How this century’s NCAA tournament champions stack up
Over the past 25 years, the men’s NCAA tournament has been the most exciting event in sports. Yeah, we’re biased. But once March arrives, college basketball takes center stage, and it rarely disappoints.
That’s why we’ve decided to take a shot at ranking all 24 champions of the past 25 years — based on their entire seasons. (Remember, the 2020 NCAA tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.) Once we crown another champion in San Antonio on April 7, we’ll find a spot for that team on this list, too.
We tried to use a combination of real data and the eye test. One thing is certain though: You’ll either love this or hate this.
Here are the top 24 champions of the last quarter century, beginning with the 1999-2000 season.
24. 2014 UConn Huskies
Record: 32-8
How they won: def. Kentucky, 60-54
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 7.8 PPG
KenPom net rating: +22.13 (15th in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Finished third in the AAC regular season
Best player:Shabazz Napier (AP All-America first team, NCAA tournament Most Outstanding Player)
In the weeks leading up to their national championship run, the Huskies lost twice to Louisville — the eventual American regular season and champion — by a combined 43 points. The 7-seed Huskies did not look like contenders in Kevin Ollie’s second season as head coach. But Napier averaged 21.1 PPG for six straight games and led a squad that made 39% of its 3-point attempts and forced turnovers on one-fifth of its opponents’ possessions during that stretch, which included beating three top-3 seeds. These Huskies, coached by Kevin Ollie weren’t legendary, but they were certainly fun to watch win it all.
23. 2011 UConn Huskies
Record: 32-9
How they won: def. Butler, 53-41
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 10.3 PPG
KenPom net rating: +23.93 (10th in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Finished ninth in the Big East; won Big East tournament
Best player:Kemba Walker (AP All-America first team, Big East tournament MVP, NCAA tournament MOP)
This is the modern-day Cinderella in men’s college basketball. These Huskies ended the 2010-11 regular season on a 1-4 slide and 9-9 overall in the Big East. They never lost again. Walker carried the Huskies on an 11-0 postseason run to their third national championship with one of the greatest one-man performances of all time — with some help from Jeremy Lamb (15.2 PPG in those games) and a young Shabazz Napier. But the Huskies also had a favorable draw and only faced one top-3 seed (San Diego State) on their way to the crown.
22. 2017 North Carolina Tar Heels
Record: 33-7
How they won: def. Gonzaga 71-65
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 11.6 PPG
KenPom net rating: +28.22 (3rd in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: ACC regular season champion
Best Player:Justin Jackson (AP All-America first team, ACC POY)
A year after losing in the title game, UNC bounced back to secure Roy Williams’ final national championship. Jackson and Joel Berry II (MOP) were the catalysts in this title run. The Tar Heels’ victory looks even better in hindsight because of the future NBA talent they encountered: They beat a Kentucky squad led by De’Aaron Fox, Malik Monk and Bam Adebayo in the Elite Eight; they squeezed past Oregon, which featured Dillon Brooks and Payton Pritchard in the Final Four; and in the national championship game, they faced Zach Collins, current Chicago Bulls center, who came off the bench for Gonzaga.
21. 2019 Virginia Cavaliers
Record: 35-3
How they won: def. Texas Tech 85-77 (OT)
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 7.5 PPG
KenPom net rating: +34.22 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: ACC regular season co-champion
Best player:De’Andre Hunter (AP All-America third team, ACC DPOY)
This team moved past its historic loss to UMBC in 2018 — the first time a 16-seed beat a 1-seed in NCAA tournament history — by winning the national championship a year later. It was a first for the school, and the peak of the Tony Bennett era in Charlottesville. But the run did not unfold without drama. In the opening round, the 1-seed Cavaliers were down 28-14 at one point, to 16-seed Gardner-Webb. They beat Purdue in a thrilling Elite Eight and Auburn in the Final Four after a controversial foul call in the final seconds. But their edge in talent was the difference in those games. Both Hunter and Kyle Guy were AP All-America third team selections for the 35-win Virginia squad. Ty Jerome — who now plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers — was an all-ACC second team contributor.
20. 2021 Baylor Bears
Record: 28-2
How they won: def. Gonzaga 86-70
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 15.3 PPG
KenPom net rating: +33.87 (2nd in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big 12 regular season champion
Best Player:Jared Butler (AP All-America first team)
Nothing was normal about the 2021-22 season. Due to COVID-19, some teams played only five games that year, and the Ivy League canceled its entire season. Among the programs that did compete, however, Baylor was certainly the most dominant. Butler, Davion Mitchell and MaCio Teague — who combined to score 56 points in the title game in Indianapolis — charged up a Baylor team that lost only two games all season and led the nation with a 41.3% clip from beyond the arc.
19. 2022 Kansas Jayhawks
Record: 34-6
How they won: def. North Carolina 72-69
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 14.0 PPG
KenPom net rating: +27.49 (3rd in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big 12 regular season co-champion; Big 12 tournament champion
Best player:Ochai Agbaji (AP All-America First Team, MOP)
Down by 15 at halftime, Kansas eventually outscored North Carolina, 47-29, in the second half to help Bill Self capture his second national championship. That shaky first half — after which Self reminded his team that his 2007-08 squad had come back from a deficit — nearly erased a mostly dominant year for the Jayhawks. Because this 34-win team, which ended the 2021-22 campaign on an 11-game winning streak, was elite. David McCormack averaged 20.0 PPG and 9.5 RPG during the Final Four weekend. Agbaji, Christian Braun and Jalen Wilson — who combined to score 39 points in the national championship — are all averaging double figures for NBA teams right now.
18. 2010 Duke Blue Devils
Record: 35-5
How they won: def. Butler 61-59
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 14.5 PPG
KenPom net rating: +38.13 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: ACC regular season co-champion; ACC tournament champion
Best player: Jon Scheyer (AP All-America second team)
A near-miss by Gordon Hayward at the buzzer in the championship game was perhaps the most memorable moment from the 2010 postseason. But the half-court heave should not overshadow Scheyer’s dominance. The Blue Devils were a 1-seed, and Scheyer was an All-American on the back of 18.2 PPG and 38% from 3. But the group — which won Mike Krzyzewski his fourth national title — also had an abundance of depth. Kyle Singler (MOP) and six other players (not Scheyer) subsequently played in the NBA. These Blue Devils also have the highest net rating on KenPom — a barometer of a team’s offensive and defensive performance throughout the year — on this list.
17. 2003 Syracuse Orange
Record: 30-5
How they won: def. Kansas 81-78
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 9.0 PPG
KenPom net rating: +23.28 (8th in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big East regular season champion
Best player: Carmelo Anthony (AP All-America second team, MOP)
While Anthony will certainly be in the Basketball Hall of Fame, his professional highs never topped his remarkable year at Syracuse. He’s the original one-and-done, who averaged 20.1 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 1.8 SPG and 48% from beyond the arc in the NCAA tournament and became only the third freshman to be named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Gerry McNamara, Hakim Warrick and Kueth Duany were also key pieces for the team that beat three consecutive 1-seeds — including Wooden Award winner T.J. Ford and Texas in the Final Four, and a Kansas team led by five future NBA players in the national title game — to secure Jim Boeheim’s lone national championship.
16. 2002 Maryland Terrapins
Record: 32-4
How they won: def. Indiana 64-52
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 14.0 PPG
KenPom net rating: +29.25 (3rd in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: ACC regular season champion
Best player: Juan Dixon (AP All-America first team, ACC POY, MOP)
After suffering a 99-78 loss at Duke on Jan. 17, 2002, Maryland lost only once (86-82 to NC State in the ACC tournament). Dixon anchored the only championship run in school history. What would have been better was the opportunity to beat Duke — which had also defeated Maryland in the Final Four a year earlier — in the title game, though the Blue Devils were upset by Indiana in the Sweet 16. Still, it was a satisfying season. Key veterans Lonny Baxter and Chris Wilcox both made the ACC all-defensive team that year. Steve Blake was an all-ACC third team selection. They and Dixon would go on to play a combined 34 years in the NBA.
15. 2013 Louisville Cardinals
Record: 35-5
How they won: def. Michigan 82-76
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 16.1 PPG
KenPom net rating: +32.92 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big East regular season co-champion; Big East tournament champion
Best player: Russ Smith (AP All-America third team)
Although the NCAA vacated Louisville’s title due to a recruiting scandal, we acknowledge the 2013 national championship, because those Cardinals were defensive juggernauts. Their first four opponents in the NCAA tournament all failed to register above 100 points per 100 possessions (the standard mark to determine a strong or weak offense/defense). Smith, who averaged 22.3 PPG and 15 steals in the NCAA tournament, was the best two-way player in America, and had help from Peyton Siva (5.7 APG) and Gorgui Dieng (2.5 BPG). The Cardinals ended the year on a 16-game winning streak, despite being unable to shoot well (33% from 3). Reserve Luke Hancock was named Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA tournament.
14. 2000 Michigan State Spartans
Record: 32-7
How they won: def. Florida 89-76
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 15.3 PPG
KenPom net rating: +33.61 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big Ten regular season co-champion; Big Ten tournament champion
Best player: Mateen Cleaves (AP All-America second team, MOP)
“The Flintstones” — Flint, Michigan, natives Cleaves, Charlie Bell (11.5 PPG, 1.2 SPG) and Morris Peterson (Big Ten Player of the Year in 2000) — pushed Michigan State back into the top tier of college basketball after a run of three consecutive Final Four appearances. The 2000 title also helped Tom Izzo establish a new era in East Lansing, six seasons after he replaced Jud Heathcote, who’d led Magic Johnson and Co. to the 1979 national title. These 1999-00 Spartans did not have a close game in the NCAA tournament, and their run included wins over opponents who were coached by Homer Drew (Valparaiso), Jim Boeheim (Syracuse), Rick Majerus (Utah), Dick Bennett (Wisconsin) and Billy Donovan (Florida).
13. 2015 Duke Blue Devils
Record: 35-4
How they won: def. Wisconsin 68-63
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 15.5 PPG
KenPom net rating: +32.48 (3rd in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Finished second in the ACC
Best player: Jahlil Okafor (AP All-America first team, ACC POY))
A midseason switch to zone changed this team’s ceiling. Before that, the Blue Devils were 35th in adjusted defensive efficiency, per barttorvik.com. After the move, they were 10th and won 18 of their final 19 games of the season. While they avoided a clash with Kentucky’s historic 38-1 squad, the Blue Devils might have held their own. They had Tyus Jones (MOP), Grayson Allen (16 points in the title game against Wisconsin), Justise Winslow (nine steals in the NCAA tournament) and Okafor, all future first-round picks in the NBA draft. Another, Quinn Cook (15.3 PPG that year), contributed to two NBA championship teams.
12. 2016 Villanova Wildcats
Record: 35-5
How they won: def. North Carolina 77-74
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 20.6 PPG
KenPom net rating: +32.01 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big East regular season champion
Best player:Josh Hart (AP All-America honorable mention, all-Big East first team selection)
Before the stars from this team all ended up playing for the New York Knicks, they were together on this national championship squad. Mikal Bridges was a freshman contributor, Jalen Brunson a young point guard — and Hart was its biggest star. But Kris Jenkins is probably the most universally recognizable player from this team, because of his game-winning shot, set up by a Ryan Arcidiacono pass, that beat UNC. These Wildcats, who finished top-five in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, were good all season, and they cruised through the NCAA tournament until the tussle with North Carolina.
11. 2006 Florida Gators
Record: 33-6
How they won: def. UCLA 73-57
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 16.0 PPG
KenPom net rating: +28.28 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: SEC tournament champion
Best player: Joakim Noah (AP All-America honorable mention, MOP)
Billy Donovan’s two-peat began with a Florida team that won its first 17-0 games and then struggled through a 5-6 stretch. There were mitigating circumstances, though. Lee Humphrey, the starting point guard, had to overcome a shoulder injury and Corey Brewer needed time to recover from mono. On March 1, 2006, however, Noah scored 37 points in a 77-66 win over Georgia that snapped a three-game losing streak. Florida never lost another game. Noah had 30 blocks in the NCAA tournament, as the Gators — whose roster also included Al Horford — ended 2-seed UCLA’s 12-game winning streak. Plus, their NCAA tournament opponents averaged only 56.6 PPG.
10. 2023 UConn Huskies
Record: 31-8
How they won: def. San Diego State 76-59
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 20.0 PPG
KenPom net rating: +29.86 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Finished fourth in the Big East
Best player: Adama Sanogo (AP All-America honorable mention, MOP)
Dan Hurley’s back-to-back national championship run began a 14-0 start to the 2022-23 season. Then, the Huskies hit a weird stretch, and before they knew it they were 16-6 overall and 5-6 in the Big East on Jan. 25, 2023. Once they reached the NCAA tournament, however, they crushed every opponent. Although they only faced one top-3 seed in March, the 4-seed Huskies — led by Sanogo, Jordan Hawkins and Tristen Newton — were a great team. Overall, 25 of their 31 victories came by double digits. This team was so good Donovan Clingan, a lottery pick last summer, played only 10 minutes in the title game.
9. 2008 Kansas Jayhawks
Record: 37-3
How they won: def. Memphis 75-68 (OT)
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 14.1 PPG
KenPom net rating: +35.21 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big 12 regular season co-champion; Big 12 tournament champion
Best player: Brandon Rush (AP All-America honorable mention)
If Derrick Rose had made a few free throws in the final seconds of the national title game, Memphis would probably be in this spot. Instead, Mario Chalmers made a 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds in regulation to send the 2008 championship game into overtime, where the Jayhawks sealed Bill Self’s first national title. This team is no Cinderella, although the Jayhawks nearly lost to one, when Davidson star Steph Curry’s almost led his team to an upset over the Jayhawks in the Elite Eight. The Jayhawks ended the 2007-08 season on a 13-game winning streak, 10 of which came by double digits. Chalmers (MOP) fronted a roster that had seven players who would eventually earn NBA contracts.
8. 2005 North Carolina Tar Heels
Record: 33-4
How they won: def. Illinois 75-70
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 13.8 PPG
KenPom net rating: +32.77 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: ACC regular season champion
Best player:Sean May (AP All-America second team)
After a season-opening upset loss to Santa Clara, Roy Williams demanded change from his team. “Ticked off is what I am, but I’m ticked off at myself, not at the kids,” he said at the time. So North Carolina hit the reset button, won its next 14 games, secured an ACC title and then captured the program’s first national championship in 12 years. May averaged 17.5 PPG and 10.7 RPG for a roster so stacked — they had six future NBA players — that Marvin Williams (the No. 2 pick in the 2005 NBA draft) came off the bench. These Tar Heels also led the nation in scoring, at 88.0 PPG. Four of their five starters (May, Raymond Felton, Rashad McCants, Jawad Williams) were all-ACC players, too.
7. 2004 UConn Huskies
Record: 33-6
How they won: def. Georgia Tech 82-73
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 13.3 PPG
KenPom net rating: +28.30 (2nd in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big East tournament champion
Best player: Emeka Okafor (AP All-America first team, MOP)
Okafor averaged 13.5 PPG, 11.3 RPG and 2.1 BPG and connected on 57% of his field goal attempts in the postseason. His teammates also included Ben Gordon (all-Big East first team selection, averaged 21.1 PPG and 37% from 3 in the NCAA tournament), Rashad Anderson (41% from 3 on the season), Charlie Villanueva and three other players 6-foot-10 or taller to anchor the best interior defense in America. Granted, Duke had a lead over UConn for the bulk of their national semifinal matchup, but we all know how UConn came out in the end.
6. 2018 Villanova Wildcats
Record: 36-4
How they won: def. Michigan 79-62
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 17.6 PPG
KenPom net rating: +33.76 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big East tournament champion
Best player: Jalen Brunson (Wooden Award)
Wright won his second championship at Villanova with a different version of Brunson, who was a contributor to the 2016 title-winning teams but averaged 18.9 PPG, 4.6 APG and 41% from 3 in 2017-18. Mikal Bridges, who did not start once for the 2016 squad, made the AP All-America third team two years later, after he averaged 17.7 PPG and shot 44% from 3. Donte DiVincenzo (MOP) — yes, you have to play for the Knicks at some point if you attended Villanova — also played a key role and was one of the seven Wildcats players who went to the NBA. This team, first in adjusted offensive efficiency, scored 90 or more points in 15 games, including twice in the NCAA tournament. They were also one of America’s top defensive teams.
5. 2007 Florida Gators
Record:(35-5)
How they won: def. Ohio State 84-75
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 14.1 PPG
KenPom net rating: +30.81 (2nd in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: SEC regular season champion; SEC tournament champion
Best player: Joakim Noah (Associated Press All-America second team)
Between March 21, 2006 and Feb. 17, 2007, these Gators lost only two games. Their first national title run in 2006 established a new standard for a program that won its second title in a row a year later. How? They thrived on a concept that’s almost impossible to achieve in today’s game: continuity. The same starters from the 2006 title game — Lee Humphrey, Taurean Green, Al Horford, Corey Brewer and Noah — also started in the 2007 championship win over an Ohio State squad led by freshman Greg Oden (an AP first-team All-American) and Mike Conley Jr. (18 years in the NBA). These Gators didn’t dominate the NCAA tournament, but they were more consistent than the 2006 team and one of the better squads we’ve witnessed over the past 25 years.
4. 2024 UConn Huskies
Record: 37-3
How they won: def. Purdue 75-60
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 23.3 PPG
KenPom net rating: Plus-36.43 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: Big East regular season champion; Big East tournament champion
Best player: Tristen Newton (Associated Press All-America first team)
In his second consecutive national championship run, Dan Hurley’s squad pulverized the field in 2023-24. These Huskies had 13-game and 14-game winning streaks, winning eight games against top-100 KenPom schools by 20 or more points. Donovan Clingan, a freshman reserve on the first national title team, averaged 15.3 PPG and 3.1 BPG in the postseason as a sophomore. Stephon Castle, a strong candidate for NBA rookie of the year this season, pressured Purdue star Braden Smith into a 4-for-12 effort in the national title game with his defense. Tristen Newton (Most Outstanding Player) earned his second ring with another stellar performance in a title game. Cam Spencer, Alex Karaban, Hassan Diarra and Samson Johnson were there, too. They had depth. And the Huskies were so good defensively that 16 of their opponents failed to score more than 60 points against them.
3. 2012 Kentucky Wildcats
Record: 38-2
How they won: def. Kansas, 67-59
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 11.8 PPG
KenPom net rating: Plus-32.59 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: SEC regular season champion
Best player: Anthony Davis (Wooden Award)
Davis had one of the greatest freshmen seasons in the history of college basketball with accolades that included the Wooden Award, SEC player of the year, SEC defensive player of the year and Most Outstanding Player. His Kentucky squad lost only two games in 2011-12 — against Indiana on Christian Watford’s buzzer-beater and during the SEC tournament against a veteran Vanderbilt team — otherwise they would have been undefeated. This Kentucky squad is also one of two freshman-led teams that won a national title in the one-and-done era, i.e. the years after the NBA changed its draft eligibility rules in 2006 (the other was 2014-15 Duke).
Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, an Associated Press All-America third team selection, were the No. 1 and No. 2 picks in the 2012 NBA draft, respectively. With those two as its anchors, Kentucky’s opponents made only 39.6% of their shots inside the arc because of the defensive prowess of this John Calipari-led squad. These Wildcats, featuring seven future NBA players, had it all.
2. 2009 North Carolina Tar Heels
Record: 34-4
How they won: def. Michigan State 89-72
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 20.2 PPG
KenPom net rating: Plus-31.14 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: ACC regular season champion
Best player: Tyler Hansbrough (Associated Press All-America first team)
This team was ruthless. The Tar Heels had five players who averaged double-figures during the 2008-09 season — and Ed Davis, a first-round pick in the 2010 NBA draft who scored 11 points in the national title game, came off the bench. Hansbrough captured the Wooden Award in 2008 and earned his second consecutive AP All-America first team selection in 2009. Ty Lawson was ACC player of the year and Wayne Ellington won Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA tournament. Danny Green, who won three NBA championships in his pro career, averaged 13.1 PPG for a North Carolina team that won 34 games and skated through the NCAA tournament. These Tar Heels made 39% of their 3-point attempts and held their two Final Four opponents (Villanova and Michigan State) under 95 points per 100 possessions. This squad had the personnel to compete with — and defeat — any team on this list.
1. 2001 Duke Blue Devils
Record: (35-4)
How they won: def. Arizona 82-72
NCAA tournament margin of victory: 16.6 PPG
KenPom net rating: Plus-37.32 (1st in the nation)
Non-tourney achievements: ACC regular season co-champion; ACC tournament champion
Best player: Shane Battier (Wooden Award)
These Blue Devils weren’t perfect, but they were close. Three of their four losses were one-possession games, and they finished second and third in adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency on KenPom. Battier, their captain, won the Wooden Award — but Jay Williams (21.6 PPG, 6.1 APG) earned a spot on the AP All-America first team in 2001, a year before he won the Wooden Award. Mike Dunleavy, Carlos Boozer and Nate James also averaged double-figures for a squad that averaged 90.7 PPG. And Chris Duhon, a freshman, had nine points and six assists in the title game.
This was the best offensive and defensive team in that season’s ACC, which sent six of its nine members to the NCAA tournament. During the Final Four, the Blue Devils beat the Maryland team that would capture the national title a year later. And in the title game, they outplayed an Arizona squad that featured future NBA stars Gilbert Arenas and Richard Jefferson.
There are some great teams on this list. But these Blue Devils are the clear No. 1.
