College basketball teams with at least one NCAA title in modern era ft. UConn
With regard to NCAA titles, College basketball's parity might be a bit overstated. In the nearly four decades since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, the vast majority of national titles have been won by repeat champions. UConn is the gold standard with six titles in just under four decades. But here's the rundown on college basketball's modern-era champions.
College basketball teams with at least one NCAA title in modern era ft. UConn
6: UConn
The Huskies hadn't even been to a Final Four until well into the modern era of college basketball. But since Jim Calhoun made UConn a national power, UConn has had an impressive run. Calhoun ended up with NCAA titles in 1999, 2004 and 2011. Kevin Ollie won a title in 2014 and Dan Hurley now has won back-to-back crowns in 2023 and 2024.
5: Duke
While Duke's history was relatively barren until the Coach K era, the Devils capitalized on the legendary coach to pick up five national titles in a quarter century. Krzyzewski won back-to-back NCAA titles in 1991 and 1992. He added another in 2001 and then won additional titles in 2010 and 2015. Whether Duke can continue that run under Jon Scheyer is yet to be determined.
4: North Carolina
Carolina had just one title before Dean Smith's era. Smith won a pair of titles in 1982 and 1993, with the latter being his only "modern era" title. Roy Williams then won a trio of titles after moving over from Kansas. Carolina won in 2005, 2009 and 2017.
3: Kansas, Kentucky, Villanova
A trio of powerhouses, Kansas had only won a single title before Larry Brown and Danny Manning pulled one off in 1988. Bill Self has added additional titles in 2008 and 2022.
Kentucky had five NCAA titles before the 1985 NCAA Tournament expansion, including four under Adolph Rupp. Each of the "modern" titles came under a new coach, with Rick Pitino winning one in 1996, Tubby Smith nabbing one in his first UK season in 1998 and John Calipari winning one in 2012.
In the very first year of the expanded Tournament, Villanova and Rollie Massimino pulled off a massive upset of Georgetown for the 1985 title. Jay Wright then added a pair of championships in 2016 and 2018.
2: Florida, Louisville*
Billy Donovan and the Gators won back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007. It had been the most recent repeat run until Dan Hurley's 2024 championship. Since Donovan left for the NBA, Florida hasn't sniffed a repeat.
Louisville had a 1980 title, but Denny Crum won another in 1986. The NCAA record books say that's Louisville's only "modern" title, but Rick Pitino's 2013 team did win the Tournament, even if that officially didn't happen.
1: Arizona, Arkansas, Baylor, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Syracuse, UCLA, UNLV, Virginia
There are 11 one-time title winners in the "modern" era. The 1980s featured Indiana winning in 1987 and Michigan claiming the 1989 title. The 1990s included UNLV in 1990, Arkansas in 1994, UCLA's lone modern-era title in 1995 and Arizona's 1997 championship.
Michigan State won in 2000 and Maryland won in 2002, with Carmelo Anthony and Jim Boeheim winning with Syracuse in 2003. Virginia won in 2019 and Baylor picked up the 2021 crown.
Which NCAA title winners will you never forget? Weigh in below with your thoughts in our comments section!