Kentucky has the most wins in college basketball history. So it should come as no surprise that a number of individual teams have racked up quite a few victories in specific seasons - 30 or more, to be specific. There have been 14 seasons with 30+ wins in Kentucky history. How does that compare to other schools?
Duke (14): 1986, 1991, 1992, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015
Kansas (13): 1986, 1990, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016
North Carolina (12): 1946, 1957, 1982, 1987, 1993, 1998, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2016
UConn (9): 1990, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2014
UCLA (8): 1964, 1967, 1972, 1973, 1995, 2006, 2007, 2008
Louisville (8): 1980, 1983, 1986, 2005, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014
Syracuse (6): 1987, 1989, 2003, 2010, 2012, 2013
Arizona (6): 1988, 1998, 2005, 2011, 2014, 2015
Arkansas (5): 1978, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995
Oklahoma (5): 1985, 1988, 1989, 2002, 2009
Indiana (4): 1975, 1976, 1987, 1993
Georgetown (4): 1982, 1984, 1985, 2007
Wisconsin (4): 2007, 2008, 2014, 2015
Virginia (3): 1982, 2014, 2015
Michigan (3): 1989, 1993, 2013
Michigan State (3): 1999, 2000, 2009
Florida (3): 2006, 2007, 2014
Villanova (3): 2009, 2015, 2016
Wichita State (3): 2013, 2014, 2015
As you can see, many of these lists are "backloaded." Because teams like Duke (under Coach K), Kansas (under Bill Self) and UConn (under Jim Calhoun) have succeeded in an era when more games are played, they have piled up 30-win seasons.
One important note before we get to the UK list: a few of the best teams in UK history simply didn't play enough games to have a reasonable shot at topping the 30 mark. Teams like 1946 (28-2), 1950 (25-5), 1954 (25-0), 1955 (23-3), 1958 (23-6), 1959 (24-3), 1962 (23-3), 1966 (27-2), 1968 (22-5), 1969 (23-5), 1970 (26-2), 1975 (26-5), 1977 (26-4) stand out as examples. A big reason for the gap between 1951 and 1978 is that no SEC Tournament was held from 1952 through 1978. This eliminated as many as 4 additional games from the slate.
Which teams barely fell short? 1952, 1980, 1984, 1992, 2011 and 2014 were all 29-win seasons.
Here are the 14 Kentucky teams that have achieved this remarkable feat so far:
1946-1947: 34-3 28-2 in regular season (lost to Oklahoma A&M in Sugar Bowl, lost at DePaul). Won SEC regular season (11-0). Won SEC Tournament Championship over Tulane. Lost NIT Championship to Utah.
1947-1948: 36-3 (including 2-1 in Olympic Trials). 27-2 in regular season (lost at Temple and Notre Dame). Won SEC regular season (9-0). Won SEC Tournament Championship over Georgia Tech. Won National Championship over Baylor. Beat Louisville and Baylor in Olympic Trials, then lost to Phillips Oilers. Players from this team were major contributors to the Team USA's gold medal victory in the London Olympics.
1948-1949: 32-2 25-1 in regular season (lost to St. Louis in Sugar Bowl Championship). Won SEC regular season (13-0). Won SEC Tournament Championship over Tulane. Lost to Loyola (Chicago) in NIT. Won National Championship over Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State).
1950-1951: 32-2 25-1 in regular season (lost to St. Louis in Sugar Bowl). Won SEC regular season (14-0). Lost SEC Tournament Championship to Vanderbilt. Won National Championship over Kansas State.
1977-1978: 30-2 25-2 in regular season (lost at Alabama and LSU). Won SEC regular season (16-2). There was no SEC Tournament. Won National Championship as #1 seed over Duke.
1985-1986: 32-4 26-3 in regular season (lost at Kansas, Auburn and NC State). Won SEC regular season (17-1). Won SEC Tournament Championship over Alabama. Made Elite Eight as #1 seed, lost to LSU in their fourth meeting of the year (UK had won the first three).
1992-1993: 30-4 23-3 in regular season (lost at Vandy, Arkansas and Tennessee). Did NOT win SEC regular season (Vandy went 14-2). Won SEC Tournament Championship over LSU. Made Final Four as #1 seed, lost to Michigan.
1995-1996: 34-2 26-1 in regular season (lost to UMass in Great Eight, then won 25 in a row). Won SEC regular season (16-0). Lost SEC Tournament Championship to Mississippi State. Won National Championship as #1 seed over Syracuse.
1996-1997: 35-5 27-4 in regular season (lost twice to South Carolina, lost to Clemson in BCA Classic, lost at Ole Miss). Actually did NOT win SEC regular season because of loss to South Carolina on Senior Night. Did win SEC Tournament Championship, over Georgia. Lost National Championship Game as #1 seed to Arizona.
1997-1998: 35-4 26-4 in regular season (lost to Arizona in Maui, lost to Louisville, Ole Miss and Florida at Rupp). Undefeated in road games. Won SEC regular season (14-2). Won SEC Tournament Championship over South Carolina. Won National Championship as #1 seed over Utah.
2002-2003: 32-4 26-3 in regular season (lost to Virginia in Maui, lost at home to Michigan State, lost at Louisville...then went on a 26-game winning streak). Won SEC regular season (16-0). Won SEC Tournament Championship over Mississippi State. Made Elite Eight as #1 seed (lost to West Virginia).
2009-2010: 35-3 29-2 in regular season (lost at South Carolina and Tennessee). Won SEC regular season (14-2). Won SEC Tournament Championship over Mississippi State. Made Elite Eight as #1 seed (lost to West Virginia).
2011-2012: 38-2 30-1 in regular season (lost at Indiana). Undefeated SEC schedule (16-0). Lost to Vanderbilt in SEC Tournament Championship. Won National Championship as #1 seed over Kansas.
2014-2015: 38-1 Undefeated regular season (31-0). Won SEC regular season (18-0) and SEC Tournament. Made Final Four as #1 seed (lost to Wisconsin).
Will 2016-2017 be the next one on the list? They have an excellent shot. With 29, and the NCAA tournament on the way, it would be shocking for them NOT to make it.
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