by Corey Price
What a weekend! On Saturday, #1 Kansas lost to unranked Oklahoma State 85-77 in Stillwater and #2 Kentucky lost to #19 Tennessee 74-65 in Knoxville. #4 Syracuse made a strong case to be the new #1 by defeating #7 Villanova 95-77 in Syracuse. With this weekend’s results there are now 3 teams left in NCAA Division I men’s basketball with 2 losses – Kanas, Kentucky, and Syracuse – and all 3 teams have a 27-2 record with each team having 2 games left in the regular season. This got me thinking about 2-loss teams that have entered the NCAA Tournament. Here are some facts and numbers that I found out about teams that had exactly 2 losses entering the NCAA Tournament:
The Basics
- There have been 92 occasions in which a team has had 2 losses entering the NCAA Tournament.
- The first NCAA tournament to have a 2-loss team was 1940 when there were actually 5 teams with 2 losses in that tournament – Colorado (17-2), Duquesne (19-2), Rice (21-2), Southern California (19-2), and Springfield (16-2).
- The last NCAA tournament to have a 2-loss team was 2008 when North Carolina was 32-2 entering the tournament.
- Of the 92 teams to have 2 losses entering the NCAA Tournament, 16 teams (17.4%) have gone on to win the National Championship. The first 2-loss team to win the National Championship was Wyoming in 1943 when they were 28-2 entering the tournament. The last 2-loss team to win the National Championship was Connecticut in 1999 when they were 28-2 entering the tournament.
- Of the 92 teams, 4 teams (4.3%) lost in the National Championship game – Kansas (21-2) in 1957, Houston (27-2) in 1983, Georgetown (30-2) in 1985, and Duke (32-2) in 1986.
- Of the 92 teams, 13 teams (14.1%) lost in the National Semifinals (Final Four). The first 2-loss teams to lose in the National Semifinals was both Duquesne and Southern California in 1940. Both teams were 19-2 entering the tournament. The last 2-loss team to lose in the National Semifinals was North Carolina in 2008, they were 32-2 entering the tournament.
- Of the 92 teams, 18 teams (19.6%) lost in the Regional Finals (Elite Eight). The first 2-loss teams to lose in the Regional Finals were the trio of Colorado (17-2), Rice (21-2), and Springfield (16-2). The last 2-loss team to lose in the Regional Finals was Stanford in 2001, they were 28-2 entering the tournament.
- Since the expansion of the NCAA Tournament to 64 teams in 1984, 3 of the 2-loss teams lost in the first round – North Carolina A&T (26-2) in 1988, Princeton (24-1) in 1991, and College of Charleston (28-2) in 1999.
- Since the expansion of the NCAA Tournament to 64 teams in 1984, 6 of the 2-loss teams lost in the 2nd round – Bradley (31-2) in 1986, Ball State (28-2) in 1989, Pennsylvania (24-2) in 1994, College Of Charleston (28-2) in 1997, Gonzaga (27-2) in 2004, and George Washington (26-2) in 2006.
- Since the expansion of the NCAA Tournament to 64 teams in 1984, 3 of the 2-loss teams lost in the Regional Semifinals (Sweet Sixteen) – Louisiana Tech (27-2) in 1985, DePaul (26-2) in 1987, and Connecticut (30-2) in 1996.
- The fewest wins for a 2-loss team to enter the NCAA Tournament is 16 by Springfield, they were 16-2 entering the 1940 NCAA Tournament. They lost in the Regional Finals.
- The most wins for a 2-loss team to enter the NCAA Tournament is 32 by both Duke and North Carolina. Duke was 32-2 entering the 1986 NCAA Tournament and lost in the National Championship game. North Carolina was 32-2 entering the 2008 NCAA Tournament and they lost in the National Semifinals.
- There have been 16 NCAA Tournaments in which there were no teams with 2 losses entering the tournament – 1939, 1944, 1947, 1961, 1968, 1979, 1981, 1990, 1993, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009
- The most consecutive NCAA Tournaments with at least one team with 2 losses entering the tournament is 13. There was at least one 2-loss team entering the tournament from 1948 to 1960.
- The most 2-loss teams in a single NCAA Tournament was 5 teams in 1940 – Colorado (17-2), Duquesne (19-2), Rice (21-2), Southern California (19-2), and Springfield (16-2). To put into perspective, only 8 teams were in the NCAA Tournament back in 1940.
- Of the 92 teams, 10 teams (10.9%) had less than 20 wins entering the NCAA Tournament.
- Of the 92 teams, 7 teams (7.6%) had at least 30 wins entering the NCAA Tournament.
The Records
Here are the schools to have at least 3 teams enter the NCAA Tournament with 2 losses:
- Kentucky – 9 (1948, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1955, 1959, 1962, 1978, 1996)
- Connecticut – 4 (1954, 1965, 1996, 1999)
- UCLA – 4 (1965, 1970, 1978, 1995)
- DePaul – 3 (1978, 1984, 1987)
- Duke – 3 (1963, 1986, 1992)
- North Carolina – 3 (1982, 1984, 2008)
- Western Kentucky – 3 (1966, 1967, 1970)
Here are the schools to have at least 3 different coaches lead their teams to the NCAA Tournament with 2 losses:
- Connecticut – Hugh Greer (1954) Fred Shabel (1965) Jim Calhoun (1996, 1999)
- Kentucky – Adolph Rupp (1948, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1955, 1959, 1962) Joe B. Hall (1978) Rick Pitino (1996)
- UCLA – John Wooden (1965, 1970) Gary Cunningham (1978) Jim Harrick (1995)
Here are the coaches to lead at least 3 teams to the NCAA Tournament with 2 losses:
- Adolph Rupp – 7 (1948, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1955, 1959, 1962, all with Kentucky)
- Jerry Tarkanian – 3 (1973 with Long Beach State, 1977 and 1983 with UNLV)
- Johnny Oldham – 3 (1966, 1967, 1970, all with Western Kentucky)
Here are the coaches to lead 2 different schools to the NCAA Tournament with 2 losses:
- Jerry Tarkanian – Long Beach State (1973) UNLV (1977, 1983)
- Digger Phelps – Fordham (1971) Notre Dame (1974)
Here is a breakdown of the 2-loss teams to enter the NCAA Tournament by the “Big 6” conferences (I’m using the conference that the team is currently in)
- Big East – 16 teams
- SEC – 10 teams
- Pac 10 – 9 teams
- ACC – 7 teams
- Big XII – 4 teams
- Big Ten – 1 team
ESPN’s very own Dick Vitale even led a team into the NCAA Tournament with only 2 losses. His 1977 Detroit squad was 25-2 entering the tournament and lost to Michigan 86-81 in the Regional Semifinals.
There is a possibility to have 3 teams – Kansas, Kentucky, Syracuse – enter this season’s NCAA Tournament with 2 losses. The last NCAA Tournament to have 3 teams enter the tournament with 2 losses was 1982. That season, North Carolina (27-2), Fresno State (26-2), and Idaho (26-2) all entered the tournament with 2 losses.
Here is a breakdown of the Kentucky teams to have 2 losses entering the NCAA Tournament:
1948
- 31-2 entering the tournament
- 3-0 in the tournament
- Defeated Baylor 58-42 in the National Championship game
1949
- 29-2 entering the tournament
- 3-0 in the tournament
- Defeated Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) 46-36 in the National Championship game
1951
- 28-2 entering the tournament
- 4-0 in the tournament
- Defeated Kansas State 68-58 in the National Championship
game
1952
- 28-2 entering the tournament
- 1-1 in the tournament
- Lost to St. John’s 64-57 in the East Regional Finals
1955
- 22-2 entering the tournament
- 1-1 in the tournament
- Lost to Marquette 79-71 in the East Regional Semifinals
1959
- 23-2 entering the tournament
- 1-1 in the tournament
- Lost to Louisville 76-61 in the Mideast Regional Semifinals
1962
- 22-2 entering the tournament
- 1-1 in the tournament
- Lost to Ohio State 74-64 in the Mideast Regional Finals
1978
- 25-2 entering the tournament
- 5-0 in the tournament
- Defeated Duke 94-88 in the National Championship game
1996
- 28-2 entering the tournament
- 1 Seed in the Midwest Region
- 6-0 in the tournament
- Defeated 4 Seed Syracuse 76-67 in the National Championship game
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