The Road To The 1986 Final Four
It would be Crum’s last dance on college basketball’s biggest stage. Krzyzewski was just getting started. Their ships passed in Dallas in 1986.
NCAA Tournament history
2006 LSU Basketball: A Powerful Frontline Carries Them To A Final Four
Louisiana State has had mostly a rough go of it on the basketball court since the end of Dale Brown’s tenure in the late 1990s. But they’ve had one memorable March run since then—the 2006 LSU basketball team is obscured historically by the magic of George Mason that same year and by conference rival Florida […]
1979 Michigan State Basketball: Overcoming Obstacles On The Way To History
The 1979 Michigan State basketball team has become one for the history books. They won perhaps the most storied national championship game ever played, dominated the NCAA Tournament and sent Magic Johnson on to NBA greatness. But this Spartan team had its share of ups and downs along the way and it’s fair to wonder […]
The Road To The 1984 Final Four
The 1984 Final Four brought together two of the greatest big men to ever play the game, when Patrick Ewing’s Georgetown beat Akeem Olajuwon (he didn’t become “Hakeem” until he was in the NBA) and Houston in the NCAA final. They were joined by two other high-profile college big men who didn’t make it in […]
The Road To The 1983 Final Four
The 1983 Final Four is a watershed moment in the history of the NCAA Tournament, remembered most for N.C. State’s stunning national championship. There was another Cinderella story in Georgia, along with powerhouses Houston and Louisville playing an electric semifinal. It was a great showcase for college basketball on every level, and here we look […]
The Road To The 1981 Final Four
The first four days of the NCAA Tournament in 1981 were marked by a sequence of upsets and buzzer-beaters that was then unprecedented. But by the time the 1981 Final Four rolled around, the powers-that-be had emerged. Indiana, North Carolina, Virginia and LSU were all high seeds that won regionals. Let’s look back on the road all four teams took to Philadelphia.
The Road To The 1980 Final Four
While eventual champion Louisville was a power, Purdue, Iowa and UCLA all took the long road to Indianapolis. Here’s a look back on how each team reached the Final Four.
The Road To The 1976 Final Four
The 1976 Final Four is best remembered for when Bob Knight’s Indiana Hoosiers capped off a perfect season with a national championship. But there were three other stories there too, from UCLA in the post-Wooden era to an upstart from the East to a conference runner-up for the first time. Here’s a look back on the teams of the 1976 Final Four–Indiana, UCLA, Rutgers and Michigan and their roads to Philadelphia.
How March Madness History Evolved To What We Know Today
The ramp-up to March Madness is in gear, with conference regular season championships being finalized this week, the league tournaments going next week, fights for at-large bids and seeding in full-force and finally Selection Sunday going on Sunday, March 15. As we get set for another great college basketball run, here’s brief look back on the seminal moments in the development of March Madness history as we know it.
The 2005 NCAA Tournament: One Of The Best Ever
The 2005 NCAA Tournament was one of the best in the modern era. It produced a rarity, a championship game between the two teams clearly acknowledged as the best in the country, and its regional final weekend produced The Greatest Eight Ever.
The 2003 Final Four: Jim Boeheim Outlasts Roy Williams
Jim Boeheim of Syracuse and Roy Williams at Kansas each arrived at the 2003 Final Four as a respected head coach, but with one important item missing—a national championship ring. Boeheim lost the NCAA final in 1987 and 1996, while Williams had made three previous Final Fours. In 2003, Boeheim and Williams ended up on a collision course to meet on Monday night.
The 2002 Final Four: Gary Williams Gets It Done
Maryland won the first NCAA basketball championship in program history, and the first for their coach, the respected veteran Gary Williams, at the 2002 Final Four. What’s more, the events of the previous year made the long-awaited title even sweeter.