One and None: Gonzaga Didn't Reverse Trend of Win Crowd Entering Playoffs

April 2nd, 2017 - 14:56

Regal regular-season records persuade pollsters, arm alumni with arrogance and impress Division I committee members dispensing seeds in the NCAA Tournament. In a "teachable moment," Kentucky learned two years ago the acclaim doesn't guarantee postseason success because the "Road to the Final Four" is filled with potholes. There is no evidence Wisconsin made "nasty" actress Ashley Judd cry authentic tears at the 2015 Final Four or whether the dim damsel in distress blamed UK's defeat on #TheDonald helping Russians hack the scoreboard even before running for POTUS.

Over the first 41 seasons since the last undefeated team (Indiana '76), Gonzaga was the 24th school entering the NCAA playoffs undefeated or with one setback. None of the 24 squads in this group went on to win the national title. Only nine previous teams - Indiana State '79, UNLV '87, Temple '88, UNLV '91, Massachusetts '96, Duke '99, St. Joseph's '04, Illinois '05 and Memphis '08 - reached a regional final. Of the 22 entrants in this category since seeding was introduced, only four weren't accorded a #1 seed - Alcorn State '80, La Salle '90, Texas Tech '96 and Princeton '98. The Zags joined the following chronological list of 24 schools entering the NCAA tourney either unbeaten or with only one setback since IU went undefeated in 1975-76:

Year School Coach Pre-Tourney Playoff Mark Eliminated By (Score)
1977 Arkansas Eddie Sutton 26-1 0-1 Wake Forest (86-80)
1977 San Francisco Bob Gaillard 29-1 0-1 UNLV (121-95)
1979 #1 Indiana State Bill Hodges 29-0 4-1 Michigan State (75-64)
1980 #8 Alcorn State Davey Whitney 27-1 1-1 Louisiana State (98-88)
1980 #1 DePaul Ray Meyer 26-1 0-1 UCLA (77-71)
1981 #1 DePaul Ray Meyer 27-1 0-1 St. Joseph's (49-48)
1981 #1 Oregon State Ralph Miller 26-1 0-1 Kansas State (50-48)
1982 #1 DePaul Ray Meyer 26-1 0-1 Boston College (82-75)
1987 #1 UNLV Jerry Tarkanian 33-1 4-1 Indiana (97-93)
1988 #1 Temple John Chaney 29-1 3-1 Duke (63-53)
1990 #4 La Salle Speedy Morris 29-1 1-1 Clemson (79-75)
1991 #1 UNLV Jerry Tarkanian 30-0 4-1 Duke (79-77)
1996 #1 Massachusetts John Calipari 31-1 4-1 Kentucky (81-74)
1996 #3 Texas Tech James Dickey 28-1 2-1 Georgetown (98-90)
1997 #1 Kansas Roy Williams 32-1 2-1 Arizona (85-82)
1998 #5 Princeton Bill Carmody 26-1 1-1 Michigan State (63-51)
1999 #1 Duke Mike Krzyzewski 32-1 5-1 Connecticut (77-74)
2004 #1 St. Joseph's Phil Martelli 27-1 3-1 Oklahoma State (64-62)
2004 #1 Stanford Mike Montgomery 29-1 1-1 Alabama (70-67)
2005 #1 Illinois Bruce Weber 32-1 5-1 North Carolina (75-70)
2008 #1 Memphis John Calipari 33-1 5-1 Kansas (75-68 in OT)
2014 #1 Wichita State Gregg Marshall 34-0 1-1 Kentucky (78-76)
2015 #1 Kentucky John Calipari 34-0 4-1 Wisconsin (71-64)
2017 #1 Gonzaga Mark Few 32-1 5-1 North Carolina (71-65)