Leagues of Their Own: 3 Power Conferences Provide > 3 Teams in Sweet 16

March 24th, 2025 - 10:00

Packing the court legitimately, three power conferences combined to provide all but one of this year's Sweet 16 participants (featuring all-time record seven for the SEC after alliance started with all-time high of 14 delegates). It is a dramatic turnaround for the SEC, which supplied more than two Sweet 16 representatives only once (three in 2007) in a 12-year span from 2001 through 2012 (marred by a goose egg in 2009).

In 2016-17, the national media proclaimed the ACC as perhaps the greatest league in history but that assessment came before the nine-bid alliance was fortunate to have one representative among regional semifinalists (North Carolina overcame five-point deficit in last three minutes against Arkansas). #MessMedia proclaimed the Big Ten as dominant three seasons ago but only one of nine participants survived the first weekend of competition. The Big Ten became the first conference securing at least nine entrants in single tourney and have none of them advance to a regional final in 2022.

In 2009, the Big East became the first conference to boast five playoff teams reaching the regional semifinals in the same year until the ACC duplicated the feat three years ago. The ACC boasted four members advancing that far on eight occasions in a 12-year stretch from 1984 through 1995.

The ACC in 1985 was the only league in this category not to have at least one of the quartet reach the Final Four until the Big East was foiled in 2006. The following list of thoroughbred leagues supplied at least four Sweet 16 participants a total of 33 times since the NCAA Tournament field expanded to at least 48 teams in 1980:

Year Power League Four or More Conference Members Reaching Sweet 16
1980 Big Ten Indiana, z-Iowa, Ohio State, z-Purdue
1984 ACC Maryland, North Carolina, z-Virginia, Wake Forest
1985 ACC Georgia Tech, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State
1985 Big East Boston College, y-Georgetown, z-St. John's, x-Villanova
1986 ACC y-Duke, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, North Carolina State
1986 SEC Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, z-Louisiana State
1989 ACC z-Duke, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Virginia
1989 Big Ten z-Illinois, Indiana, x-Michigan, Minnesota
1990 ACC Clemson, y-Duke, z-Georgia Tech, North Carolina
1992 ACC x-Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, North Carolina
1993 ACC Florida State, x-North Carolina, Virginia, Wake Forest
1995 ACC Maryland, z-North Carolina, Virginia, Wake Forest
1996 SEC Arkansas, Georgia, x-Kentucky, z-Mississippi State
1997 Pacific-10 x-Arizona, California, Stanford, UCLA
1998 Pacific-10 Arizona, z-Stanford, UCLA, Washington
1999 Big Ten Iowa, z-Michigan State, z-Ohio State, Purdue
2001 Pacific-10 y-Arizona, Southern California, Stanford, UCLA
2002 Big 12 z-Kansas, Missouri, z-Oklahoma, Texas
2003 Big East Connecticut, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, x-Syracuse
2006 Big East Connecticut, Georgetown, Villanova, West Virginia
2009 Big East z-Connecticut, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, z-Villanova
2012 Big East Cincinnati, z-Louisville, Marquette, Syracuse
2012 Big Ten Indiana, Michigan State, z-Ohio State, Wisconsin
2013 Big Ten Indiana, y-Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State
2015 ACC x-Duke, Louisville, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Notre Dame
2016 ACC Duke, Miami (Fla.), y-North Carolina, Notre Dame, z-Syracuse, Virginia
2018 ACC Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Syracuse
2019 ACC Duke, Florida State, North Carolina, z-Virginia, Virginia Tech
2019 SEC z-Auburn, Kentucky, Louisiana State, Tennessee
2021 Pacific-12 Oregon, Oregon State, Southern California, z-UCLA
2024 ACC Clemson, Duke, North Carolina, z-North Carolina State
2025 Big 12 Arizona, Brigham Young, Houston, Texas Tech
2025 Big Ten Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue
2025 SEC Alabama, Arkansas, z-Auburn, z-Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee

x-Won NCAA championship
y-Finished national runner-up
z-Reached Final Four

Duke's success this year enabled the ACC to extend its streak of Sweet 16 representation since 1979 when the field expanded from 32 to 40 teams after the Blue Devils reached the 1978 tourney final. Duke and North Carolina both lost their openers in 1979. Despite struggling of late, the ACC is the only league not to be shut out of the Sweet 16 at least once since the Big 12 Conference's inaugural campaign in 1996-97. The disbanded Pacific-10/12 Conference was nowhere to be found in the Sweet 16 five times in an eight-year span from 1980 through 1987. Following are the years since 1979 when power conferences failed to have at least one member reach the Sweet 16:

ACC - 1979
Big East - 1986, 1993, 2019 and 2025
Big Ten - 1995, 1996 and 2006
Big 12 (plus Big Eight and SWC) - 1990 and 1998
Pacific-10/12 - 1980, 1981, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1999, 2004, 2012 and 2018
SEC - 1989 and 2009