This is a list of the
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, branded as March Madness, or The Big Dance, is a single-elimination tournament played in the United States to determine the men's college basketball national champion of the NCAA Division I, Di ...
Final Four participants.
Final Four by year
From the first tournament in 1939 to 1951, the National Semifinals were also considered the Regional Championships, with the National Championship was held separately a week later. During this period, the tournament was divided into the East and West Regions. From 1952 to 1955, the Regional Championships were held at four sites, with two designated for the East and two for the West. In 1956, the four regions were given unique names for the first time.
From 1946 to 1981, a
consolation game was conducted before the Championship for the losing teams of the National Semifinals; the winning team was awarded third place and the losing team was awarded fourth place. In 1982, the NCAA eliminated the game and the two losing teams of the semifinal games are considered tied for third place in the official record book.
At the conclusion of the championship game, one player is awarded the
Most Outstanding Player award. Eleven times a player was awarded the MOP without being on the championship team. Five players have won the award twice; one player,
Lew Alcindor, won the award three times.
Final Four appearances by school
Since 1939, 95 schools have appeared in the Final Four. Four additional schools,
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
,
Saint Joseph's,
UMass, and
Western Kentucky, had their only appearance vacated. This table shows non-vacated Final Four appearances and victories by school; vacated records are shown in parentheses.
The Third Place column is blank for schools whose Final Four appearances were from 1939 to 1946 or after 1981 when there was no national third place game.
Teams appearing in consecutive Final Fours
Eleven teams have appeared three or more times in the Final Four in consecutive tournaments. In the following table, National Champions are indicated by bold years, runners-up by underlined years, and third place by italics.
Final Four appearances by coach
Since 1939, 158 head coaches have appeared in the Final Four. Six additional coaches have had their only Final Four appearance vacated. This table shows non-vacated Final Four appearances and victories by coach; vacated records are shown in parentheses. The Third Place column is blank for coaches whose Final Four appearances were before 1946 or after 1981.
Coaches still active in Division I are highlighted in green.
Multiple Schools
Fifteen coaches have non-vacated Final Four appearances with multiple schools. Of these, 14 have coached two schools and only one,
Rick Pitino
Richard Andrew Pitino (; born September 18, 1952) is an American basketball coach who is the head men's basketball coach at St. John's University (New York City), St. John's University. He was also the head coach of Greece national basketball t ...
, has coached three schools. Two additional coaches appeared with multiple schools but had all appearances with one of those schools vacated.
Larry Brown appeared with UCLA and Kansas but his only appearance with UCLA school were vacated.
John Calipari
John Vincent Calipari (; born February 10, 1959) is an American basketball coach who is the head coach at the Arkansas Razorbacks men's basketball, University of Arkansas. He has been named Naismith College Coach of the Year three times (1996, 2 ...
appeared with UMass, Memphis, and Kentucky, but his only appearances at UMass and Memphis were vacated. Five coaches are still active, with Calipari, Huggins, Larrañaga, and Sampson coaching at a school they have already taken to the Final Four. Pitino is the only coach on this list currently active at a school he has not taken to the Final Four.
Coaches who also played in the Final Four
Eight coaches have both played and coached in the Final Four. Dick Harp at Kansas, Hubert Davis at North Carolina and Jon Scheyer at Duke did so at the same school. Dean Smith and Bob Knight are the only two coaches to win a championship as player and coach.
Final Four appearances by conference
The following table shows Final Four appearance statistics based on teams' conference affiliations contemporaneous to their appearance. Therefore some schools are included across multiple conferences. Conferences are listed by their current or final name as found in the official NCAA record book.
There have been 26 unique conferences appearing in the Final Four, of which 19 are still in existence.
Final Fours with multiple schools from the same conference
There have been 25 Final Fours with multiple teams from the same conference. In two of these Final Fours, one of the conference team's appearance was later vacated later by the NCAA. The Big Ten has achieved this nine times, with one appearance later vacated, tying them with the Atlantic Coast Conference for non-vacated multi-team Final Four appearances. The Big East is the only conference to have three teams in the Final Four, which was in 1985.
Teams from the same conference have played against each other in nine National Semifinal games. Only three times have teams from the same conference played each other in the National Championship.
†National Champion; ‡Runner Up; §Teams played in National Semifinals
†‡Teams played in National Championship game
Final Four appearances by state
Schools from 38 states, including the District of Columbia, have appeared in the Final Four. An additional state, Minnesota, had its only appearance vacated. This table shows non-vacated Final Four appearances and victories by state; vacated records are shown in parentheses. The Third Place column is blank for states whose Final Four appearances were before 1946 or after 1981. Schools noted as vacated had all their Final Four appearances vacated.
Final Fours with multiple schools from the same state
Eleven Final Fours have had two teams from the same state. North Carolina and Ohio both have three Final Fours with two teams, the most, and Kentucky is the only other state to do it more than once. Teams from the same state have played each other four times in a National Semifinal and teams from the same state have played each other twice in the National Championship, both times
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
and
Ohio State
The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...
in
1960
It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism.
Events January
* Janu ...
and
1961
Events January
* January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union.
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...
.
† National Champion; ‡ Runner-Up; § Third Place
Vacated appearances
Fourteen Final Four appearances have been vacated by eleven schools. Two of these schools won the Third Place Game and five schools were the National Runners Up, with Michigan vacating two national runners up. Only one school, the University of Louisville, has had its National Championship vacated.
*
Saint Joseph's vacated its
1961
Events January
* January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union.
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...
semifinal loss and third-place game victory because three players were involved in a
point-shaving scandal
A scandal can be broadly defined as the strong social reactions of outrage, anger, or surprise, when accusations or rumours circulate or appear for some reason, regarding a person or persons who are perceived to have transgressed in some way a ...
.
*
Villanova vacated its
1971 *
The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...
championship game loss because
Howard Porter had signed a professional
contract
A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...
with the
Pittsburgh Condors
The Pittsburgh Condors were a professional basketball team in the original American Basketball Association (ABA). Originally called the Pittsburgh Pipers, they were a charter franchise of the ABA and captured the first league title. The team pla ...
of the
American Basketball Association (ABA) during the regular season. The Most Outstanding Player award was also vacated, as it had been awarded to Porter despite his team losing the championship game.
*
Western Kentucky vacated its
1971 *
The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...
semifinal loss and third-place game victory because
Jim McDaniels had signed a professional contract with the
Carolina Cougars
The Carolina Cougars were a basketball franchise in the American Basketball Association that existed from 1969 through 1974. The Cougars were originally a charter member of the ABA as the Houston Mavericks in 1967. The Mavericks moved to North Ca ...
of the
American Basketball Association
The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...
and accepted money during the regular season.
*
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
vacated its
1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...
championship game loss because
Kiki Vandeweghe and
Rod Foster were declared ineligible for their connection with recruiting violations involving
booster Sam Gilbert.
*
Memphis (then Memphis State) vacated its
1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
semifinal loss because
Keith Lee had received $40,000 in illegal payoffs from head coach
Dana Kirk.
Memphis would also vacated its
2008
2008 was designated as:
*International Year of Languages
*International Year of Planet Earth
*International Year of the Potato
*International Year of Sanitation
The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
championship game loss because
Derrick Rose's SAT
The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and Test score, scoring have changed several times. For much of its history, it was called the Scholastic Aptitude Test ...
score was invalidated after the season.
*
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
vacated its
1992
1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General.
* January 6
** The Republ ...
and
1993
The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as:
* International Year for the World's Indigenous People
The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
championship game losses because
Chris Webber
Mayce Edward Christopher Webber III (born March 1, 1973), nicknamed "C-Webb", is an American former professional basketball player. Webber played 15 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), with the largest portion of his career sp ...
,
Maurice Taylor
Maurice De Shawn Taylor (born October 30, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. He played power forward and center positions. Originally from Detroit, Taylor played college basketball for the Michigan Wolverines and was ...
,
Robert Traylor, and
Louis Bullock
Louis "Lou" Bullock Jr. (born May 20, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player.
Although his records have officially been vacated, due to the University of Michigan basketball scandal, his vacated records are unsurpassed for mos ...
were
found ineligible.
*
UMass vacated its
1996
1996 was designated as:
* International Year for the Eradication of Poverty
Events January
* January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
semifinal loss because
Marcus Camby
Marcus Dion Camby (born March 22, 1974) is an American former professional basketball player who played 17 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was named Defensive Player of the Year during the 2006–07 NBA season, leading ...
had accepted money and gifts from a pair of
sports agents.
*
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
vacated its
1997
Events January
* January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States.
* January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis.
* January 1 ...
semifinal loss because involving head coach
Clem Haskins, five other university employees, and at least eighteen players had
committed academic fraud.
*
Ohio State
The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...
vacated its
1999
1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons.
Events January
* January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers.
* January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
semifinal loss because
Boban Savović was declared ineligible.
*
Louisville
Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...
vacated its
2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
semifinal loss and their
2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
national championship because several unnamed players were declared ineligible as a result of a
sex scandal
A sex scandal is a public scandal involving allegations or information about possibly immoral sexual activities, often associated with the sexual affairs of film stars, politicians, famous athletes, or others in the public eye. Sex scandals r ...
. The Most Outstanding Player award, awarded to
Luke Hancock, was vacated as part of the disciplinary action. Hancock and four other players sued the NCAA and alleged they had been cast in a "false light" in relation to the scandal. The NCAA agreed to restore their awards and statistics as part of a settlement, including Hancock's MOP award.
*
Kansas
Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
vacated its
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
semifinal loss for recruiting violations.
Notes
References
General
''Men's Final Four 2023 Records Book''(PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2009. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
Specific
{{NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament navbox
College men's basketball records and statistics in the United States
Participants