States of Success: California and Kentucky Tied For Most National Titles
Kentucky (31), buttressed by Louisville (NCAA DI) and Georgetown (NAIA) in 2013, moved ahead of California last year as the state with the most national titles from each level of four-year college men's basketball - NCAA Division I, NIT, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA. But California moved into a tie with Kentucky this season when Vanguard (Calif.) captured the NAIA crown.
Illinois and Ohio are the only states to boast at least one champion from all five levels. Among the 12 states amassing a total of more than 10 national crowns, Missouri is the only one in that group without a Division I championship. Drury (Mo.) and Central Missouri won the last two DII titles but the state's two headline schools - Mizzou and Saint Louis - never have reached the Final Four.
The biggest surprise among states never to capture a national title is Iowa. Following is how states stack up by national titles including the NIT and various levels of small-college basketball:
State DI NIT DII DIII NAIA Total California 15 7 5 0 4 31 Kentucky 11 3 10 0 7 31 Ohio 3 6 3 5 2 19 North Carolina 11 2 3 0 1 17 Illinois 1 6 1 6 1 15 New York 2 10 0 3 0 15 Oklahoma 2 2 1 0 10 15 Indiana 5 2 6 0 1 14 Missouri 0 1 3 2 8 14 Wisconsin 2 1 0 11 0 14 Pennsylvania 2 6 2 3 0 13 Kansas 3 1 1 0 6 11 Texas 1 2 0 0 7 10 Virginia 0 4 5 1 0 10 Minnesota 0 3 2 1 3 9 Michigan 3 3 0 2 0 8 Tennessee 0 2 1 1 4 8 Alabama 0 0 3 0 3 6 Connecticut 4 1 1 0 0 6 Georgia 0 0 1 0 5 6 Massachusetts 1 1 1 3 0 6 Maryland 1 1 2 0 1 5 Arizona 1 0 0 0 3 4 South Carolina 0 2 0 0 2 4 Utah 1 3 0 0 0 4 West Virginia 0 2 0 0 2 4 Colorado 0 1 2 0 0 3 District of Columbia 1 0 1 1 0 3 Florida 2 0 1 0 0 3 Louisiana 0 0 0 0 3 3 New Jersey 0 2 0 1 0 3 Arkansas 1 0 0 0 1 2 Rhode Island 0 2 0 0 0 2 South Dakota 0 0 2 0 0 2 Washington 0 0 2 0 0 2 Hawaii 0 0 0 0 1 1 Mississippi 0 1 0 0 0 1 Montana 0 0 0 0 1 1 Nebraska 0 1 0 0 0 1 Nevada 1 0 0 0 0 1 New Mexico 0 0 0 0 1 1 Oregon 1 0 0 0 0 1 Wyoming 1 0 0 0 0 1
NOTE: Eight states - Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota and Vermont - never have had a four-year school win a men's national championship.