Lords of No Rings: Painter & Brey On Luminary List Never Reaching Final Four

The Final Four missing-in-action microscope is focusing on a pair of pilots from Indiana universities - Notre Dame's Mike Brey and Purdue's Matt Painter - as the most prominent active power-league coaches participating in more than a dozen tourneys never to reach the national semifinals. Brey and Painter are in same AWOL category with all-time greats John Chaney, Fran Dunphy, Lefty Driesell, Gene Keady and Norm Stewart - retired luminaries failing to advance to the national semifinals in a total of 81 NCAA Tournaments before Dunphy returned to coaching ranks at his alma mater (La Salle). "It's so difficult not being able to make that final step," said Chaney, who lost five regional finals with Temple.

Driesell made 11 NCAA playoff appearances with Davidson and Maryland from 1966 through 1986. "I always wanted to get to the Final Four, but not as much as some people think," said Driesell, who lost four regional finals. "I'm not obsessed with it."

Only four schools - North Carolina, Duke, Georgetown and Syracuse - supplied more NCAA consensus first- and second-team All-Americans from 1982 through 1992 than Stewart-coached Missouri (seven). It was particularly frustrating for Mizzou fans when the Tigers compiled a 4-8 NCAA tourney worksheet in that span.

Some mentors never will receive the accolades they deserve because of failing to reach the Promised Land. Exhibit A is Purdue, where Keady and Painter have combined for 31 NCAA tourney appearances without advancing to national semifinals. There were 100,000 reasons Sean Miller joined this dubious list after dismal first-round loss against Buffalo in 2018 despite bringing freshman phenom Deandre Ayton to Arizona in some form or fashion (cause or no cause). Miller needed a safe space on campus to curl up in fetal position stemming from eventual fallout from FBI probe prior to recently returning to Xavier, but the following "Generation Hex" list includes prominent coaches without a Final Four berth on their resume despite more than 10 NCAA Tournament appearances: