The men's NCAA basketball tournament has only been seeded since 1979. In the 39 tournaments (including 2017) since then, here are the schools with the highest number of 1 seeds - plus, their results when they have received those 1 seeds.
1) NORTH CAROLINA - 16 top seeds (79, 82, 84, 87, 91, 93, 94, 97, 98, 05, 07, 08, 09, 12, 16, 17)
Titles as 1 seed: 4 of 15 (27%) - 1982, 1993, 2005, 2009.
Final Fours as 1 seed: 8 of 15 (53%) - 1982, 1991, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2009, 2016
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 12 of 15 (80%) - 1982, 1987, 1991, 1993, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2016
Upset before Sweet 16: 2 of 15 (13%) - 1979 (lost to 9th seed Penn), 1994 (lost to 9th seed Boston College).
2) DUKE - 13 top seeds (86, 92, 98, 99, 00, 01, 02, 04, 05, 06, 10, 11, 15)
Titles as 1 seed: 4 of 13 (31%) - 1992, 2001, 2010, 2015
Final Fours as 1 seed: 6 of 13 (46%) - 1986, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2010, 2015
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 8 of 13 (62%) - 1986, 1992, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2010, 2015
Upset before Sweet 16: never
2) KANSAS - 13 top seeds (86, 92, 95, 97, 98, 02, 07, 08, 10, 11, 13, 16, 17)
Titles as 1 seed: 1 of 12 (8%) - 2008.
Final Fours as 1 seed: 3 of 12 (25%) - 1986, 2002, 2008.
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 6 of 12 (50%) - 1986, 2002, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2016
Upset before Sweet 16: 3 of 12 (25%) - 1992 (lost to 9th seed UTEP), 1998 (lost to 8th seed Rhode Island), 2010 (lost to 9th seed Northern Iowa).
4) KENTUCKY - 12 top seeds (80, 84, 86, 93, 95, 96, 97, 03, 04, 10, 12, 15)
Titles as 1 seed: 2 of 12 (17%) - 1996, 2012
Final Fours as 1 seed: 6 of 12 (50%) - 1984, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2012, 2015
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 10 of 12 (83%) - 1984, 1986, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2003, 2010, 2012, 2015
Upset before Sweet 16: 1 of 12 (8%) - 2004 (lost to 9th seed UAB).
5) ARIZONA - 6 top seeds (88, 89, 98, 00, 03, 14)
Titles as 1 seed: none
Final Fours as 1 seed: 1 of 6 (17%). 1988
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 4 of 6 (67%). 1988, 1998, 2003, 2014.
Upset before Sweet 16: 1 of 6 (17%). 2000 (lost to 8th seed Wisconsin).
6) MICHIGAN STATE - 5 top seeds (90, 99, 00, 01, 12)
Titles as 1 seed: 1 of 5 (20%). 2000
Final Fours as 1 seed: 3 of 5 (60%). 1999, 2000, 2001
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 3 of 5 (60%). 1999, 2000, 2001
Upset before Sweet 16: never
6) GEORGETOWN - 5 top seeds (82, 84, 85, 87, 89)
Titles as 1 seed: 1 of 5 (20%). 1984
Final Fours as 1 seed: 3 of 5 (60%). 1982, 1984, 1985
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 5 of 5 (100%). 1982, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1989
Upset before Sweet 16: never
6) OKLAHOMA - 5 top seeds (85, 88, 89, 90, 03)
Titles as 1 seed: none
Final Fours as 1 seed: 1 of 5 (20%). 1988
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 3 of 5 (60%). 1985, 1988, 2003
Upset before Sweet 16: 1 of 5 (20%). 1990 (lost to 8th seed North Carolina)
6) UCONN - 5 top seeds (90, 96, 99, 06, 09)
Titles as 1 seed: 1 of 5 (20%). 1999
Final Fours as 1 seed: 2 of 5 (40%). 1999, 2009
Elite Eights as 1 seed: 4 of 5 (80%). 1990, 1999, 2006, 2009
Upset before Sweet 16: never
NOTE: 1996 tournament (during which they made the Sweet 16) was later vacated, however.
TOP PERFORMING SCHOOLS...
% winning titles: DUKE (31%)
% reaching Final Four: Georgetown, MSU (60%)
% reaching Elite Eight: Georgetown (100%)
Showing posts with label number 1 teams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label number 1 teams. Show all posts
Sunday, March 15, 2015
Saturday, January 26, 2013
History of #1 Seeds and #1 Teams in the NCAA Tournament
(updated through the 2016 tournament)
Since the NCAA tournament began seeding in the modern format (four regions, each seeded first to last) in 1979, #1 seeds have fared very well, and high seeds in general (#1-3) have done EXTREMELY well. But there have been a few exceptions.
Out of 38 tournaments in this era:
- 23 have been won by #1 seeds (60.5%)
- 33 have been won by a team seeded 1, 2 or 3 (86.8%)
- The only sub-3 seed winners:
4 seed Arizona (1997)
6 seed NC State (1983)
6 seed KU (1988)
7 seed UConn (2014)
8 seed Villanova (1985)
If you confine it to 1990 through 2016 (27 tournaments), it gets even chalkier:
- 18 have been won by #1 seeds (67%)
- 25 have been won by a team seeded 1, 2 or 3 (93%)
- The only exceptions: 4 seed Arizona (1997), 7 seed UConn (2014)
However, in spite of all this chalky success, the overall #1 team has not performed up to expectations. The concept of an "overall #1 seed" hasn't existed long, so I substituted the #1 team from the final AP poll in each season in looking at this.
In the 38 tournaments with modern seeding:
Only 7 champions were the overall #1 seed (or ranked #1 in the era before the existence of such a measure):
1982 UNC
1992 Duke
1995 UCLA
2001 Duke
2007 Florida (note - they were #3 in final AP poll)
2012 Kentucky
2013 Louisville (note - they were #2 in final AP poll)
8 champions were ranked #2 (and had a #1 seed):
1980 Louisville
1984 Georgetown
1990 UNLV
1994 Arkansas
1996 Kentucky
2000 Michigan State
2005 UNC
2009 UNC
5 champions were ranked #3 (and had a #1 seed):
1979 Michigan State
1987 Indiana
1999 UConn
2010 Duke
2015 Duke (note - they were #4 in final AP poll)
3 champions were ranked #4 (and had a #1 seed):
1993 North Carolina
2002 Maryland
2008 Kansas
The rest of the champs:
1981 Indiana - ranked 9th, seeded #3
1983 NC State - ranked 16th, seeded #6
1985 Villanova - unranked, seeded #8
1986 Louisville - ranked 7th, seeded #2
1988 Kansas - unranked, seeded #6
1989 Michigan - ranked 10th, seeded #3
1991 Duke - ranked 6th, seeded #2
1997 Arizona - ranked 15th, seeded #4
1998 Kentucky - ranked 5th, seeded #2
2003 Syracuse - ranked 13th, seeded #3
2004 UConn - ranked 7th, seeded #2
2006 Florida - ranked 11th, seeded #3
2011 UConn - ranked 9th, seeded #3
2014 UConn - ranked 18th, overall seed 26th, seeded #7
2016 Villanova - ranked 6th, overall seeded 7th, seeded #2
What about the #1 teams (and overall #1 seeds) who have failed to get the job done?
1979 Indiana State - Runner-up
1980 DePaul - Round of 32 loss
1981 DePaul - Round of 32 loss
1983 Houston - Runner-up
1984 North Carolina - Sweet 16 loss
1985 Georgetown - Runner-up
1986 Duke - Runner-up
1987 UNLV - Final 4 loss
1988 Temple - Elite 8 loss
1989 Arizona - Sweet 16 loss
1990 Oklahoma - Round of 32 loss
1993 Indiana - Elite 8 loss
1994 North Carolina - Round of 32 loss
1996 UMass - Final 4 loss
1997 Kansas - Sweet 16 loss
1998 North Carolina - Final 4 loss
1999 Duke - Runner-up
2000 Duke - Sweet 16 loss
2002 Duke - Sweet 16 loss
2003 Kentucky - Elite 8 loss
2004 Stanford - Round of 32 loss
2005 Illinois - Runner-up
2006 Duke - Sweet 16 loss
2008 Memphis - Runner-up (vacated)
2009 Louisville - Elite 8 loss
2010 Kansas - Round of 32 loss
2011 Ohio State - Sweet 16 loss
2014 Florida - Final 4 loss
2015 Kentucky - Final 4 loss
2016 Kansas - Elite 8 loss
Since the NCAA tournament began seeding in the modern format (four regions, each seeded first to last) in 1979, #1 seeds have fared very well, and high seeds in general (#1-3) have done EXTREMELY well. But there have been a few exceptions.
Out of 38 tournaments in this era:
- 23 have been won by #1 seeds (60.5%)
- 33 have been won by a team seeded 1, 2 or 3 (86.8%)
- The only sub-3 seed winners:
4 seed Arizona (1997)
6 seed NC State (1983)
6 seed KU (1988)
7 seed UConn (2014)
8 seed Villanova (1985)
If you confine it to 1990 through 2016 (27 tournaments), it gets even chalkier:
- 18 have been won by #1 seeds (67%)
- 25 have been won by a team seeded 1, 2 or 3 (93%)
- The only exceptions: 4 seed Arizona (1997), 7 seed UConn (2014)
However, in spite of all this chalky success, the overall #1 team has not performed up to expectations. The concept of an "overall #1 seed" hasn't existed long, so I substituted the #1 team from the final AP poll in each season in looking at this.
In the 38 tournaments with modern seeding:
Only 7 champions were the overall #1 seed (or ranked #1 in the era before the existence of such a measure):
1982 UNC
1992 Duke
1995 UCLA
2001 Duke
2007 Florida (note - they were #3 in final AP poll)
2012 Kentucky
2013 Louisville (note - they were #2 in final AP poll)
8 champions were ranked #2 (and had a #1 seed):
1980 Louisville
1984 Georgetown
1990 UNLV
1994 Arkansas
1996 Kentucky
2000 Michigan State
2005 UNC
2009 UNC
5 champions were ranked #3 (and had a #1 seed):
1979 Michigan State
1987 Indiana
1999 UConn
2010 Duke
2015 Duke (note - they were #4 in final AP poll)
3 champions were ranked #4 (and had a #1 seed):
1993 North Carolina
2002 Maryland
2008 Kansas
The rest of the champs:
1981 Indiana - ranked 9th, seeded #3
1983 NC State - ranked 16th, seeded #6
1985 Villanova - unranked, seeded #8
1986 Louisville - ranked 7th, seeded #2
1988 Kansas - unranked, seeded #6
1989 Michigan - ranked 10th, seeded #3
1991 Duke - ranked 6th, seeded #2
1997 Arizona - ranked 15th, seeded #4
1998 Kentucky - ranked 5th, seeded #2
2003 Syracuse - ranked 13th, seeded #3
2004 UConn - ranked 7th, seeded #2
2006 Florida - ranked 11th, seeded #3
2011 UConn - ranked 9th, seeded #3
2014 UConn - ranked 18th, overall seed 26th, seeded #7
2016 Villanova - ranked 6th, overall seeded 7th, seeded #2
What about the #1 teams (and overall #1 seeds) who have failed to get the job done?
1979 Indiana State - Runner-up
1980 DePaul - Round of 32 loss
1981 DePaul - Round of 32 loss
1983 Houston - Runner-up
1984 North Carolina - Sweet 16 loss
1985 Georgetown - Runner-up
1986 Duke - Runner-up
1987 UNLV - Final 4 loss
1988 Temple - Elite 8 loss
1989 Arizona - Sweet 16 loss
1990 Oklahoma - Round of 32 loss
1993 Indiana - Elite 8 loss
1994 North Carolina - Round of 32 loss
1996 UMass - Final 4 loss
1997 Kansas - Sweet 16 loss
1998 North Carolina - Final 4 loss
1999 Duke - Runner-up
2000 Duke - Sweet 16 loss
2002 Duke - Sweet 16 loss
2003 Kentucky - Elite 8 loss
2004 Stanford - Round of 32 loss
2005 Illinois - Runner-up
2006 Duke - Sweet 16 loss
2008 Memphis - Runner-up (vacated)
2009 Louisville - Elite 8 loss
2010 Kansas - Round of 32 loss
2011 Ohio State - Sweet 16 loss
2014 Florida - Final 4 loss
2015 Kentucky - Final 4 loss
2016 Kansas - Elite 8 loss
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