The Real Prestige Rankings: Part VII

This is the seventh part in my series of Prestige Rankings for NCAA Basketball over the past 24 years. My rankings are a more accurate and simplistic approach to the Prestige Rankings released by ESPN several weeks ago.

Here I will unveil all of the teams in conferences rated No. 10-12, and all of the teams rated No. 16-20.

Conferences: (Conference Rank, Team, Points, Overall Rank, ESPN’s Overall Rank)

12) Horizon League – Average Point Total: 54.00

1) Butler – 174 (61, 47)
2) Wisconsin-Milwaukee – 86 (T-96, T-124)
3) Detroit – 68 (T-114, T-165)
4) Valparaiso – 62 (116, 56)
T-5) Cleveland State – 50 (T-121, T-185)
T-5) Loyola (IL) – 50 (T-121, T-233)
7) Wisconsin-Green Bay – 40 (T-132, T-105)
8) Illinois-Chicago – 6 (T-175, T-172)
9) Wright State – 4 (T-191, T-177)
10) Youngstown State – 0 (T-273, 287)

The Horizon League is a very balance conference, especially in the middle. The top seven teams all have at least one tournament victory in the past 24 seasons. The top six teams all have at least two tournament victories.

Butler is far and away the most prestigious program in this conference though. They have more than double the point total of the second place team, Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Butler has two Sweet Sixteen appearances (2003 and 2007) and two second round exits (2001 and 2008). They also have three other tournament appearances, the first of which in this time period did not come until 1997.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee is another team with only recent tournament success. Almost all of their points come from a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2005 and a second round exit in 2006.

It should also be pointed out that all of Valparaiso’s tournament success came as members of the Mid-Continent Conference (which has turned into the Summit League). Valparaiso joined the Horizon League in 2007, so they have only played two seasons in this conference.

Youngstown State is the only team in this conference without an NCAA tournament appearance since 1985.

11) Missouri Valley Conference – Average Point Total: 68.60

1) Southern Illinois – 146 (T-67, T-53)
2) Creighton – 114 (83, 59)
3) Missouri State – 92 (T-90, 55)
4) Bradley – 88 (T-93, T-102)
5) Illinois State – 72 (T-102, T-102)
6) Wichita State – 56 (T-118, 160)
T-7) Northern Iowa – 40 (T-132, T-214)
T-7) Evansville – 40 (T-132, T-148)
9) Indiana State – 36 (T-149, T-260)
10) Drake – 2 (T-226, T-274)

The Missouri Valley is the first conference to appear in the rankings having two teams eclipse the 100 point mark. Southern Illinois and Creighton have had the most tournament success of these teams, with the Salukis topping the Blue Jays for the top spot in the conference.

The Missouri Valley has recently established itself as the strongest mid-major conference in college basketball, but many teams have had tournament success in this conference throughout the past 24 seasons.

Every single team in this conference, except Drake, has recorded a tournament victory in the time period. Drake actually dominated the league last season and earned a No. 5 seed in the NCAA tournament, but they fell victim to No. 12-seeded Western Kentucky in a thrilling overtime upset.

Southern Illinois has two Sweet Sixteen appearances and one second round tournament exit, with all of their tournament wins coming since 2002. Creighton has three first round victories, but has not yet reached the Sweet Sixteen. Both of these teams tied for the most tournament appearances in the last 24 seasons with nine each.

Missouri State, Bradley, and Wichita State all have Sweet Sixteen appearances (Missouri State also has one second round exit). Illinois State has two first round victories, and Northern Iowa, Evansville, and Indiana State all have one first round tournament victory each.

13) West Coast Conference – Average Score: 72.50

1) Gonzaga – 318 (41, 26)
2) Loyola Marymount – 94 (T-87, T-161)
3) Santa Clara – 72 (T-102, T-145)
4) Pepperdine – 46 (T-124, T-80)
5) San Diego– 38 (T-142, T-148)
6) Saint Mary’s– 8 (T-163, T-206)
T-7) San Francisco– 2 (T-226, T-229)
T-7) Portland – 2 (T-226, T-253)

The high ranking for the WCC can be attributed mainly to the overwhelming tournament success of Gonzaga. Gonzaga’s success was highlighted in the top 50 teams section in Part 2 of this series.

Gonzaga easily is the top team in this conference, having more than triple the points of the second place team, Loyola Marymount.

Loyola Marymount fell just shy of the 100 point mark. They had three straight tournament appearances from 1988 to 1990, and managed one second round exit and one Elite Eight appearance.

Santa Clara is the only other team in this conference with multiple tournament victories over the past 24 seasons. They won first round games in 1993 and 1996.

Pepperdine and San Diego have one tournament win each in this time frame. None of the bottom three teams have recorded a tournament victory, but all have reached the NCAA tournament at least once.

Top 50 Teams:

20) Oklahoma State Cowboys – Total Points: 506

• 2 Final Four Appearances, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 11 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 32

The Cowboys have at least two more missed tournaments than any other team inside the top 20, but they make up for it with impressive tournament highlights and only two first round losses.

Oklahoma State made the Final Four in 1995 as a No. 4 seed and again in 2004 as a No. 2 seed. They also made the Elite Eight in 2000 as a No. 3 seed.

Unfortunately for Oklahoma State, they had zero tournament appearances from 1985-1990 and have not made the NCAA tournament in the past three seasons.

19) Temple Owls – Total Points: 538

• 5 Elite Eight Appearances, 7 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 20

Temple ties with UConn for the second most losses in the round before the Final Four. Only Kentucky has more Elite Eight losses. Temple made the Elite Eight in 1988, 1991, 1993, 1999, and 2001.

The Temple basketball program took a big step back after the 2001 Elite Eight appearance. They missed the NCAA tournament for the next six seasons in a row after having only one other missed tournament in the last 24 seasons in 1989. Temple did qualify for the tournament this past season as a No. 12 seed, but lost their first round game to No. 5-seeded Michigan State.

Temple is the highest rated team in the rankings that is not from one of the traditional power conferences.

18) Purdue Boilermakers – Total Points: 546

• 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 7 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 29

Purdue has only lost three first round tournament games in their 17 tournament appearances, and has only lost one since 1987. That came in 1994 when they lost as a No. 9 seed to No. 8-seeded Rhode Island.

Purdue also has two Elite Eight appearances. One came in 1994 as a No. 1 seed and the other was in 2000 as a No. 6 seed. They also made the Sweet Sixteen in 1988, 1998, and 1999.

While Purdue did miss five NCAA tournaments from 2001 to 2006, the Boilermakers have participated in the tournament each of the last two seasons. They have won their first round games in each of those two appearances, but failed to win their second round match-ups.

17) Arkansas Razorbacks – Total Points: 563

• 1 NCAA Championship, 1 Championship Game Appearance, 1 Final Four Appearance, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 7 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-14

All of the Razorbacks’ highlighted tournament finishes came between 1990 and 1996. They only failed to reach at least the Sweet Sixteen one time in this period; they lost in the second round in 1992 as a No. 3 seed to No. 6-seeded Memphis.

Arkansas won the NCAA championship in 1994 as a No. 1 seed, lost in the 1995 NCAA Championship game as a No. 2 seed to No. 1-seeded UCLA, and also made the Final Four in 1990 as a No. 4 seed.

Unfortunately for Razorbacks fans, Arkansas has not returned to the elite level in college basketball since their 1996 Sweet Sixteen performance. They have not reached the Sweet Sixteen since, and have missed the tournament five of the last twelve seasons. They have also lost their first round games four times when they did qualify for the NCAA tournament in the same time period.

16) Oklahoma Sooners – Total Points: 576

• 1 Championship Game Appearance, 1 Final Four Appearance, 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 5 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 12

The Sooners have been the most consistent basketball program we have seen so far in the team rankings. They have made the NCAA tournament 19 of the last 24 seasons, only failing to qualify five times.

Oklahoma reached the final game of the NCAA tournament in 1988 as a No. 1 seed. They lost by four points to No. 6-seed Kansas.

The Sooners only other Final Four appearance came in 2002 as a No. 2 seed. They also reached the Elite Eight in 1985 as a No. 1 seed and in 2003 as a No. 1 seed.

The main negative for Oklahoma is that they do have seven first round losses.

The Real Prestige Rankings: Part VI

This is the sixth part in my series of Prestige Rankings for NCAA Basketball over the past 24 years. My rankings are a more accurate and simplistic approach to the Prestige Rankings released by ESPN several weeks ago.

Here I will unveil all of the teams in conferences rated No. 13-15, and all of the teams rated No. 21-25.

Conferences: (Conference Rank, Team, Points, Overall Rank, ESPN’s Overall Rank)

15) Sun Belt Conference – Average Point Total: 33.54

1) Western Kentucky – 210 (T-54, T-43)
2) South Alabama – 44 (T-126, T-82)
3) Louisiana Lafayette – 42 (T-130, T-119)
4) New Orleans – 40 (T-132, 88)
T-5) Arkansas-Little Rock – 38 (T-142, 107)
T-5) Middle Tennessee State – 38 (T-142, T-141)
7) Louisiana Monroe – 12 (T-157, T-96)
8) North Texas – 4 (T-191, 220)
T-9) Troy – 2 (T-226, T-161)
T-9) Florida Atlantic – 2 (T-226, T-233)
T-9) Arkansas State – 2 (T-226, T-168)
T-9) Florida International – 2 (T-226, T-260)
13) Denver – 0 (T-273, DNQ)

The top six teams in the Sun Belt rankings all have at least one NCAA tournament victory in the last 24 seasons. However, Western Kentucky clearly stands out among all the other teams in this conference.

The Hilltoppers from Western Kentucky are the only team in the conference with multiple tournament wins. They have the highest point total by far of any team we have seen in the conference rankings with 210. They barely missed out on the top 50 in my rankings and actually made the top 50 in the ESPN rankings (again because they play in a weaker conference).

Western Kentucky has played in nine tournaments since 1985 and has two Sweet Sixteen appearances. They also have three second round exits. With seven total tournament wins, they easily more than quadruple any other Sun Belt teams’ point total.

While no other team has achieved near the tournament success of Western Kentucky in this conference, the tournament appearances is much more balanced among the top teams in the Sun Belt. After WKU’s nine appearances, in order of rank, South Alabama has six, Louisiana Lafayette has five, New Orleans has four, Arkansas-Little Rock has three, Middle Tennessee State has three, and Louisiana Monroe has six.

14) MAC – Average Point Total: 38.00

1) Kent State – 98 (85, T-61)
2) Miami (OH) – 94 (T-102, T-80)
3) Ball State – 92 (T-160, T-115)
4) Eastern Michigan – 88 (T-189, T-225)
T-5) Western Michigan – 36 (T-191, 191)
T-5) Central Michigan – 36 (T-191, T-203)
7) Ohio – 6 (T-226, T-208)
8) Northern Illinois – 4 (T-273, T-298)
9) Akron – 2 (T-273, T-298)
T-10) Buffalo – 0 (T-273, T-298)
T-10) Bowling Green – 0 (T-273, T-298)
T-10) Toledo – 0 (T-273, T-298)

The Mid American Conference has a very close race at the top of the rankings. The top four teams are all within ten points of each other, a rare occurrence after looking at all of the previous conference standings.

Kent State gets the top spot in the conference on the heels of their Elite Eight appearance in 2002, when current NLF star Antonio Gates was a key player on their team. The Golden Flashes also won their first round tournament match-up in 2001. They have five tournament appearances since 1985, all coming from 1999 to 2008.

Miami of Ohio gets the second spot with seven tournament appearances, including one Sweet Sixteen and one second round exit. Ball State is third with also a Sweet Sixteen and a second round exit, but only six tournament appearances. Eastern Michigan is only four points behind them; they also have one Sweet Sixteen and one second round exit, but only have four total tournament appearances.

The bottom part of the MAC is rather weak, which keeps it below some of the other mid-major conferences in the rankings. Buffalo, Bowling Green, and Toledo all have no tournament appearances in the time period of the rankings.

13) WAC – Average Score: 45.11

1) Nevada – 122 (T-78, T-74)
2) New Mexico State – 94 (T-87, T-61)
3) Louisiana Tech – 88 (T-93, T-74)
4) Utah State – 46 (T-124, T-61)
5) Fresno State– 36 (T-149, T-148)
6) Boise State– 8 (T-163, T-109)
7) Hawaii – 6 (T-175, 156)
8) Idaho – 4 (T-191, T-196)
9) San Jose State – 2 (T-226, T-282)

Much like the MAC, the WAC also has a fairly balanced and successful top of the division but a weaker bottom half. The difference is that Nevada has had exceptional tournament success for the WAC and every WAC team has at least one tournament appearance in the last 24 seasons.

Nevada has four NCAA tournament victories in the time frame, all which have come in the past five seasons. Their best finish was a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2004 as a No. 10 seed.

New Mexico State also has had a lot of tournament success, including a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 1992 and a first round victory in 1993. Louisiana Tech has had the same success, but only with three less tournament appearances.

Utah State has also been one of the better teams in the WAC since 1985. Their tournament success is a little below some of the other teams, but their other accolades were enough to have them tied for first place with New Mexico State in the ESPN rankings for this conference. Utah State has seven tournament appearances but only one tournament win in this time period.

Fresno State is the only other team in the WAC with a tournament victory.

Top 50 Teams:

25) Stanford Cardinal – Total Points: 466

• 1 Final Four Appearance, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 9 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 25

Stanford has been one of the most consistent college basketball teams in the last 24 years. It is their consistency that puts them in the top 25 rather than their top finishes.

The Cardinal only has one Final Four appearance, which came in 1998 as a No. 3 seed. They lost by one point to Kentucky, who went on to win the championship.

Stanford could be much higher in the rankings, but from 1985 to 1994 they had only two tournament appearances and zero tournament victories. Since then, they have only missed qualifying for one tournament and have only lost two of their first round games.

Stanford did make the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in four seasons this past year, but their team may have difficulty returning to that point next season after the loss of Brook and Robin Lopez to the NBA draft.

24) Michigan Wolverines – Total Points: 475

• 1 NCAA Championship, 2 Championship Game Appearances, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 1 Sweet Sixteen Appearance, 12 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 22

The last time Michigan made the NCAA tournament was 1998. The last time Michigan made it to at least the Sweet Sixteen was 1994 (where they made the Elite Eight). That should give you an idea how dominant Michigan was from 1985 to 1994.

Michigan won the National Championship in 1989 as a No. 3 seed by defeating Seton Hall by one point. They also lost the championship game in 1992 to Duke and again lost in the finals the next year to North Carolina. The championship game loss to North Carolina was the famous game where Chris Webber took a timeout that Michigan did not have

There is another big negative for Michigan though. Several year ago, the University of Michigan self-imposed a sanction on its basketball team after an investigation revealed that a Michigan booster had given money to four of the basketball players, including Chris Webber. They forfeited all of their tournament victories where players that had been paid participated.

My rankings still give Michigan credit for the wins that they recorded. This is for simplicity but also because Michigan still earned these wins on the court. As a basketball team, those victories still took place and fans will remember those teams as great basketball teams. The repercussions of the sanctions can be seen in the fact that Michigan has not had a good basketball team in ten years, so there is no need to further penalize the Wolverines.

23) Alabama Crimson Tide – Total Points: 484

• 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 5 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 10 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-35

Alabama has only made it past the Sweet Sixteen round once in the last 24 years, but their consistency as a solid basketball team puts them in the top 25. Five Sweet Sixteen appearances are the most of any team outside the top 15 in the rankings.

Most of Alabama’s tournament success actually came from 1985-1991. They made the Sweet Sixteen in 1985, 1986, 1987, 1990, and 1991.

Even though the Crimson Tide had much more success in the earlier years that these rankings cover, their best finish did come in 2004. They made the Elite Eight as a No. 8 seed, where they lost to eventual champion UConn.

22) Florida Gators – Total Points: 500

• 2 NCAA Championships, 1 Championship Game Appearance, 1 Final Four Appearance, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 10 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 21

The success of the Florida basketball program over the past ten years has catapulted them into the elite of college basketball. The Gators did miss out on the NCAA tournament this past season, but after losing all starting players on a team that won two straight NCAA Championships, they deserve a little bit of a break.

In addition to their championships in 2006 and 2007, Florida also played in the final game of the tournament in 2000 as a No. 5 seed, losing to Michigan State.

Outside of the last ten seasons, the main accomplishment for Florida in this time period was a Final Four appearance in 1994 as a No. 3 seed.

Four first round losses and four second round losses, along with ten missed tournaments, keep Florida from being higher in the rankings.

21) Cincinnati Bearcats – Total Points: 504

• 1 Final Four Appearance, 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 1 Sweet Sixteen Appearance, 10 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 19

Cincinnati has not made the NCAA tournament in the past three seasons. They also did not qualify for the tournament at all from 1985-1991. They did, however, make the tournament for every season in between.

In their streak of fourteen straight tournament appearances, the Bearcats only lost in the first round twice. They had slightly more trouble with their second round games, losing eight times in the round of 32.

Cincinnati’s best finish was a Final Four appearance in 1992 as a No. 4 seed. They lost to No. 6-seeded Michigan in their semi-final match-up.

It’s important to remember that the biggest point jump comes from a team winning a first round tournament game since most of the teams are eliminated at this point. The consistency of the Bearcats is enough to beat out the four Final Fours (including two championships) of the Florida Gators.

The Real Prestige Rankings: Part V

This is the fifth part in my series of Prestige Rankings for NCAA Basketball over the past 24 years. My rankings are a more accurate and simplistic approach to the Prestige Rankings released by ESPN several weeks ago.

Here I will unveil all of the teams in conferences rated No. 16-18, and all of the teams rated No. 26-30.

Conferences: (Conference Rank, Team, Points, Overall Rank, ESPN’s Overall Rank)

18) MAAC – Average Point Total: 18.00

T-1) Manhattan – 72 (T-102, T-115)
T-1) Siena – 72 (T-102, 69)
3) Iona – 10 (T-160, T-129)
4) Fairfield – 6 (T-175, T-229)
T-5) Niagara – 4 (T-191, T-148)
T-5) Rider – 4 (T-191, T-138)
T-5) St. Peter’s – 4 (T-191, T-196)
T-5) Marist – 4 (T-191, T-148)
T-9) Canisius – 2 (T-226, T-214)
T-9) Loyola (MD) – 2 (T-226, T-271)

The MAAC has two teams with very good tournament success as well for a small conference. The only reason the MAAC is tied with and not ahead of the Ivy League is that they have more teams than the Ivy League does, so the average of the top two teams is weighed down even more.

Manhattan and Siena have almost the exact same resumes, and so they are tied atop the conference rankings. Notice that Siena is much higher in ESPN’s rankings because they have had more consistent regular season success than Manhattan has.

Both Manhattan and Siena have been to the NCAA tournament four times in the past 24 seasons. They have each won two first round games and lost two first round games. Manhattan defeated No. 4-seeded Oklahoma as a No. 13 seed in 1995 and also beat No. 5-seeded Florida as a No. 12 seed in 2004. Siena won against No. 3-seeded Stanford as a No. 14 seed in 1989 and easily defeated No. 4-seeded Vanderbilt as a No. 13 seed this past NCAA tournament.

No other MAAC team besides Manhattan or Siena has won an NCAA tournament game, but they have all had at least one tournament appearance.

17) Patriot League – Average Point Total: 24.63

1) Navy – 100 (85, T-61)
2) Bucknell – 72 (T-102, T-80)
3) Holy Cross – 10 (T-160, T-115)
4) Lehigh – 5 (T-189, T-225)
T-5) Lafayette – 4 (T-191, 191)
T-5) Colgate – 4 (T-191, T-203)
7) American – 2 (T-226, T-208)
8) Army – 0 (T-273, T-298)

To younger college basketball fans, it may come as a surprise to see Navy with so many points. However, Navy does have four tournament victories in this time frame. They won their first round game in 1985 as a No. 13 seed over No. 4-seeded LSU. Then the following season they made it to the Elite Eight as a No. 7 seed. They also have four other tournament appearances, but none after 1998.

Bucknell also has a high point total after tournament victories in back to back years in 2005 and 2006. They shocked the world by defeating No. 3-seeded Kansas as a No. 14 seed and then beat No. 8-seeded Arkansas as a No. 9 seed the following year.

Holy Cross is also usually a very good team coming out of the Patriot League. They have five tournament appearances. They have no tournament victories in the last 24 seasons, but have had several very close games.

Army is the only team in this conference without an NCAA tournament appearance since 1985.

16) Colonial Athletic Association – Average Score: 30.17

1) Old Dominion – 78 (101, T-76)
2) Virginia Commonwealth – 72 (T-102, 94)
3) George Mason – 70 (T-112, 100)
T-4) UNC Wilmington – 40 (T-132, T-102)
T-4) Drexel – 40 (T-132, 93)
6) Georgia State– 36 (T-149, 195)
T-7) Delaware – 8 (T-163, T-145)
T-7) Northeastern – 8 (T-163, T-119)
T-9) Hofstra – 4 (T-191, T-183)
T-9) Towson – 4 (T-191, T-210)
11) James Madison– 2 (T-226, T-141)
12) William & Mary– 0 (T-273, T-284)

The CAA is really the first conference so far to show a good level of balance throughout. There are no scores that jump out, but the top six teams all have at least one tournament victory. The top three teams all have over 70 points and are very close in total points.

Old Dominion gets the top spot in the conference with seven tournament appearances, including two first round victories. VCU is second with also two first round victories, but only four total appearances. George Mason gets third on the heels of their Final Four appearance in 2006. George Mason has no other tournament victories in the time period, but they do have four other tournament appearances.

UNC Wilmington is a team that could easily be up with the rest of the conference leaders in the standings. UNCW lost a close game to No. 8-seeded George Washington in 2006 as a No. 9 seed after blowing a big first half lead, and also lost on a last second shot to N0. 6-seeded Maryland in 2003 as a No. 11 seed.

William & Mary is the only team in this conference without a tournament appearance in the past 24 seasons. They were very close last season however, as they lost to George Mason in the conference championship game.

Top 50 Teams:

30) Ohio State Buckeyes – Total Points: 440

• 1 Championship Game Appearance, 1 Final Four Appearance, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 1 Sweet Sixteen Appearance, 13 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 27

Even though they tie for the most missed tournaments for teams in the top 30, the Buckeyes have had plenty of tournament success.

Amazingly, Ohio State has only lost one first round game. That came in 2001 when they were upset by No. 12-seeded Utah State as a No. 5 seed.

In recent years Ohio State has really emerged as an elite program under coach Thad Matta. They made it to the Championship game in 2007, where they lost to the back-to-back champion Florida Gators. The Buckeyes missed the tournament this past season as a bubble team after several players left early for the NBA, but ended up winning the NIT tournament (although they get no points for that in my rankings).

Ohio State also reached the Final Four in 1999 as a No. 4 seed. They lost their semifinal match-up to eventual champion Connecticut.

29) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets – Total Points: 446

• 1 Championship Game Appearance, 1 Final Four Appearance, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 10 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 33

Georgia Tech achieved most of their tournament success over the last 24 seasons between 1985 and 1993. They made the tournament all of these years and had a Final Four appearance in 1990, an Elite Eight appearance in 1985, and Sweet Sixteen appearances in 1986 and 1992.

The Yellow Jackets best tournament finish, however, came in 2004 when they reached the Championship game as a No. 3 seed. There they lost to No. 2-seeded Connecticut.

Georgia Tech would be much higher in the rankings, but they have only been in the NCAA Tournament four times in the past twelve seasons.

28) Utah Utes – Total Points: 448

• 1 Championship Game Appearance, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 4 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 11 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 24

All of Utah’s tournament victories in the past 24 seasons have come between 1991 and 2005. During this time they were consistently one of the best teams in college basketball, with only three missed tournaments in this stretch. They also only lost two first round games in this stretch.

Utah’s best tournament showing by far came in 1998 when they made the NCAA Championship game. They lost to No. 2-seeded Kentucky as a No. 3 seed in the final game after defeating two No. 1 seeds in the Elite Eight (Arizona) and Final Four (Duke).

27) UNLV Runnin’ Rebels – Total Points: 453

• 1 NCAA Championship, 2 Final Four Appearances, 1 Elite Eight Appearances, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 13 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 8

UNLV was clearly one of the dominant basketball programs of the 1980’s and very early 1990’s. However, they have way too many missed tournaments in the last 24 seasons to crack the top 25 teams in my rankings.

UNLV has only been in only four NCAA tournaments since 1991, and never won a tournament game from 1991 through 2006. A Sweet Sixteen appearance in 2007 and a first round victory this past year gives Rebel fans slight hope that the program might return back to elite status.

That being said, the tournament success that UNLV had from 1985 to 1991 was simply spectacular. They never lost a first round game and made it to at least the Sweet Sixteen in all but two of those seven years. In 1990 they won the National Championship as a No. 1 seed by defeating Duke by 30 points in the championship game. They also made the Final Four in 1987 and 1991, the Elite Eight in 1989, and the Sweet Sixteen in 1986.

26) Memphis Tigers – Total Points: 460

• 1 NCAA Championship Game Appearance, 1 Final Four Appearance, 3 Elite Eight Appearances, 1 Sweet Sixteen Appearance, 11 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-14

Memphis just missed out on being one of the top 25 most prestigious programs since 1985 mainly because of their drought between 1996 and 2005. They only had one tournament win during that time in only three tournament appearances.

Memphis has also had a difficult time moving past the Elite Eight in this time period. Three Elite Eight Appearances is the most for any team outside of the top 20 in the rankings.

A lot of Memphis’ tournament success has come in the past three seasons. Their success is impressive considering their conference has become a lot weaker since most of the better teams left for the Big East. With two Elite Eight appearances in 2006 and 2007 and then a heartbreaking loss in overtime to Kansas in the National Championship game in 2008, Memphis is certainly doing their part to maintain the reputation of Conference USA.

The Real Prestige Rankings: Part IV

This is the fourth part in my series of Prestige Rankings for NCAA Basketball over the past 24 years. My rankings are a more accurate and simplistic approach to the Prestige Rankings released by ESPN several weeks ago.

Here I will unveil all of the teams in conferences rated No. 19-21, and all of the teams rated No. 31-35.

Conferences: (Conference Rank, Team, Points, Overall Rank, ESPN’s Overall Rank)

21) Big Sky – Average Point Total: 14.44

1) Weber State – 72 (T-102, 89)
2) Montana – 44 (T-126, T-76)
T-3) Northern Arizona – 4 (T-191, T-136)
T-3) Montana State – 4 (T-191, 155)
T-5) Portland State – 2 (T-226, DNQ)
T-5) Eastern Washington – 2 (T-226, T-233)
T-5) Idaho State – 2 (T-226, T-274)
T-8) Northern Colorado – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-8) Sacramento State – 0 (T-273, T-278)

With two first round tournament wins under their belt, Weber State easily tops all the other teams in the Big Sky. They defeated No. 3-seeded Michigan State as a No. 14 seed in 1995, and then beat No. 3 seeded UNC again as a No. 14 seed in 1999.

The only other tournament win in this conference comes from the Montana upset of No. 5 seeded Nevada as a No. 12 seed in 2006.

Although there are only two teams in the conference without a tournament appearance in the past 24 seasons, no other team besides the top two have made it more than twice. The weakness of the bottom teams is a contributing factor to Montana and Weber State being so overrated in the ESPN rankings.

20) Southern Conference – Average Point Total: 16.36

1) Davidson – 68 (T-114, 60)
2) Chattanooga – 60 (117, 48)
3) College of Charleston – 40 (T-132, 50)
T-4) UNC Greensboro – 4 (T-191, T-129)
T-4) Georgia Southern – 4 (T-191, T-119)
T-6) Appalachian State – 2 (T-226, T-172)
T-6) Western Carolina – 2 (T-226, T-282)
T-8) The Citadel – 0 (T-273, 289)
T-8) Elon – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-8) Furman – 0 (T-273, T-256)
T-8) Wofford – 0 (T-273, DNQ)

Like most of the other small conferences with higher average, the Southern Conference is very top heavy. However, there are three teams that have enjoyed tournament success from this conference. Again, since the bottom teams are so weak, the top three are highly overrated in the ESPN rankings.

The Southern Conference has had two very successful years in the NCAA tournament in the past 24 seasons.

This past year Davidson made a Cinderella run to the Elite Eight. Stephen Curry and the rest of the No. 10-seeded Wildcats impressively beat elite teams Gonzaga, Georgetown, and Wisconsin before losing on a missed last second shot to eventual champion Kansas. With the return of Curry this year, Davidson is expected to be a serious threat in the tournament again this season.

Chattanooga also had a Sweet Sixteen run in 1997 as a No. 14 seed. In that same NCAA tournament, College of Charleston recorded the only other tournament victory for the Southern Conference in this time period by defeating No. 5-seeded Maryland as a No. 12 seed.

T-18) Ivy League – Average Score: 18.00

1) Princeton– 82 (100, T-40)
2) Pennsylvania – 56 (T-118, 34)
3) Cornell – 4 (T-191, T-225)
4) Brown – 2 (T-226, T-266)
T-5) Columbia – 0 (T-273, T-294)
T-5) Yale– 0 (T-273, T-241)
T-5) Harvard – 0 (T-273, T-284)
T-5) Dartmouth – 0 (T-273, T-284)

The Ivy League has been dominated by Pennsylvania and Princeton over the past 24 years. Princeton is the first team in the conference section that has cracked the top 100 overall teams. Along with a Pennsylvania team that has twelve tournament appearances with one tournament win, Princeton puts the Ivy League surprisingly high in the rankings.

Princeton has nine tournament appearances and two tournament wins. They defeated No. 4-seeded UCLA as a No. 13 seed in 1996 and then beat No. 12-seeded UNLV as a No. 5 seed in 1998.

Cornell won the Ivy League crown to become the first team besides Penn or Princeton to represent the Ivy League since Cornell won the league championship previously in 1988. Cornell went undefeated in Ivy League play in 2008 but was beaten badly by No. 3-seeded Stanford in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Again I apologize to any Ivy League fans for putting them in this post and the conference they are tied with in the next post. The reasoning was that all of the teams in the other conference have made the NCAA tournament at least once, while there are four Ivy League teams that have never made the tournament in the past 24 seasons.

Top 50 Teams:

T-35) Pittsburgh Panthers – Total Points: 378

• 4 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 11 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-43

It’s surprising that a team that hasn’t advanced past the Sweet Sixteen is so high in the rankings, but Pittsburgh is certainly one of the top college basketball programs over the past 24 seasons.

In addition to four Sweet Sixteen’s, Pittsburgh has only lost four first round match-ups and has consistently qualified for the NCAA tournament except for a eight year stretch from 1994 to 2001. Four Sweet Sixteen appearances is more than anyone else we have seen in the top 50 thus far and also more than anyone else below the top 50 except for Vanderbilt (No. 57).

The outlook for the Panther basketball program looks very good for the future as well, as they have established themselves as a consistent contender in a Big East conference now stacked with prestigious programs. It shouldn’t be long before the Panthers finally advance past the Sweet Sixteen in an NCAA tournament.

34) Iowa Hawkeyes– Total Points: 404

• 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 10 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 49

Iowa has only advanced to at least the Sweet Sixteen three times in the past 24 seasons, but they have qualified for the tournament 14 times and only lost their first round game four of those years.

The Hawkeyes made the Elite Eight in 1987 after losing first round games in both 1985 and 1986, and then didn’t lose another first round tournament game again until 2005.

Unfortunately for Hawkeye fans, Iowa has only made the tournament twice in the past seven seasons, and they lost both of those first round tournament games.

33) Wake Forest Demon Deacons – Total Points: 416

• 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 12 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-37

Throughout the 1990’s and early 2000’s, Wake Forest was able to challenge UNC and Duke in the ACC and became one of the country’s top programs.

The fact that they have zero Final Fours, they never made the tournament for the first six years that these rankings cover, and that they have had a big backlash after Chris Paul’s departure and haven’t made the NCAA tournament in the past three seasons is what keeps the Demon Deacons outside of the top 30.

Wake Forest’s best tournament finish came in 1996 when Tim Duncan led them to the Elite Eight.

32) Xavier Musketeers – Total Points: 418

• 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 1 Sweet Sixteen Appearance, 7 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 17

Seven missed tournaments for Xavier is the least out of any team outside the top 20 teams in my rankings. The Musketeers have been one of the most consistently good basketball programs in the past 24 seasons, a very impressive feat for a team that is not in one of the power conferences.

Xavier has been making it further into the tournament lately, as both of their Elite Eight appearances have come within the past five seasons. They made it as a No. 7 seed in 2004 and then again as a No. 3 seed in 2008.

The downside that keeps Xavier from being higher in the rankings is seven first round tournament losses in the time period.

31) Villanova Wildcats – Total Points: 425

• 1 NCAA Championship, 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 11 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-30

Villanova is the lowest rated NCAA Champion in the rankings. They also have other impressive tournament highlights in the past 24 years. However, the Wildcats have too many missed tournaments and too many first round exits to be any higher up in the rankings.

The Wildcats won the NCAA tournament in 1985 as a No. 8 seed after defeating their rival and defending national champion Georgetown in one of the most remembered championship games of all time. With the win, Villanova became the highest (numerically) seeded team to win the tournament championship.

Villanova also had Elite Eight appearances in 1988 and 2006. The 2006 Villanova team really signaled that the Wildcats were back as a top college basketball team after not advancing past the second round of the tournament for 16 years after their 1988 Elite Eight run (they finally made the Sweet Sixteen in 2005).

The Real Prestige Rankings: Part III

This is the third part in my series of Prestige Rankings for NCAA Basketball over the past 24 years. My rankings are a more accurate and simplistic approach to the Prestige Rankings released by ESPN several weeks ago.

Here I will unveil all of the teams in conferences rated No. 22-24, and all of the teams rated No. 36-40.

Conferences: (Conference Rank, Team, Points, Overall Rank, ESPN’s Overall Rank)

24) MEAC – Average Point Total: 9.73

1) Coppin State – 39 (141, T-90)
2) Hampton – 37 (148, DNQ)
3) North Carolina A&T – 12 (T-157, T-161)
4) South Carolina State – 10 (T-160, T-111)
T-5) Florida A&M – 5 (T-189, T-237)
T-5) Delaware State – 2 (T-226, T-229)
7) Howard – 2 (T-226, 260)
T-8) Morgan State – 0 (T-273, T-290)
T-8) Norfolk State – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-8) Maryland Eastern Shore – 0 (T-273, T-298)
T-8) Bethune Cookman – 0 (T-273, T-298)

It is very rare for No. 15 seed to defeat a No. 2 seed in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The last team to do it was Hampton in 2001. Hampton defeated No. 2 seeded Iowa State. However, the MEAC also has another team that shares this record of biggest NCAA tournament upset. No. 15 seeded Coppin State defeated No. 2 seeded South Carolina in 1997.

The MEAC conference does seem to be losing prestige lately however. The NCAA play-in game was instituted in 2001, and three of the eight play-in game losers have come from the MEAC (Coppin State, Hampton, Florida A&M).

In one of the closer conference races thus far, Coppin State gets the top spot over Hampton because they have qualified for one more tournament. It should be noted however, that Hampton only became a Division I program in 1995. Coppin State had ten extra years to accrue points, which is more than a slight advantage.

23) Ohio Valley – Average Point Total: 10.18

1) Murray State – 54 (120, T-30)
2) Austin Peay – 40 (T-132, 122)
T-3) Eastern Kentucky – 4 (T-191, T-253)
T-3) Samford – 4 (T-191, T-192)
T-3) Tennessee State – 4 (T-191, T-251)
T-3) Eastern Illinois – 4 (T-191, T-233)
7) Southeast Missouri State – 2 (T-226, T-210)
T-8) Jacksonville State – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-8) Morehead State – 0 (T-273, T-258)
T-8) Tennessee Tech – 0 (T-273, T-192)
T-8) Tennessee Martin – 0 (T-273, T-258)

Although the Ohio Valley Conference is the first with an average point total over ten, it is extremely top heavy. Almost all of the points come from Murray State and Austin Peay.

Murray State has made the tournament eleven times since 1985, notching a win in 1988 as a No. 14 seed over No. 3-seeded NC State. They have had several other very successful years and received many better seeds. They were actually tied for 30^th place in the ESPN Prestige Rankings, which again illustrates the major flaw in their rankings.

Austin Peay has only made the NCAA tournament four times in the last 24 years, but they have a high point total from their win in 1987. They defeated No. 3-seeded Illinois as a No. 14 seed.

While all of the tournament wins for the Ohio Valley Conference came in a two-year span, the conference has had several very good teams throughout the years. The serious lack of depth keeps this from being a more prestigious conference.

22) Big West – Average Score: 13.33

1) Pacific – 72 (T-102, 101)
2) UC Santa Barbara – 38 (T-142, T-138)
3) Long Beach State – 6 (T-175, T-181)
T-4) Cal State Fullerton – 2 (T-226, T-221)
T-4) Cal State Northridge – 2 (T-226, T-225)
T-6) California Polytechnic– 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-6) UC Davis – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-6) UC Irvine – 0 (T-273, T-221)
T-6) UC Riverside – 0 (T-273, T-DNQ)

Like the Ohio Valley, this is another top heavy conference. UC Santa Barbara does have a tournament win, but Pacific is really the pride of the Big West.

Pacific has two tournament wins, both coming in back-to-back seasons. They defeated No. 5 seeded Providence as a No. 12 seed in 2004, and then beat No. 9-seeded Pittsburgh as a No. 8 seed in 2005. Despite no tournament appearances before 1997, the two tournament wins easily puts Pacific atop the Big West.

The ESPN rankings and my rankings agree very closely with all the teams in this conference. UC Irvine had a few good seasons with losses in the conference tournament, and so they are rated a little higher in the ESPN rankings.

While the Big West may not turn out serious upset threats every year, low seeds usually don’t get easy blowouts when they play the representative from this conference in the first round.

Top 50 Teams:

40) St. John’s Red Storm – Total Points: 356

• 1 Final Four Appearance, 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 12 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-35

Despite not having won a tournament game since 2000, St. John’s success between 1985 and the beginning of the 21^st Century is enough to put the Red Storm among college basketball’s most elite programs.

St. John’s made the Final Four as a No. 1 seed in 1985 and had Elite Eight appearances in 1991 and 1999. While they have only moved past the second round of the tournament three times in the time frame, St. John’s has won 2/3 of its first round games.

There is no end in sight to the St. John’s drop-off in tournament success. The Big East is arguably the strongest conference every season since the most recent realignments, and St. John’s has struggled to qualify for the conference tournament the last few years.

39) North Carolina State Wolfpack– Total Points: 358

• 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 13 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 52

NC State overcame a ten year drought from 1992 to 2001 easily by making the NCAA tournament in all but three of the other seasons and only losing three first round games.

As a basketball program, NC State is usually remembered for their improbably NCAA Championship in 1983 as a No. 6 seed. Unfortunately, this was before the 1985 cut-off, so they get no credit for that championship.

The Wolfpack’s two Elite Eight appearances also came in the mid 1980’s, but they have been a tough out in the NCAA tournament several recent years as well. They made the Sweet Sixteen in 2005 as a No. 10 seed after upsetting No. 2-seeded Connecticut.

T-37) Boston College Eagles – Total Points: 364

• 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 14 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-70

The highlighted tournament finishes for Boston College does not appear as impressive as a lot of other teams inside the top 50. However, what is very impressive is that Boston College has only lost one first round game in the past 24 seasons.

A loss to No. 6-seeded Texas as a No. 11 seed in the 2002 tournament is the only first round blemish for the Eagles. Since most of the teams by far are eliminated in the first round of the tournament, the biggest point jump is gained by winning the first round game. This is why the Eagles are so high in the rankings.

In 2008, Boston College missed the NCAA tournament for only the second time in the past eight years. The Eagles still have a lot of talent, but as a program they may be starting to feel the effects of moving to a conference dominated by North Carolina and Duke every year.

T-37) Wisconsin Badgers – Total Points: 364

• 1 Final Four Appearance, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 12 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-43

For the first nine year of this 24 year time period, Wisconsin did not qualify for a single NCAA tournament. Since then they have only missed three tournaments; the Badgers have not been left out of the tournament since 1998.

The recent success of Wisconsin can best be seen in that they finished tied for 8^th place in the 2000-2008 Rankings. The highlight for the team was making the Final Four as a No. 8 seed in 2000. There they lost to conference foe and eventual champion Michigan State.

T-35) Seton Hall Pirates – Total Points: 378

• 1 Championship Game Appearance, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 14 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 51

I would first like to apologize to any Seton Hall fans for including them in this post and putting the team they are tied with in the next post. I chose to put the Pirates here because they have missed more tournaments.

Seton Hall is the first team so far to have made an NCAA tournament championship game. As a No. 3 seed they lost the 1989 National Championship game to No. 3-seeded Michigan by one point.

Seton Hall is past its prime as an elite basketball program. They achieved the vast majority of their tournament success in this time from 1987 to 1993, when they were among the nation’s top teams. They have only made the tournament three times since 1995.

The Real Prestige Rankings: Part II

This is the second part in my series of Prestige Rankings for NCAA Basketball over the past 24 years. My rankings are a more accurate and simplistic approach to the Prestige Rankings released by ESPN several weeks ago.

Here I will unveil all of the teams in conferences rated No. 25-27, and all of the teams rated No. 41-45.

Conferences: (Conference Rank, Team, Points, Overall Rank, ESPN’s Overall Rank)

27) America East – Average Point Total: 5.78

1) Vermont – 38 (T-142, 159)
2) Boston University – 8 (T-163, 108)
3) Albany – 4 (T-191, DNQ)
4) UMBC – 2 (T-226, T-256)
T-5) Hartford – 0 (T-273, 270)
T-5) Binghamton – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-5) New Hampshire – 0 (T-273, 297)
T-5) Stony Brook – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-5) Maine – 0 (T-273, T-278)

The high moment for the America East conference was No. 13 seeded Vermont’s victory over No. 4 seeded Syracuse in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. The conference has also had several upset scares recently. The same Vermont team played No. 2 seeded Connecticut to a very close game the year before their big upset and Albany gave No. 1 seeded the biggest scare any No. 16 seed has provided in recent memory in 2006.

Boston University, whose four tournament appearances are spread out over the 24-year time period, is rated inexplicably high in the ESPN rankings. Also, it is easy to see that the bottom five teams in this conference that have never qualified for the NCAA tournament make it impossible for America East to climb very high in the conference standings.

26) SWAC – Average Point Total: 7.50

1) Southern – 44 (T-126, 98)
2) Mississippi Valley State – 8 (T-163, T-141)
3) Texas Southern – 7 (174, 167)
4) Jackson State – 6 (T-175, T-177)
T-5) Alabama State – 4 (T-191, T-203)
T-5) Alcorn State – 3 (225, T-201)
7) Prarie View A&M – 2 (T-226, T-292)
8) Alabama A&M – 1 (272, DNQ)
T-9) Arkansas Pine Bluff – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-9) Grambling State – 0 (T-273, T-271)

The lone first round victory for the SWAC came in 1993 when No. 13 seeded Southern soundly defeated No. 4 seeded Georgia Tech. Southern University also qualified for the NCAA tournament five other times since 1985 to easily capture the top spot in this conference.

Texas Southern and Alabama A&M have both fallen victim to the NCAA play-in game in recent years, losing before qualifying for the first round. Even though these teams have lost, after analyzing some of the other conferences it certainly seems like there are teams from even less prestigious conferences that could be placed into the play-in game instead of these teams.

25) Big South – Average Score: 7.63

1) Winthrop – 47 (123, 79)
T-2) Liberty – 4 (T-191, T-203)
T-2) Coastal Carolina – 4 (T-191, T-196)
T-4) UNC Asheville – 2 (T-226, T-183)
T-4) Radford – 2 (T-226, T-168)
T-4) Charleston Southern – 2 (T-226, T-241)
T-7) High Point – 0 (T-273, DNQ)
T-7) VMI – 0 (T-273, T-294)

The recent success of the Winthrop basketball program is what gives this conference all of its rating. The rest of the conference is traditionally very weak.

Winthrop burst on to the scene of college basketball by easily handling No. 6 seeded Notre Dame in the 2007 tournament as a No. 11 seed. This win was on the heels of a last second loss to No. 2 seeded Tennessee in the 2006 tournament on a last second fade-away three-pointer by Chris Lofton. Winthrop has represented the Big South conference in the NCAA tournament in eight of the last ten seasons.

Top 50 Teams:

45) Iowa State Cyclones – Total Points: 304

• 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 2 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 12 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-57

Iowa State as a basketball program never really recovered after a devastating loss as a No. 2 seed in the first round of the 2001 NCAA tournament to No. 15 seeded Hampton. From 1985-2001, Iowa State qualified for 11 of 17 NCAA tournaments. They have only appeared in the eight years since.

The Cyclones’ lone Elite Eight appearance came in 2000 when they lost to eventual champion Michigan State as a No. 2 seed.

44) Auburn Tigers – Total Points: 310

• 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 17 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-90

No team has made the most of their NCAA tournament appearances better than Auburn. The Tigers have more missed tournaments than any other team inside the Top 50, but they have also never lost a first round game. If not for tournament droughts from 1989 to 1998 and again from 2004 to the present, Auburn could be much higher in the rankings.

43) LSU Tigers – Total Points: 314

• 2 Final Four Appearances, 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 1 Sweet Sixteen Appearance, 11 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-40

LSU is the lowest rated team with more than one Final Four appearance in the rankings. Seven first round exits are what moves the Tigers lower down in the rankings.

LSU made the 1986 Final Four as a No. 11 seed, which was the highest seed to do so until George Mason tied the record in 2006. Ironically, this was the other year that LSU made the Final Four.

42) Missouri Tigers – Total Points: 316

• 2 Elite Eight Appearances, 1 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 10 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: T-37

Missouri tops the preceding two Tigers in the rankings because of their consistency. They have been involved in 14 of the last 24 NCAA tournaments.

Their seven first round losses are compensated for by Elite Eight appearances in 1994 and 2002. Missouri has not qualified for the tournament since 2003.

41) Gonzaga Bulldogs – Total Points: 318

• 1 Elite Eight Appearance, 3 Sweet Sixteen Appearances, 13 Missed Tournaments
• ESPN Rank: 26

Ever since their miracle run to the Elite Eight as a No. 10 seed in 1999, the Zags have firmly established themselves as the best mid-major team in the country.

Gonzaga had only one tournament appearance prior to 1999 (a first round loss in 1995), but they have easily qualified for the tournament every year since 1999.

In several recent years, the Bulldogs have been popular Final Four picks, but have still yet to reach that threshold. Gonzaga actually ranked 15^th when I ranked the teams only back to the year 2000.