5 teams with the most consecutive Elite Eight appearances ft. the Duke Blue Devils

The Duke Blue Devils' run to the Elite Eight this year marks the program's 24th all-time trip to the regional final. That's another accomplishment for a well-established program in college hoops.

Achieving that many appearances is an incredible accomplishment in the sport, but there are other historic programs that have made history by making consecutive Elite Eight runs during March Madness.

Here's a look at the five teams that have made the most consecutive appearances in the Elite Eight.

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Five teams with the most consecutive Elite Eight appearances

#5 Florida (4, 2011-2014)

After winning back-to-back national titles in 2006 and 2007, the Florida Gators were poised to win their third title in 10 years under coach Billy Donovan.

The Gators would make four straight runs to the regional final, going as far as the Final Four in 2014. Florida, though, ran into a red-hot UConn Huskies team that year and lost 63-53 as the top seed again, the eventual national champions.

The next season, the Gators had only 38.9% of their scoring return from 2014 and failed to make the NCAA Tournament. Even with future NBA talent like Dorian Finney-Smith, Michael Frazier, Devin Robinson and Chris Chiozza, it wasn't enough to earn a tournament bid, ending the Elite Eight streak for the Gators.

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#4 Cincinnati (5, 1959-1963)

Cincinnati hasn't made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2019, when they lost in the first round. However, in the late 50s and early 60s, Cincinnati was a powerhouse program in college basketball.

Following their loss in the Sweet 16 in 1958, the Bearcats followed up with five consecutive runs to the Elite Eight. These runs included three consecutive national championship appearances, with back-to-back title wins in 1961 and 1962.

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#3 Duke (5, 1988-1992)

The late 1980s were the time when the Blue Devils established themselves as a historic college basketball program. Their five straight trips to the Elite Eight came in the midst of 11 consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament.

The Blue Devils went on to win back-to-back national titles in 1991 and 1992. Coach Mike Krzyzewski was at the heart of this period when Duke basketball took over the college hoops world.

Duke's streak of five appearances in the regional final included some all-time great players, including Christian Laettner, Danny Ferry, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill and Brian Davis.

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#2 Kentucky (5, 1995-1999)

The Kentucky Wildcats' run of five Elite Eight appearances came under both Rick Pitino and Tubby Smith. Pitino won the national title in 1996 and left after losing the national championship the next year.

Tubby Smith entered as Pitino's replacement and immediately led the Wildcats to another national title. Kentucky's five consecutive appearances in the regional final came during a historic 17-year run of consecutive NCAA Tournament bids.

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#1 UCLA (10, 1967-1976)

The UCLA Bruins' historic success in the 1960s and 1970s is something college basketball hasn't seen replicated since. Coach John Wooden led the Bruins on an iconic run of 10 consecutive Elite Eight appearances and won seven straight national titles from 1967 to 1973.

Their success didn't stop there, though, as the Bruins had 15 straight tournament bids, including eight national titles during that time. Players like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Curtis Rowe, John Vallely, Sidney Wicks and Bill Walton were at the forefront of UCLA's success during this time.

The Bruins most recently made the regional final in 2021 under coach Mick Cronin. They beat Michigan State in the First Four to enter the tournament as a No. 11 seed but were eventually taken down by the No. 1-seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs in the Final Four.

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