his own in NCAA Tournament lore when Wally Szczerbiak of Miami (Ohio) scored a career-high 43 points in a 59-58 victory over Washington in the first round of 1999 Midwest Regional. Never before or since has a sterling player been such a dominant solo act in NCAA playoff history. Wally World, a senior forward, accounted for an incredible 72.9% of the RedHawks' output.
While not measuring up to Szczerbiak, four previous players took out do-it-yourself kits and scored more than 60% of their team's points in a single NCAA Tournament game. Following is a summary of the first four one-man shows:
- Danny Manning supplied 62.7% of Kansas' offense by scoring 42 points in the Jayhawks' 67-63 victory against Southwest Missouri State in the second round of the 1987 Southeast Regional. Kansas lost to Georgetown in the regional semifinals, 70-57, when Manning scored 23 points.
- Jim "Bad News" Barnes accounted for 61.8% of Texas Western's offense by scoring 42 points in the Miners' 68-62 victory against Texas A&M in first round of 1964 Midwest Regional. In an abrupt turnaround, it was definitely bad news for Texas Western in its next playoff game. Barnes was whistled for three quick personal fouls in the opening minutes against Kansas State and spent almost the entire first half on the bench. He was assessed fouls No. 4 and No. 5 early in the second half and fouled out with only four points in the Miners' 64-60 defeat.
- Hal Lear manufactured 61.5% of Temple's offense by scoring 40 points in the Owls' 65-59 victory against Connecticut in 1956 East Regional semifinals. Lear tallied 14 points when Temple edged Canisius, 60-58, in regional final before the Owls bowed to Iowa, 83-76, at Final Four despite Lear's 32 points.
- David Robinson furnished 61% of Navy's offense by scoring 50 points in the Middies' 97-82 loss against Michigan in first round of 1987 East Regional.
Tennessee's Dalton Knecht (56.1%) and Purdue's Zach Edey (55.6%) accounted for more than half of their respective team outputs in 2024 Midwest Regional final shootout. But the three players thus far this century carrying the load coming closest to scoring 60% of their team's points in an NCAA tournament game included:
2013 East Regional Second Round: Khalif Wyatt tallied 31 (59.6% of Temple's output) in a 58-52 setback against Indiana
2011 Southeast Regional Second Round: Jacob Pullen poured in 38 (58.5% of Kansas State's output) in a 70-65 reversal against Wisconsin
2018 West Regional First Round: Rob Gray registered 39 (58.2% of Houston's output) in a 67-65 win against San Diego State
Stars Burn Out: Premier Programs Missing in Action From 2026 NCAA Tourney
More than a dozen of the 46 schools appearing in excess of 50 NCAA playoff games failed to participate in the tourney each year since the field expanded to at least 64 teams in 1985, including "bloodbath" where an all-time high of 24 former Final Four schools weren't at "Big Dance" two seasons ago. An average of 20 schools (minimum of 18) are in this category over the last 10 tourneys.
Nearly half of the "star schools" stayed home in 2004, including Houston when the Cougars were in the midst of a 17-year playoff drought from 1993 through 2009 prior to become a #1 seed each of the last three seasons. More than 40% of the 46 schools participating in more than 50 tourney games failed to earn a spot in this year's field. After Brigham Young competed in its 50th playoff game last year, following is a chronological list of big-name universities that are playoff regulars but were tourney outcasts since 1985:
1985 (19) - Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Florida, Gonzaga, Houston, Indiana, Kansas State, Louisville, Marquette, Missouri, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, Texas, UCLA, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia
1986 (16) - Arkansas, Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Florida, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas State, Marquette, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Texas, UCLA, Wake Forest
1987 (16) - Arkansas, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Gonzaga, Louisville, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis State, Michigan State, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Villanova, Wake Forest
1988 (16) - Alabama, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Gonzaga, Houston, Marquette, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, Texas, UCLA, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia
1989 (17) - Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, Marquette, Maryland, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, Utah, Wake Forest
1990 (15) - Cincinnati, Florida, Gonzaga, Iowa, Kentucky, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis State, North Carolina State, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia
1991 (17) - Cincinnati, Florida, Gonzaga, Illinois, Houston, Kansas State, Kentucky, Louisville, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis State, Michigan, Missouri, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia
1992 (16) - Florida, Gonzaga, Illinois, Kansas State, Marquette, Maryland, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Tennessee, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, Virginia, Xavier
1993 (18) - Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgetown, Gonzaga, Houston, Maryland, Michigan State, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas, UNLV, Villanova, West Virginia
1994 (19) - Brigham Young, Gonzaga, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Memphis, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Tennessee, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, West Virginia, Xavier
1995 (14) - Duke, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Marquette, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Tennessee, UNLV, West Virginia
1996 (20) - Alabama, Brigham Young, Florida, Gonzaga, Houston, Illinois, Louisiana State, Michigan State, Missouri, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Tennessee, UNLV, Virginia, West Virginia, Xavier
1997 (23) - Alabama, Arkansas, Brigham Young, Connecticut, Florida, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Memphis, Michigan, Michigan State, Missouri, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Syracuse, Tennessee, UNLV, West Virginia
1998 (21) - Alabama, Brigham Young, Florida, Georgetown, Gonzaga, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, Missouri, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Texas, Villanova, Virginia, Wake Forest
1999 (18) - Alabama, Brigham Young, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, UNLV, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Xavier
2000 (17) - Alabama, Brigham Young, Georgetown, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Villanova, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Xavier
2001 (17) - Alabama, Connecticut, Houston, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, St. John's, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, West Virginia
2002 (19) - Arkansas, Brigham Young, Georgetown, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Louisville, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina, Purdue, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, UNLV, Villanova, Virginia, West Virginia
2003 (16) - Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio State, St. John's, Temple, Tennessee, UCLA, UNLV, Villanova, Virginia, West Virginia
2004 (22) - Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Marquette, Michigan, Missouri, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, Tennessee, UCLA, UNLV, Villanova, Virginia, West Virginia
2005 (20) - Arkansas, Brigham Young, Georgetown, Houston, Indiana, Kansas State, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis, Michigan, Missouri, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, Tennessee, UNLV, Virginia, Xavier
2006 (17) - Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Houston, Kansas State, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest
2007 (18) - Alabama, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia
2008 (18) - Alabama, Cincinnati, Florida, Houston, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana State, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Syracuse, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest
2009 (15) - Alabama, Arkansas, Cincinnati, Florida, Georgetown, Houston, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas State, Kentucky, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, St. John's, UNLV, Virginia
2010 (18) - Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana State, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, St. John's, UCLA, Utah, Virginia
2011 (13) - Alabama, Arkansas, Houston, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana State, Maryland, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest
2012 (16) - Arizona, Arkansas, Houston, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana State, Maryland, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Tennessee, UCLA, Utah, Villanova, Wake Forest
2013 (17) - Alabama, Arkansas, Brigham Young, Connecticut, Houston, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana State, Maryland, Purdue, St. John's, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Xavier
2014 (18) - Alabama, Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana State, Marquette, Maryland, Missouri, Notre Dame, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia
2015 (16) - Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Houston, Illinois, Kansas State, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, Missouri, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, UNLV, Wake Forest
2016 (21) - Alabama, Arkansas, Brigham Young, Florida, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, Missouri, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Tennessee, UCLA, UNLV, Wake Forest
2017 (21) - Alabama, Brigham Young, Connecticut, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana State, Memphis, Missouri, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, UNLV, Utah
2018 (19) - Brigham Young, Connecticut, Georgetown, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana State, Louisville, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest
2019 (20) - Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Brigham Young, Connecticut, Georgetown, Illinois, Indiana, Memphis, Missouri, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, UCLA, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Xavier
2021 (18) - Arizona, Cincinnati, Duke, Indiana, Kansas State, Kentucky, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest, Xavier
2022 (21) - Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Florida, Georgetown, Kansas State, Louisville, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Xavier
2023 (19) - Brigham Young, Cincinnati, Florida, Georgetown, Louisiana State, Louisville, Michigan, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, Wake Forest
2024 (26) - Arkansas, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Louisville, Maryland, Memphis, Michigan, Missouri, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Xavier
2025 (19) - Cincinnati, Georgetown, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisiana State, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia
2026 (19) - Cincinnati, Georgetown, Indiana, Kansas State, Louisiana State, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Xavier
Unsung Heroes: Saving Ryan's Nearly Private Tale of NCAA Tourney Success
Since they usually weren't the focal point of offense, their postseason competition achievement can get lost in normal All-American traffic for the 14 schools boasting multiple national championships. Despite never participating in a Final Four themselves, there are often-overlooked players who exhibited authentic "One Shining Moment" in NCAA Tournament for a blue-blood program. Two undervalued guards from prominent programs deserving special mention are:
- Ryan Robertson - 31-point outburst for Kansas against Kentucky in overtime in 1999 is higher than all-time tourney best for any of his more-publicized teammates during four-year career (featuring Raef LaFrentz, Paul Pierce, Scot Pollard and Jacque Vaughn). KU's Robertson, taking only 10 field-goal attempts, is one of six opposing players - including Dayton's Henry Finkel (1966), Notre Dame's Austin Carr (1970), Indiana's Kent Benson (1975), Iowa State's Justus Thigpen Jr. (1992) and Wichita State's Cleanthony Early (2014) - scoring more than 30 points in defeat amid UK's NCAA tourney-high 132 victories. Among the 14 schools with multiple NCAA titles, Academic All-American Robertson has the lowest career scoring average (7.4 ppg) for a "blue-blood school" individual meeting the challenge and registering more than 30 points in a single NCAA playoff game.
- Ranzino Smith - 27-point uprising for North Carolina in only 18 minutes against Loyola Marymount in 1988 matches Michael Jordan's NCAA playoff high (against Temple in 1984). Among the 14 NCAA titlists in question, Smith has the lowest career scoring average (6.5 ppg) for an individual supplying more than 25 points in a single NCAA playoff game.
Ten of the 12 tourney games summarized below occurred in first or second round. Restricting alphabetical list to schools capturing multiple NCAA titles, the following individuals exceeded by at least doubling their normal output by tallying more than 25 points in an NCAA playoff game despite college career scoring average lower than 12.5 ppg and subsequently not selected in first round of NBA draft:
| Multiple-Title School | Unsung Hero (Career Avg.) | HG | NCAA Playoff Opponent | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | Leonard Stokes (10.2) | 39 | UCLA (Second Round) | 3-17-02 |
| Duke | Doug Kistler (11.5) | 26 | Princeton (First Round) | 3-8-60 |
| Florida | KeVaughn Allen (12.1) | 35 | Wisconsin (Regional Semifinals) | 3-24-17 |
| Indiana | Andrae Patterson (11.3) | 26 | Oklahoma (First Round) | 3-12-98 |
| Kansas | Ryan Robertson (7.4) | 31 | Kentucky (Second Round) | 3-14-99 |
| Kentucky | Joe Crawford (11.3) | 35 | Marquette (First Round) | 3-20-08 |
| Louisville | Edgar Sosa (9.7) | 31 | Texas A&M (Second Round) | 3-17-07 |
| North Carolina | Ranzino Smith (6.5) | 27 | Loyola Marymount (Second Round) | 3-19-88 |
| North Carolina State | Ilian Evtimov (9.3) | 28 | Vanderbilt (Second Round) | 3-21-04 |
| Oklahoma State | Corey Williams (10.3) | 27 | Tulane (Second Round) | 3-22-92 |
| UCLA | Tony Parker (8.3) | 28 | UAB (Second Round) | 3-21-15 |
| Villanova | Alvin Williams (10.9) | 31 | California (Second Round) | 3-15-97 |
NOTE: Michigan State has not had a player meet this criteria.
Scoring Preliminary Round/First Four: Who Tallied > 30 Points in Opener?
There is a tendency to shun March Madness preliminary-round games eliminating four "non-essential" entrants and gear up for "real" 64-team bracket later in the week. The "qualifying" round typically featured "last four in" teams or members of automatic-qualification leagues that probably shouldn't be designated NCAA Division I. For instance, the only year a HBCU didn't participate in the first 21 preliminary-round (1983, 1984 and 2001 through 2010) or First Four (since 2011) competition was 2001 when Northwestern State beat Winthrop.
Texas Southern's Aaric Murray, the only HBCU player to crack 30-point plateau in the NCAA DI Tournament, shares high-scoring honors at this "prelim" level with Princeton's Kevin Mullin (38 points). Four years ago, Wright State's Holden Tanner fell one basket shy of setting a new preliminary-round mark while joining the following chronological list of authentic "One Shining Moment" scoring performances by seven players manufacturing more than 30 points in a preliminary-round game or First Four assignment:
Year Player School Points Preliminary Round/First Four Foe 1984 Kevin Mullin Princeton 38 defeated San Diego (65-56) 2002 Prosper Karangwa Siena 31 defeated Alcorn State (81-77) 2007 Clif Brown Niagara 32 defeated Florida A&M (77-69) 2014 Aaric Murray Texas Southern 38 lost against Cal Poly (81-69) 2015 Tyler Haws Brigham Young 33 lost against Mississippi (94-90) 2019 Darnell Edge Fairleigh Dickinson 33 defeated Prairie View (82-76) 2022 Holden Tanner Wright State 37 defeated Bryant (93-82)
NOTE: District "play-in" games were conducted from 1939 through 1942 and 1947 through 1950. The highest-scoring game was in 1948 when Baylor beat Arizona, 65-59.
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