Gonzaga entered NCAA Tournament final last year boasting a school-record winning streak (35) before beaten by Baylor. The Zags should know the fact numerous other teams had the daunting task of capturing the NCAA championship or watch even longer school-record winning streaks come to a halt. South Dakota State enters national playoffs this campaign with a 21-game winning streak, which is significantly shorter than the following alphabetical list of schools boasting still existing all-time DI winning streaks of at least 25 consecutive victories broken during the NCAA playoffs:

School	Streak	Date Ended	Opponent	Score	NCAA Tourney Round
Butler	26	4-5-10	Duke	61-59	Championship Game
College of Charleston	25	3-12-99	Tulsa	62-53	East Regional First
Columbia	32	3-20-51	Illinois	79-71	East Regional First
Davidson	25	3-30-08	Kansas	59-57	Midwest Regional Final
Duke	32	3-29-99	Connecticut	77-74	Championship Game
Florida	30	4-5-14	Connecticut	63-53	National Semifinals
Gonzaga	35	4-5-21	Baylor	86-70	Championship Game
Houston	32	3-22-68	UCLA	101-69	National Semifinals
Indiana	34	3-22-75	Kentucky	92-90	Mideast Regional Final
Indiana State	33	3-26-79	Michigan State	75-64	Championship Game
Kentucky	38	4-4-15	Wisconsin	71-64	National Semifinals
Loyola Marymount	25	3-19-88	North Carolina	123-97	West Regional Second
Marquette	39	3-18-71	Ohio State	60-59	Mideast Regional Semifinals
Memphis	27	3-26-09	Missouri	102-91	West Regional Semifinals
Ohio State	32	3-25-61	Cincinnati	70-65	Championship Game
Rutgers	31	3-27-76	Michigan	86-70	National Semifinals
Stephen F. Austin	29	3-23-14	UCLA	77-60	South Regional Second
Temple	25	3-21-58	Kentucky	61-60	National Semifinals
UNLV	45	3-30-91	Duke	79-77	National Semifinals
Wichita State	35	3-23-14	Kentucky	78-76	Midwest Regional Second

NCAA playoff history was against Arizona reaching the Final Four, let alone capturing the national title. No school has won an NCAA crown upon earning a #1 regional seed after going unranked among Top 25 in AP's national preseason poll (Top 20 until 1989-90). In fact, last year Michigan became the 12th straight team in this category failing to reach the Final Four (including another UM squad in 1985). The only top-seeded squad unranked in PS to advance to the national semifinals was Larry Bird-led Indiana State in 1979 when seeding was first introduced.

Year	#1 Seed Unranked in PS Top 25 Poll	Coach	Regional/NCAA Tourney Mark
1979	Indiana State	Bill Hodges	Midwest/4-1 (lost to Michigan State)
1985	Michigan	Bill Frieder	Southeast/1-1 (Villanova)
1986	St. John's	Lou Carnesecca	West/1-1 (Auburn)
1990	Connecticut	Jim Calhoun	East/3-1 (Duke)
1990	Michigan State	Jud Heathcote	Southeast/2-1 (Georgia Tech)
1994	Missouri	Norm Stewart	West/3-1 (Arizona)
1999	Auburn	Cliff Ellis	South/2-1 (Ohio State)
2002	Cincinnati	Bob Huggins	West/1-1 (UCLA)
2010	Syracuse	Jim Boeheim	West/2-1 (Butler)
2012	Michigan State	Tom Izzo	West/2-1 (Louisville)
2016	Oregon	Dana Altman	West/3-1 (Oklahoma)
2018	Virginia	Tony Bennett	South/0-1 (Maryland-Baltimore County)
2021	Michigan	Juwan Howard	East/3-1 (UCLA)
2022	Arizona	Tommy Lloyd	South/2-1 (Houston)

NOTE: Preseason polls were Top 20 through 1988-89.

First things first! This admonition for handful of prominent schools is finally winning an NCAA playoff regional semifinal game. Coach Buzz Williams may have only himself to blame for lame non-conference schedule, but he denounced Texas A&M's omission from NCAA playoffs and corresponding opportunity to finally advance to "Elite Eight." Some fans hate that their university never has been in a position to secure one more victory and reach the Final Four love-fest. The Aggies are among a total of six existing power-conference members failing to advance to an NCAA Tournament regional final. The frustration list included Miami (Fla.) before the Hurricanes left dubious list with Midwest Regional success at 2022 party. Combining for 76 NCAA playoff appearances and 55-68 record (.447), following is an alphabetical list of the half-dozen "Elite Eight" no-shows from top six leagues:

Power-League Member	App.	Record	Pct.	Premier Players for Previous NCAA Tournament Teams
Arizona State	16	14-17	.452	Larry Armstrong, Isaac Austin, Art Becker, Mario Bennett, Joe Caldwell, Jahii Carson, Tony Cerkvenik, Ike Diogu, Jamal Faulkner (transferred to Alabama), James Harden, Lionel Hollins, Alton Lister, Scott Lloyd, Kurt Nimphius, Ron Riley, Byron Scott and Rudy White
Boston College	18	22-19	.537	Danya Abrams, Michael Adams, Steve Adelman, John Bagley, Troy Bell, Bob Carrington, Bill Curley, Terry Driscoll, Jared Dudley, Howard Eisley, John Garris, Jay Murphy, James "Scoonie" Penn (transferred to Ohio State), Tyrese Rice and Craig Smith
Mississippi	9	5-9	.357	Keith Carter, Carlos Clark, Aaron Harper, Marshall Henderson, Marcus Hicks, Stefan Moody, Justin Reed, Ansu Sesay and Elston Turner
Nebraska	7	0-7	.000	Cookie Belcher, Jaron Boone, Derrick Chandler, Bernard Day, Venson Hamilton, Carl Hayes, Rich King, Tyronn Lue, Terran Petteway, Eric Piatkowski, Shavon Shields, Erick Strickland and Andre Woolridge (transferred to Iowa)
Northwestern	1	1-1	.500	Vic Law, Scottie Lindsey, Bryant McIntosh and Dererk Pardon
Texas A&M	14	13-15	.464	Billy Bob Barnett, John Beasley, Josh Carter, Winston Crite, Barry Davis, Tyler Davis, Mike Heitmann, Danuel House, Jalen Jones, Joseph Jones, Acie Law IV, Bennie Lenox, Khris Middleton, Steve Niles, Sonny Parker, Ronnie Peret, Claude Riley, Vernon Smith, Robert Williams, Rudy Woods and Rynn Wright

After Richmond shocked Jim Boeheim-coached Syracuse in 1991 and Santa Clara kayoed Lute Olson's Arizona squad in 1993, the next three #15 seed victories over #2 seeds came at the hands of historically-black colleges and universities - Coppin State over South Carolina in 1997, Hampton over Iowa State in 2001 and Norfolk State over Missouri in 2012.

However, no HBCU institution has reached the Sweet 16. Perceived in most quarters as picking-on-patsies fodder, the truth about black crime in basketball is that it's a big sin many fans don't know or can't recall the high degree of success historically-black colleges and universities enjoyed at the small-college level. For instance, Norfolk State appeared in the NCAA Division II Tournament 10 times in a 12-year span from 1984 until finishing third in the 1995 tourney. But most of these HBCU institutions currently are imprisoned at the NCAA Division I level, where they are little more than indentured servants doing the bidding of their major-university masters almost always getting whipped on the road during non-conference competition.

What many observers should know is seven different historically black colleges and universities advancing to the NCAA DI level captured a total of nine NAIA and NCAA College Division Tournament championships in a 21-year span from 1957 through 1977 (Tennessee State from 1957 through 1959, Grambling '61, Prairie View A&M '62, Winston-Salem State '67, Morgan State '74, Coppin State '76 and Texas Southern '77). Coppin State is the lone school in this group to go on and post a triumph in the NCAA Division I playoffs.

Winson-Salem State saw what life looked like on the DI side of the fence and abandoned ship after only one season. All but two of the 25 HBCUs endured at least one season with 20 defeats in a six-year span from 2003-04 through 2008-09. The pair that emerged unscathed during that stretch were Hampton (worst record was 13-17 in 2003-04) and Norfolk State (11-19 in 2006-07).

Despite both leagues prevailing in the same year for the first time in 2021, conference members from the Mid-Eastern Athletic and Southwestern Athletic have won only 10% of their NCAA Division I Tournament games. Alcorn State registered the first three of the following modest total of 14 HBCU wins in the DI tourney versus non-HBCU competition (eight in preliminary-round competition; SWAC's Texas Southern matched up against MEAC's North Carolina Central in First Four in 2018) since the SWAC and MEAC moved up to the Division I level in 1979-80 and 1980-81, respectively:

1980 Midwest First Round: #8 Alcorn State 70 (Baker/Smith team-high 18 points), #9 South Alabama 62 (Rains 22)
1983 Midwest Preliminary Round: Alcorn State 81 (Phelps 18), Xavier 75 (Fleming 16)
1984 Midwest Preliminary Round: Alcorn State 79 (Phelps 21), Houston Baptist 60 (Lavodrama 14)
1993 West First Round: #13 Southern (LA) 93 (Scales 27), #4 Georgia Tech 78 (Mackey 27)
1997 East First Round: #15 Coppin State 78 (Singletary 22), #2 South Carolina 65 (McKie 16)
2001 West First Round: #15 Hampton 58 (Williams 16), #2 Iowa State 57 (Rancik/Shirley 10)
2004 Preliminary Round: Florida A&M 72 (Woods 21), Lehigh 57 (Tempest 13)
2010 Preliminary Round: Arkansas-Pine Bluff 61 (Smith 14), Winthrop 44 (Corbin 13)
2012 West First Round: #15 Norfolk State 86 (O'Quinn 26), #2 Missouri (Dixon 22)
2013 Preliminary Round: North Carolina A&T 73 (Underwood 19), Liberty 72 (Marshall 22)
2015 Preliminary Round: Hampton 74 (Chievous/Johnson 15), Manhattan 64 (Richards 17)
2021 Preliminary Round: Texas Southern 60 (Walker III 19), Mount St. Mary's 52 (Chong Qui 14)
2021 Preliminary Round: Norfolk State 54 (Hawkins 24), Appalachian State 53 (Forrest 18)
2022 Preliminary Round: Texas Southern 76 (Etienne 21), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (67 (Tennyson 18)

All-Mountain West Conference first-team selection Hunter Maldonado (10 turnovers for Wyoming against Indiana) should know subpar performances happens to the best of them. Russell Westbrook has discerned anew this season that success isn't guaranteed at every pitstop in a hoops career. In monumental miscarriage of justice a couple of years ago, Michael Jordan (North Carolina) and Larry Bird (Indiana State) reached finale stemming from online voting for ESPN's college basketball's greatest of all-time (GOAT) bracket. MJ deserved to be national POY over Virginia senior Ralph Sampson in 1982-83, but the ESPN debacle was an obvious benchmark exhibiting historical level of ignorance and how much ill-informed younger generations are self-absorbed mental midgets completely influenced by TV commercials. Actually, ESPN's politically-correct bracket was flawed from the outset when a race-to-erase masculinity had females comprising 1/4 of the entrants. Where were bathroom-barging transgender candidates impacting site selection?

A more accurate barometer for determining college impact and individual excellence is Collegehoopedia's authoritative "All-Time Top 100 Players." Truth be told when it comes to NCAA Tournament history, MJ and Larry Legend probably rank 1-2 only in assessing a "goat" for most disappointing college playoff performances by individuals eventually earning at least three NBA Most Valuable Player awards. Despite both of them reaching an NCAA championship contest, there is a striking number of other individuals who should be on college basketball's Mount Rushmore after excelling the most as NCAA playoff performers. For instance, UCLA's Lew Alcindor earned three consecutive Final Four Most Outstanding Player awards from 1967 through 1969; Ohio State's Jerry Lucas was a three-time Big Ten Conference MVP who led the nation in FG% all three seasons from 1960 through 1962; Cincinnati's Oscar Robertson amassed 33 consecutive double-doubles en route to pacing country in scoring three times from 1958 through 1960; San Francisco's Bill Russell registered an incredible four-game total of 84 rebounds in back-to-back Final Fours in 1955 and 1956, and UCLA's Bill Walton was the main cog for first school in history to compile back-to-back perfect seasons (1972 and 1973).

It's a simplistic cop-out to accept the one-name icon visibility of Michael, Bird and Magic Johnson (Michigan State) and designate them among the premier players in NCAA tourney history. Compared to their unquestionable NBA exploits (where MJ should rank #1 if wearing uniform No. 23 rather than 45), they were more duds than studs in NCAA playoffs warranting inclusion among the following not-so-super seven NBA MVPs faltering at times in college postseason competition:

1. Michael Jordan (North Carolina) - His NBA playoff scoring average with the Chicago Bulls more than doubled the NCAA Tournament scoring average he compiled for Carolina. Jordan averaged 16.5 points per NCAA playoff game with the Tar Heels, scoring 20 or more in just two of 10 postseason games from 1982 through 1984. His Airness scored fewer than 18 points in two of the four playoff contests he led Carolina in scoring. Most people don't remember his inauspicious playoff debut when he collected six points, one rebound, no assists and no steals in 37 minutes of a 52-50 opening-round victory against James Madison in the East Regional. And Jordan's final NCAA Tournament appearance before he left school early for the NBA was nothing to write home about, either. The college player of the year was restricted to six points in the first 35 minutes of his collegiate swan song in the East Regional semifinals against Indiana, finishing with 13 points, one rebound, one assist and one steal in 26 foul-plagued minutes when the top-ranked Tar Heels were eliminated (72-68). A total of 25 different Carolina players - including Ranzino Smith with modest career average of 6.5 ppg - posted NCAA playoff scoring high matching or greater than Jordan's best of 27.

2. Larry Bird (Indiana State) - Boosted the Sycamores to the 1979 final in his lone NCAA tourney, but put the 'oops' in hoops by committing a Final Four-record 17 turnovers. He hit just 7-of-21 field-goal attempts and had three times as many turnovers (six) as assists (two) against Michigan State in the championship game, which was essentially the equivalent of a boring Super Bowl failing to live up to hype.

3. James Harden (Arizona State) - Averaged 9.5 points in two NCAA Tournament games in 2009.

4. Dave Cowens (Florida State) - Collected 11 points and 4 rebounds in one NCAA Tournament game against East Tennessee State in the playoff debuts for both schools in 1968.

5. Charles Barkley (Auburn) - Lost only NCAA Tournament game as junior in 1984 against mid-major Richmond (#12 seed).

6. Russell Westbrook (UCLA) - Averaged 8.2 points and 2.2 assists in 10 NCAA Tournament games for Final Four teams in 2007 and 2008.

7. Magic Johnson (Michigan State) - Shot an anemic 27.8% from the floor (10-of-36) in three 1978 tourney games as a freshman before leading Spartans to NCAA title the next year. He had more turnovers (six) than assists (five) in the over-hyped 1979 final, a mediocre contest paling in comparison to the last eight finals of the 1980s when seven of them were decided by an average of two points. Johnson outscored and outrebounded teammate Greg Kelser in just one of eight playoff games they played together. Kelser simply contributed more than Magic to MSU's cause in NCAA competition.

Since they usually weren't the focal point of offense, their postseason competition achievement can get lost in normal All-American traffic for the 14 schools boasting multiple national championships. Despite never participating in a Final Four themselves, there are often-overlooked players who exhibited authentic "One Shining Moment" in NCAA Tournament for a blue-blood program. Two undervalued guards from prominent programs deserving special mention are:

• Ryan Robertson - 31-point outburst for Kansas against Kentucky in overtime in 1999 is higher than all-time tourney best for any of his more-publicized teammates during four-year career (including Raef LaFrentz, Paul Pierce, Scot Pollard and Jacque Vaughn). KU's Robertson, taking only 10 field-goal attempts, is one of six opposing players (including Dayton's Henry Finkel in 1966, Notre Dame's Austin Carr in 1970, Indiana's Kent Benson in 1975, Iowa State's Justus Thigpen Jr. in 1992 and Wichita State's Cleanthony Early in 2014) to score more than 30 points in defeat amid UK's NCAA tourney-high 131 victories. Among the 14 schools with multiple NCAA titles, Academic All-American Robertson has the lowest career scoring average (7.4 ppg) for a "blue-blood school" individual meeting the challenge and registering more than 30 points in a single NCAA playoff game.
• Ranzino Smith - 27-point uprising for North Carolina in only 18 minutes against Loyola Marymount in 1988 matches Michael Jordan's NCAA playoff high (against Temple in 1984). Among the 14 NCAA titlists in question, Smith has the lowest career scoring average (6.5 ppg) for an individual supplying more than 25 points in a single NCAA playoff game.

Twelve of the 14 tourney games summarized below occurred in first or second round. Restricting alphabetical list to schools capturing more than one NCAA title, the following individuals tallied more than 20 points in an NCAA playoff game despite college career scoring average lower than 13 ppg and subsequently not selected in first round of NBA draft:

Multiple-Title School	Unsung Hero (Career Avg.)	HG	NCAA Playoff Opponent	Date
Cincinnati	Leonard Stokes (10.2)	39	UCLA (Second Round)	3-17-02
Duke	Doug Kistler (11.5)	26	Princeton (First Round)	3-8-60
Florida	KeVaughn Allen (12.1)	35	Wisconsin (Regional Semifinals)	3-24-17
Indiana	Andrae Patterson (11.3)	26	Oklahoma (First Round)	3-12-98
Kansas	Ryan Robertson (7.4)	31	Kentucky (Second Round)	3-14-99
Kentucky	Joe Crawford (11.3)	35	Marquette (First Round)	3-20-08
Louisville	Edgar Sosa (9.7)	31	Texas A&M (Second Round)	3-17-07
Michigan State	Darryl Johnson (12.9)	22	Washington (First Round)	3-13-86
North Carolina	Ranzino Smith (6.5)	27	Loyola Marymount (Second Round)	3-19-88
North Carolina State	Ilian Evtimov (9.3)	28	Vanderbilt (Second Round)	3-21-04
Oklahoma State	Corey Williams (10.3)	27	Tulane (Second Round)	3-22-92
San Francisco	Mike Quick (12.6)	25	Long Beach State (Regional Semifinals)	3-15-73
UCLA	Tony Parker (8.3)	28	UAB (Second Round)	3-21-15
Villanova	Alvin Williams (10.9)	31	California (Second Round)	3-15-97

At least 10 of the 37 schools appearing in excess of 50 NCAA playoff games failed to participate in the tourney each year since the field expanded to at least 64 teams in 1985, including 16 former Final Four schools this season. Fifteen is the average number of schools in this category over the last eight tourneys.

Nearly half of the "star schools" stayed home in 2004, including Houston when the Cougars were in the midst of a 17-year playoff drought from 1993 through 2009. Following is a chronological list of big-name universities who were tourney outcasts since 1985:

1985 (14) - Cincinnati, Connecticut, Florida, Houston, Indiana, Kansas State, Louisville, Marquette, Oklahoma State, Texas, UCLA, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

1986 (12) - Arkansas, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Florida, Houston, Kansas State, Marquette, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Texas, UCLA, Wake Forest

1987 (13) - Arkansas, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Louisville, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis State, Michigan State, Oklahoma State, Texas, Utah, Villanova, Wake Forest

1988 (12) - Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Marquette, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Texas, UCLA, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

1989 (15) - Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, Marquette, Maryland, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, Utah, Wake Forest

1990 (12) - Cincinnati, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis State, North Carolina State, Oklahoma State, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

1991 (14) - Cincinnati, Florida, Illinois, Houston, Kansas State, Kentucky, Louisville, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, West Virginia

1992 (11) - Florida, Illinois, Kansas State, Marquette, Maryland, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Purdue, UNLV, Utah, Villanova

1993 (15) - Connecticut, Florida, Georgetown, Houston, Maryland, Michigan State, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Syracuse, Texas, UNLV, Villanova, West Virginia

1994 (13) - Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Memphis, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, St. John's, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, West Virginia

1995 (11) - Duke, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Marquette, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, St. John's, UNLV, West Virginia

1996 (11) - Florida, Houston, Illinois, Michigan State, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, St. John's, UNLV, West Virginia

1997 (16) - Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Houston, Kansas State, Memphis, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Syracuse, UNLV, West Virginia

1998 (14) - Florida, Georgetown, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas, Villanova, Wake Forest

1999 (12) - Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Kansas State, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, UNLV, Wake Forest, West Virginia

2000 (12) - Georgetown, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Villanova, Wake Forest, West Virginia

2001 (14) - Connecticut, Houston, Kansas State, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina State, Purdue, St. John's, UNLV, Utah, Villanova, West Virginia

2002 (15) - Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisville, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina, Purdue, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Villanova, West Virginia

2003 (14) - Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio State, St. John's, Temple, UCLA, UNLV, Villanova, West Virginia

2004 (18) - Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas State, Marquette, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, UCLA, UNLV, Villanova, West Virginia

2005 (15) - Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Indiana, Kansas State, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, UNLV

2006 (14) - Cincinnati, Houston, Kansas State, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest

2007 (15) - Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Iowa, Kansas State, Michigan, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

2008 (14) - Cincinnati, Florida, Houston, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Syracuse, Utah, Wake Forest

2009 (13) - Arkansas, Cincinnati, Florida, Georgetown, Houston, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas State, Kentucky, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, St. John's, UNLV

2010 (15) - Arizona, Arkansas, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Memphis, Michigan, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, St. John's, UCLA, Utah

2011 (10) - Arkansas, Houston, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Utah, Wake Forest

2012 (13) - Arizona, Arkansas, Houston, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, St. John's, UCLA, Utah, Villanova, Wake Forest

2013 (11) - Arkansas, Connecticut, Houston, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Purdue, St. John's, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

2014 (15) - Arkansas, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Indiana, Marquette, Maryland, Notre Dame, Purdue, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

2015 (12) - Connecticut, Florida, Houston, Illinois, Kansas State, Marquette, Memphis, Michigan, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Wake Forest

2016 (16) - Arkansas, Florida, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Kansas State, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, St. John's, UCLA, UNLV, Wake Forest

2017 (15) - Connecticut, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Memphis, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Utah

2018 (16) - Connecticut, Georgetown, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisville, Marquette, Maryland, Memphis, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest

2019 (15) - Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgetown, Illinois, Indiana, Memphis, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, UCLA, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

2021 (16) - Arizona, Cincinnati, Duke, Indiana, Kansas State, Kentucky, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis, North Carolina State, Notre Dame, St. John's, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest

2022 (16) - Cincinnati, Florida, Georgetown, Kansas State, Louisville, Maryland, North Carolina State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, St. John's, Syracuse, Temple, UNLV, Utah, Wake Forest, West Virginia

NCAA Tournament head coaches will need to draw upon all of their resources to motivate their clubs in postseason play. Longwood's Griff Aldrich, boasting a doctorate degree, is among the following alphabetical list assessing the educational backgrounds of most of the 68 mentors in 2022 NCAA playoffs:

2022 NCAA Tourney Coach	School	Bachelor's	Master's
Rick Barnes	Tennessee	Health & Physical Education
Chris Beard	Texas Tech	Kinesiology
John Becker	Vermont	History	Information Systems
Randy Bennett	Saint Mary's	Biology
Mike Brey	Notre Dame	Physical Education
John Calipari	Kentucky	Marketing
Ed Cooley	Providence	History
Mick Cronin	UCLA	History
Jamie Dixon	Texas Christian	Finance	Economics
Scott Drew	Baylor	Liberal Arts	Liberal Studies
Brian Dutcher	San Diego State	Physical Education	Physical Education & Athletic Administration
Andy Enfield	Southern California	Economics	Business Administration
Mark Few	Gonzaga	Physical Education	Athletic Administration
Greg Gard	Wisconsin	Physical & Health Education	Counselor Education
Todd Golden	San Francisco	Business Administration
Jared Grasso	Bryant	Mass Communications
John Groce	Akron	Mathematics
Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway	Memphis	Professional Studies
Eric Henderson	South Dakota State	Elementary Education
Chris Holtmann	Ohio State	Psychology	Athletic Administration
Juwan Howard	Michigan	Communications
Dan Hurley	Connecticut	Business
Martin Ingelsby	Delaware	Marketing
Tom Izzo	Michigan State	Health and Physical Education
Chris Jans	New Mexico State	Marketing & Finance
James Jones	Yale	Communications	Educational Administration
Johnny Jones	Texas Southern	General Studies
Robert Jones	Norfolk State	Business Management
Andy Kennedy	UAB	History
Matt Langel	Colgate	Management
Rob Lanier	Georgia State	Psychology	Educational Counseling
Jim Larranaga	Miami (Fla.)	Economics
Tommy Lloyd	Arizona	Biology
Steve Lutz	Texas A&M-Corpus Christi	Kinesiology	Physical Education
Fran McCaffery	Iowa	Economics	Education
Greg McDermott	Creighton	History	Sports Management
Bob McKillop	Davidson	History
Matt McMahon	Murray State	Marketing
Niko Medved	Colorado State	Kinesiology	Sport Management
Chris Mooney	Richmond	Psychology	Secondary and Higher Education & Counseling
Eric Musselman	Arkansas	unavailable
Scott Nagy	Wright State	Business Administration
Kevin Nickelberry	Louisiana State (interim)	Communications
Nate Oats	Alabama	Math Education
Matt Painter	Purdue	Sociology
Lamont Paris	Chattanooga	Business Economics	Recreation & Sports Management
Bruce Pearl	Auburn	Business Administration
Steve Pikiell	Rutgers	Finance
Leon Rice	Boise State	Physical Education	Athletic Administration, Management & Program Development
Kelvin Sampson	Houston	Health & Physical Education	Coaching & Administration
Bill Self	Kansas	Business	Athletic Administration
Shaka Smart	Marquette	History	Social Science
Danny Sprinkle	Montana State	Health & Human Development
Dedrique Taylor	Cal State Fullerton	Sociology & Organizational Studies	Sports Administration
Brad Underwood	Illinois	Radio & TV Communications
Drew Valentine	Loyola of Chicago	Communications
Jay Wright	Villanova	Economics/Sociology
Mike Young	Virginia Tech	Physical Education

There is a tendency to overindulge at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Anyone digesting the following assortment of incisive facts on the 68 NCAA Division I Tournament coaches should find that variety is the spice of this occasionally irreverent smorgasbord. Remember: If a morsel isn't appetizing, don't be a glutton for punishment in trying to comprehend what makes the coaching community tick. Just proceed directly to the next tidbit. Sooner or later, there's bound to be a factoid you can savor. Several of the following 2022 playoff mentors were student managers, not players, while attending college:

AKRON: John Groce played in high school at Danville, Ind., under Todd Lickliter, who went on to coach Butler and Iowa. Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann was one of Groce's teammates with Taylor University (Ind.) during first half of 1990s.

ALABAMA: Detroit-area prep coach Nate Oats joined Bobby Hurley's Buffalo staff directly with junior college recruit Justin Moss in 2013 before Moss became Mid-American Conference Player of the Year the next season and one year before center Raheem Johnson aligned with the Bulls as another J.C. signee. Moss and Johnson played under Oats at Romulus H.S.

ARIZONA: Tommy Lloyd's son, Liam, averaged 1.5 ppg for Grand Canyon the past two seasons. During the construction of their home in Spokane while Gonzaga's associate head coach, his family lived in the childhood residence of Zags legend and Hall of Famer John Stockton. Lloyd, known for his international recruiting, spent several months backpacking on several continents before commencing his coaching career in the late 1990s.

ARKANSAS: Among Eric Musselman's teammates at San Diego was Mike Whitmarsh, who won a silver medal in beach volleyball at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Musselman played on same high school team as former NBA player Scott Roth and former NFL Pro Bowl punter Tom Tupa. Musselman's wife, Danyelle, is a former on-air personality and anchor for ESPN, FOX Sports, and the NFL Network. He and his father, Bill, were first father-son combination to both become NBA head coaches.

AUBURN: As an undergraduate at Boston College, Bruce Pearl was Tom Davis' administrative assistant before serving as an assistant coach under Davis at Stanford and Iowa.

BAYLOR: Scott Drew served as coach of an Athletes In Action (AIA) squad touring Croatia and Bosnia in the summer of 1997.

BOISE STATE: Leon Rice's son, Max, averaged 4.1 ppg and 2.2 rpg under his dad with the Broncos the past three seasons.

BRYANT: Jared Grasso ranks among the top five in Quinnipiac history in assists and three-point field goals. He was the school's second 1,000-point career scorer in its NCAA Division I history.

CAL STATE FULLERTON: Dedrique Taylor was an assistant coach for Arizona State when lethal lefthander James Harden led the Sun Devils in scoring in 2007-08 and 2008-09.

CHATTANOOGA: Lamont Paris averaged 8 ppg in three NCAA Division III Tournament games for College of Wooster (Ohio) in 1995 and 1996.

COLGATE: Matt Langel played under coach Fran Dunphy with Penn before serving as an assistant coach under him at Penn and Temple. As a senior in 1999-00, Langel was the Quakers' runner-up in scoring and assists for an NCAA playoff team.

COLORADO STATE: Niko Medved was an assistant at Minnesota under Dan Monson in 2006-07 seven seasons after Monson promised a similar job to Arizona's Tommy Lloyd at Gonzaga before leaving for the Gophers. Monson never has reached the Final Four in 25 seasons of DI coaching.

CONNECTICUT: One of Dan Hurley's assistants at previous pitstops Wagner and Rhode Island was brother Bobby Hurley, an All-American guard for Duke's back-to-back NCAA titlists in 1991 and 1992 and current Arizona State coach.

CREIGHTON: Following graduation from Northern Iowa, Greg McDermott played one season of professional basketball in Switzerland. McDermott led the Panthers in field-goal shooting three consecutive seasons from 1985-86 through 1987-88 when he was a combined 59.5% from the floor. He ranked 16th in the nation in that category as a junior.

DAVIDSON: Bob McKillop was former Notre Dame/North Carolina/SMU coach Matt Doherty's high school mentor at Long Island Lutheran. Ex-Fordham coach Tom Pecora served as an assistant under McKillop at L.I. Lutheran. McKillop scored three points for East Carolina against Lefty Driesell-coached Davidson in the 1969 Southern Conference Tournament championship game. McKillop then transferred to Hofstra, where he led the Flying Dutchmen in assists in 1971-72 with 3.3 per game.

DELAWARE: Martin Ingelsby's father, Tom, led Villanova to the 1971 NCAA championship game against UCLA before playing for the NBA's Atlanta Hawks in 1973-74 (coached by Cotton Fitzsimmons) and ABA's Spirits of St. Louis and San Diego Sails in 1974-75 (coached by Bob MacKinnon) and 1975-76 (coached by Bill Musselman). Martin led Notre Dame in assists three seasons, including NCAA playoff team his senior year with 6.4 apg under coach Mike Brey.

DUKE: Mike Krzyzewski was an assistant with Dave Bliss, Bob Donewald and Bob Weltlich on Indiana coach Bob Knight's staff in 1974-75. Krzyzewski had the worst three-year record for the Blue Devils (38-47 from 1980-81 through 1982-83) since George Buckheit went 16-30 from 1924-25 through 1926-27.

GEORGIA STATE: Rob Lanier, a cousin of all-time great St. Bonaventure center Bob Lanier, became the first individual to capture a conference postseason tournament (Metro Atlantic with Siena in 2002) by winning four games in as many days in his initial season as a college head coach.

GONZAGA: Mark Few never was a head coach at any level before inheriting that position after Dan Monson departed for Minnesota. Few was an assistant for two different Oregon high schools before becoming an aide with the Zags under Dan Fitzgerald and Monson. Few's wedding vows in 1994 were exchanged with Rev. Norm Few, the father of the groom.

HOUSTON: Kelvin Sampson was a three-year baseball letterman for Pembroke (N.C.) State.

ILLINOIS: Brad Underwood, as a juco recruit, took a visit to Oklahoma State, where his player host at the time was current Kansas bench boss Bill Self. Underwood's son, Tyler, played sparingly under his father with OSU and the Illini.

INDIANA: Mike Woodson coached Hoosiers Big Ten Player of the Year Jared Jeffries with the New York Knicks in 2011-12 (4.4 ppg and 3.9 rpg). Woodson's daughter, Alexis, played volleyball one season for IU.

IOWA: Fran McCaffery is believed to have been the youngest coach (28 years old) ever to take a team to the NCAA Tournament when he directed Lehigh to the 1988 playoffs. His wife, the former Margaret Nowlin, ranks among the top scorers in Notre Dame history. She was the catalyst behind the first-ever NCAA women's appearance by the Irish in 1992 and was named MVP of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference Tournament that year. Margaret served as an assistant coach at her alma mater in 1996-97.

IOWA STATE: T.J. Otzelberger was an assistant coach with the Cyclones under his three predecessors - Greg McDermott, Fred Hoiberg and Steve Prohm. Otzelberger's wife, Alison Lacey, was a three-time All-Big 12 Conference selection for ISU women's basketball program.

KANSAS: Bill Self served as an assistant on the Big Eight Conference coaching staffs of Larry Brown (Kansas) and Eddie Sutton (Oklahoma State). Self, an Oklahoma State alumnus, played in the Big Eight against Maryland coach Mark Turgeon (Kansas) and top two NBA draft picks Steve Stipanovich (2nd selection overall in 1983/attended Missouri), Wayman Tisdale (2nd in 1985/Oklahoma) and Danny Manning (1st in 1988/Kansas). Self, Oklahoma's High School Player of the Year over Tisdale in 1980-81, directed Oral Roberts to the nation's best winning percentage among independent schools in 1996 (18-9) and 1997 (21-7). San Antonio Spurs CEO R.C. Buford was a groomsman in Self's wedding.

JACKSONVILLE STATE: Ray Harper was the SWC Rookie of the Year in 1980-81 when he averaged 9.8 ppg and 3.9 apg for Texas coach Abe Lemons before transferring to Kentucky Wesleyan, where he averaged 13.1 ppg and 7.1 apg in 1983-84 and 1984-85.

KENTUCKY: John Calipari lettered two years for UNC-Wilmington before transferring to Clarion (Pa.) State.

LONGWOOD: Griff Aldrich, a college teammate of Utah State coach Ryan Odom at Hampden-Sydney (Va.), had jobs in the private sector for 16 years including partner in top-tier international law firm and CFO of an investment company.

LOUISIANA STATE: Prior to beginning his coaching career, interim Kevin Nickelberry was president of two public relations firms and founded an at-risk youth non-profit organization in the Washington, D.C., area.

LOYOLA OF CHICAGO: Drew Valentine, 30, is the youngest coach at NCAA Division I level. His younger brother, Denzel, was national player of the year with Michigan State in 2015-16 before becoming an NBA first-round draft choice by the Chicago Bulls. Their father, Carlton, averaged 8.4 ppg and 4.1 rpg while shooting 60.1% from the floor for MSU from 1984-85 through 1987-88 under coach Jud Heathcote. Carlton was the Spartans' leading scorer as a senior with 13.3 ppg.

MARQUETTE: When Shaka Smart graduated, he was the career assists leader for Kenyon College, a liberal arts school in Ohio.

MEMPHIS: Penny Hardaway's son, Jayden, averaged 2.6 ppg for the Tigers the past three seasons. Hardaway's nickname stems from his grandmother calling him "Pretty" with a southern drawl, thus sounding like "Penny."

MIAMI (FLA.): Providence product Jim Larranaga spent one season as player-coach for a professional team in Belgium. He had six former assistants serving as a Division I head coach in 2005-06.

MICHIGAN: According to Wikipedia, Juwan Howard has six children with four different women. Howard's first son, Juwan Jr. (played for Western Michigan and Detroit), was raised by Markita Blyden, who was runner-up for Michigan's Miss Basketball when she and twin sister (Nakita Hatcher) led their high school to 1990 Class A state championship game. Howard reportedly met Markita at Pontchartrain Hotel in Detroit in spring of 1991 before Chicago product enrolled at UM.

MICHIGAN STATE: Tom Izzo was a teammate in high school (Iron Mountain, Mich.) and college (Northern Michigan) of former Detroit Lions coach Steve Mariucci. Izzo, a running back, and Mariucci, a quarterback, were the best men in each others' weddings.

MONTANA STATE: Danny Sprinkle was Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year with the Bobcats in 1995-96 (9.8 ppg and 43.7 3FG%) before earning all-league honors the next season (13.7 ppg and 48.8 3FG%).

MURRAY STATE: Matt McMahon averaged 5.8 ppg for Buzz Peterson at Appalachian State from 1996-97 through 1999-00 before serving as an assistant coach under him with a couple of universities (Tennessee and UNC Wilmington). McMahon's wife, Mary, played basketball for Furman.

NEW MEXICO STATE: Chris Jans was head coach for three different junior colleges. Despite directing Bowling Green to a 20-win campaign on the heels of a 20-loss season, he was fired after one year with the Falcons after being caught on video drunk in a campus bar making inappropriate comments towards a young woman.

NORFOLK STATE: Robert Jones guided the visiting Spartans to an 80-79 overtime victory against No. 1 seed Alabama in 2019 NIT first round. Outcome is regarded as perhaps the biggest upset by point spread in NIT history.

NOTRE DAME: Mike Brey, Danny Ferry's assistant coach at DeMatha High School in Hyattsville, Md., joined Mike Krzyzewski's staff two years after the national player-to-be enrolled at Duke in 1985. Brey's mother, the former Betty Mullen, held the world record in the 50-meter butterfly and competed with the U.S. team at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. His uncle, Jack Mullen, averaged 4.7 ppg as a sophomore guard for Duke's first ACC Tournament championship team in 1960.

OHIO STATE: One of Chris Holtmann's teammates with Taylor (Ind.) was Akron coach John Groce, who previously was bench boss for Illinois.

PROVIDENCE: Ed Cooley was a three-year team captain for Stonehill (Mass.).

PURDUE: Matt Painter's father attended Big Ten Conference rival Indiana.

RICHMOND: Chris Mooney, Mike Brennan (American University coach) and former Princeton/Fairfield coach Sydney Johnson accounted for three of Princeton's top five scorers under Pete Carril in 1993-94. Mooney was a two-time All-Ivy League selection.

RUTGERS: Steve Pikiell played with his brother, Tim, for Connecticut under coach Jim Calhoun in 1989-90 and 1990-91.

SAINT MARY'S: Randy Bennett played for his father, Tom, at Mesa Community College before attending UC San Diego. At Mesa, Bennett helped his team to a 56-10 record and two Arizona J.C. championships.

SAINT PETER'S: Shaheen Holloway was a three-time All-Big East Conference selection with Seton Hall. He drove the length of the court to score winning layup and beat Oregon in ovrtime, 72-17, in first round of 2000 NCAA Tournament.

SAN DIEGO STATE: Brian Dutcher's contract buyout is only $1 million, not in the $6 million range for any other college, if he has a chance to coach his alma mater (Minnesota). His three sisters and wife also attended Minnesota, where his father, Jim, coached for 11 seasons from mid-1970s to mid-1980s and still resides.

SAN FRANCISCO: Todd Golden, after scoring eight points for Saint Mary's against Miami (Fla.) in 2008 NCAA Tournament, graduated as the Gaels' all-time leader in free-throw shooting (83.2%).

SETON HALL: Kevin Willard played under his father, Ralph, at Western Kentucky and Pittsburgh. Kevin went on to become a coaching intern with the Boston Celtics under Rick Pitino, who was Kentucky's coach in 1989-90 when Ralph was an assistant there with Billy Donovan, Herb Sendek and Tubby Smith.

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE: Eric Henderson averaged 7.4 ppg, 8.4 rpg and 1.5 spg under current Creighton coach Greg McDermott at Wayne State (Neb.) from 1997-98 through 1999-00.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: Andy Enfield (Johns Hopkins '91) set the all-time NCAA career free-throw percentage record (92.5%; 431-of-466). His wife, Amanda Marcum, is a Maxim cover girl.

TENNESSEE: Texas' turnaround in 1998-99 (19-13 record after going 14-17 in 1997-98 under Tom Penders) enabled Rick Barnes to become the only active coach to take two different schools to the NCAA playoffs in his maiden voyage with them after they posted a losing mark the previous campaign. He previously achieved the feat with Providence in the late 1980s. Barnes posted the nation's best winning percentage by a first-year major college head coach in 1987-88 when he went 20-10 (.667) in his lone season with George Mason.

TEXAS: Chris Beard was team manager at Texas under Longhorns coach Tom Penders.

TEXAS A&M-CORPUS CHRISTI: Steve Lutz played and coached in junior college.

TEXAS CHRISTIAN: Jamie Dixon, an All-SWC second-team selection as a senior with TCU, was a seventh-round NBA draft choice of the Washington Bullets in 1987. In 1983-84, he was a freshman teammate of NBA coach Scott Brooks.

TEXAS SOUTHERN: Johnny Jones is the only individual in LSU history to play and coach with the Tigers at the Final Four. He achieved the feat in a six-year span. Jones averaged 3.3 ppg as a freshman guard for LSU's 31-5 team in 1981 and later was an assistant coach for the Tigers for 12 seasons (reached national semifinals in 1986). They were eliminated both years by the eventual national champion (Indiana in 1981 and Louisville in 1986). Jones was a high teammate in DeRidder, La., of ex-McNeese State coach Dave Simmons and former UCLA/11-year NBA player Mike Sanders.

TEXAS TECH: Mark Adams took time away from college coaching at the turn of the century to become owner of the Lubbock Cotton Kings hockey team.

UAB: Andy Kennedy holds the Blazers' single-game scoring record with 41 points against St. Louis on January 13, 1991.

UCLA: Mick Cronin's father, Harold "Hep" Cronin, compiled more than 400 victories as a high school coach in the greater Cincinnati area. Hep also scouted for the Atlanta Braves and was chiefly responsible for them selecting Cincy product Drew Denson as their No. 1 draftee in 1984 (19th overall pick).

VERMONT: John Becker coached two seasons at Gallaudet, the country's only four-year liberal arts college for the deaf and hearing impaired.

VILLANOVA: Jay Wright worked as an administrative assistant with the Philadelphia Stars football franchise, which captured the 1983 United States Football League championship. He married a former Villanova cheerleader.

VIRGINIA TECH: One hundred percent of Mike Young's student-athletes at Wofford who completed their eligibility graduated. He coached the Terriers for 17 seasons.

WISCONSIN: Greg Gard served as an assistant coach under Bo Ryan at three colleges (Wisconsin-Platteville, UW-Milwaukee and the Badgers).

WRIGHT STATE: Scott Nagy's father, Dick, was a longtime assistant coach at Illinois under Hall of Famer Lou Henson. Scott, who set a career record for assists at Delta State (Miss.) with 549 from 1984-85 through 1987-88, was named Gulf South Conference Athlete of the Year as a senior.

WYOMING: Jeff Linder played under former Texas-Pan American/Mercer coach Bob Hofman at Western State Colorado.

YALE: James Jones' brother, Joe, was an assistant coach at Villanova before becoming bench boss with another Ivy League member (Columbia) for seven seasons before accepting similar position at Boston University.

If you're a history buff, don't forget about the 32-team NIT field amid all the furor about participation in the NCAA Tournament. Although it appears the case, the Final Four hasn't eternally been the final word in national postseason competition. The 68-team NCAA playoffs, which played second fiddle to the National Invitation Tournament in their formative years, seemed to haughtily look down upon the NIT as little more than an acronym contest for derisive entries such as National Insignificant Tournament, Not Influential Tournament, Nominally Important Tournament, No Interest Tournament, Nearly Ignominious Tournament, Naturally Impaired Tournament, Never Impressionable Tournament, etc.

The NIT champion can proclaim, "We're No. 69!" But in an earlier era, the NIT was superior to the NCAA at a time when airplanes didn't dominate the transportation industry, television was in its infancy and New York's Madison Square Garden was the place to be if a team wanted extensive national exposure. If ever there was a concept whose time had arrived, it was the NIT in 1938. If ever there was a location to conduct a national tourney at a time when the sports page was the principal place to digest sports news, it was in New York because of Gotham's 20 or so daily newspapers at the time.

Following are top 40 hits for the event, citing nuggets you should know about the history of the nation's oldest national postseason tournament:

1. Former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Byron "Whizzer" White was Colorado's second-leading scorer with 10 points when the Buffaloes bowed to Temple in the inaugural NIT in 1938.

2. The 1939 NIT final featured two unbeaten teams when Long Island University defeated Loyola of Chicago, 44-32, marking the only matchup in major-college history when two undefeated major colleges met in a national postseason tournament. LIU finished with a 23-0 record and Loyola 21-1.

3. Frankie Baumholtz capped his Ohio University college basketball career by earning MVP honors in the 1941 NIT when he led the tourney in scoring with 53 points in three games for the second-place Bobcats, including a game-high 19 in the final. He went on to become a major-league outfielder who led the National League in pinch hits in 1955 and 1956.

4. Rudy Baric, MVP of the 1942 NIT for titlist West Virginia, guided his alma mater to a 14-7 record the next year in his only season as the Mountaineers' head coach.

5. Long before Michigan's "Fab Five" made headlines as a freshman-dominated team reaching the 1992 NCAA Tournament final, Toledo's similar squad finished runner-up to St. John's in the 1943 NIT. The Rockets were dubbed "Friddle's Freshmen" because first-year coach Berle Friddle had an all-freshman starting lineup. Toledo's roster included Emlen Tunnell, who went on to become a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame after playing in nine Pro Bowls as a defensive back.

6. Utah won the 1944 NCAA crown after the Utes were eliminated in the opening round of the NIT by eventual third-place finisher Kentucky (46-38).

7. In the early years of national postseason competition, the NCAA playoffs were scheduled after the NIT, which was clearly basketball's showcase event. For instance, NIT runner-up Rhode Island State upended Bowling Green in overtime in their NIT opener in 1946 after the Rams' Ernie Calverley swished a shot from beyond halfcourt at the end of regulation in perhaps the most exciting moment in NIT history.

8. Many observers think the 1948 NIT, starting the tourney's second decade, was the best from a strength standpoint. If there had been a national poll at the time, it is believed that five of the nation's top seven teams were in the NIT, which was won that year by Ed Macauley-led St. Louis University.

9. Western Kentucky (28-2, .933), the 1948 NIT third-place finisher, and Seton Hall (31-2, .939), the 1953 NIT champion, led the nation in winning percentage those seasons.

10. The 1949 opening-round pair of doubleheaders was a dark day and evening for Big Apple hoops as CCNY, Manhattan, NYU and St. John's dropped their openers by an average of 18.75 points.

11. Trivia buffs should know that the basketball publicist for 1949 champion San Francisco was Pete Rozelle, who went on to become commissioner of the National Football League.

12. In each of the first two years the Associated Press conducted national rankings (1949 and 1950), five of the top 10 teams participated in the NIT.

13. The four seeded teams in the 1949 NIT all were upset in the quarterfinals after receiving first-round byes - Kentucky, St. Louis, Western Kentucky and Utah.

14. The final year teams participated in both national tournaments was 1952, when Dayton, Duquesne, St. John's and St. Louis doubled up on postseason participation. St. John's was runner-up to Kansas in the NCAA Tournament that year after the Redmen lost their opener in the NIT against La Salle (51-45).

15. In 1954, the last four NIT survivors (Holy Cross, Duquesne, Niagara and Western Kentucky) combined to win 91% of their games entering the semifinals, while their NCAA Final Four counterparts (La Salle, Bradley, Penn State and Southern California) combined to win barely over 70% of their games. Niagara, the third-place finisher in the NIT, defeated 1954 NCAA champion La Salle twice during the regular season by a total of 27 points.

16. Dave Ricketts, a sophomore starter for Duquesne's 1955 NIT champion, went on to become a major-league catcher who played with the Cardinals in the 1967 and 1968 World Series with the St. Louis Cardinals.

17. NIT champion-to-be Louisville was ranked 4th in the nation by AP in mid-February of 1956 when it lost by 40 points at Xavier (99-59). Two years later, Xavier lost 10 of its final 15 regular-season games after a 10-1 start and the NIT asked the Musketeers to give back its NIT bid. Xavier, however, said "no" and went on to win the 1958 NIT title despite being seeded last under first-year head coach Jim McCafferty.

18. Garry Roggenburk, the leading scorer for Dayton's 1962 NIT titlist, went on to become a lefthanded pitcher for five seasons later in the decade with three American League teams - the Minnesota Twins, Boston Red Sox and Seattle Pilots.

19. The prestigious ACC, prior to its inaugural season in 1953-54, instituted a rule that no member could participate in the NIT. The ban remained in place until Duke was eliminated by Southern Illinois in the [1967] quarterfinals. The final NIT at the old Garden in 1967 belonged to SIU, a so-called "small" school sparked by a smooth swingman named Walt Frazier. He wasn't Clyde yet, but the future Knick was well on his way.

20. One of the most bizarre incidents in NIT history was halftime of a game in 1968 when Oklahoma City coach Abe Lemons, annoyed with his team after playing poorly in the first half against Duke, ordered the Chiefs back to the court during intermission to scrimmage rather than to the dressing room to rest and regroup. Announcer Howard Cosell rattled off several questions to Lemons: "Coach, are you crazy? Won't your boys be too tired to play the second half? Where did you learn this coaching tactic? Did you do this to amuse the crowd?" Lemons, as determined not to respond to the questions as Cosell was at getting an answer, fired back, "Listen mister, you may be big stuff in New York, but you ain't nothin' in Walters, Okla. (Lemons' humble hometown)."

21. The issue of "choice" came to a head in 1970 when Marquette, an independent school coached by fiesty Al McGuire, won the NIT after rejecting an NCAA at-large invitation because the Warriors were going to be placed in the NCAA Midwest Regional (Fort Worth, Tex.) instead of closer to home in the Mideast Regional (Dayton, Ohio). McGuire's snub led the NCAA to decree any school offered an NCAA bid must accept it or be prohibited from participating in postseason competition.

22. SEC rival Tennessee was the only school to hold Pete Maravich under 30 points until Georgetown and Marquette achieved the feat in the 1970 NIT. Maravich, the highest scorer in NCAA history, ended his career at the NIT sitting on the bench in civilian clothes because of ankle and hip injuries, watching his father's LSU team finish fourth by losing to Bob Knight-coached Army. Pistol Pete had, for him, endured a suspect tourney in the brightest postseason spotlight ever focused on his extraordinary abilities. He averaged 25.7 points per game in three NIT assignments (18.5 ppg lower than his career average).

23. Julius Erving's final college game with Massachusetts was a 90-49 loss to eventual NIT champion North Carolina in the first round in 1971. The Tar Heels captured the crown although their leading scorer, junior forward Dennis Wuycik (18.4 ppg), suffered a season-ending knee injury against the Minutemen.

24. The competitive NIT, boasting three double overtime games in 1971, was a stark contrast in than period to the NCAA Tournament otherwise known as the "UCLA Invitational." Seemingly invincible UCLA captured seven consecutive NCAA titles from 1967 through 1973 by winning 28 tournament games by an average of almost 18 points per contest. In 1973, the Bruins' four tournament victories were by an average of 16 points, including a 21-point triumph over Memphis State in the championship game. Meanwhile, NIT champion Virginia Tech won four exciting postseason games that year by a total of five points, including a game-winning basket at the buzzer in overtime in the final against Notre Dame. The next year, seven of the total of 12 NIT games in the first round and quarterfinals were decided by four points or less.

25. Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson never appeared in the NIT in his 34-year career with Long Beach State, Iowa and Arizona.

26. The last wire-service top 10 team to appear in the NIT was North Carolina, a first-round loser against Purdue in 1974.

27. Anthony Roberts' NIT single-game standard of 65 points accounted for 73 percent of Oral Roberts' output in a 90-89 loss to Oregon in the 1977 first round. Roberts' outburst is even more impressive because the Ducks ranked fifth in the nation in team defense (60.9 points per game).

28. NIT attendance slipped to an all-time low in 1976 although national power Kentucky won the title. In 1977, former executive director Pete Carlesimo, the father of former Seton Hall coach P.J. Carlesimo, saved the NIT by implementing a plan whereby early-round games were played at campus sites and locations across the country before the four semifinalists advanced to New York.

29. In a five-year span from 1980 through 1984 when the NCAA field ranged from 48 to 52 teams, Virginia (1980 NIT champion), DePaul (1983 runner-up) and Michigan (1984 champion) became NCAA regional No. 1 seeds the year after reaching an NIT final.

30. Tulsa was a No. 3 seed under coach [Nolan Richardson](schools/nolan-richardson0 in the 1982 NCAA Tournament after capturing the 1981 NIT by winning its last three games by a total of five points.

31. In 1985, the NIT started a preseason tournament, which evolved into the nation's premier in-season tourney and carried as much clout, if not more, than the postseason NIT. Coaches were fond of the preseason NIT because those games were exempt from counting against their regular-season limit of contests.

32. The NCAA postseason record of 14 three-point field goals was set by Kansas State guard Askia Jones in a 115-77 victory over Fresno State in the 1994 NIT quarterfinals. Jones, the son of former Villanova standout guard Wali Jones, poured in 28 of his Big Eight Conference-record 45 second-half points in the first 7:12 after intermission. His final total of 62 points, spurred by nine consecutive successful three-point shots bridging the first and second halves, was the second-highest scoring output in major-college postseason history.

33. The NIT's first nine champions lost a total of 25 games, but its 15 titlists from 1986 through 2000 combined to go 32 games below .500 in conference competition, including a 4-12 league mark compiled by 1988 Big East cellar dweller Connecticut and a 4-10 league record registered by 1996 Big Eight seventh-place team Nebraska.

34. The NIT's "final four" participants have combined to average more than 13 defeats per team since the NCAA field expanded to at least 64 entrants, including a grim 19-18 mark by 1985 NIT fourth-place finisher Louisville.

35. Former St. John's coach Joe Lapchick was the winningest coach in NIT history with a 21-10 record until Dave Odom tied him (21-3). St. John's has made more NIT appearances, won more NIT games and captured more NIT championships (six) than any school.

36. Four of the winningest schools percentagewise in NIT history are from the Big Ten Conference - Michigan, Purdue, Ohio State and Penn State.

37. The NIT titlists since 1985 combined for a losing national postseason tournament record the year after capturing an NIT championship.

38. Virginia's NIT title in 1992 enabled Jeff Jones to become the only person to win NIT crowns as a player (Virginia in 1980) and a coach.

39. In 2000, Notre Dame forward Troy Murphy became the first consensus first-team All-American to participate in the NIT since forward Larry Bird of Indiana State, a loser at Rutgers in the 1978 quarterfinals.

40. Arizona (0-3), Arizona State (5-11), Miami FL (6-10), Missouri (1-7) and Seton Hall (6-18) all have disturbing NIT marks at least three games below .500.

When Thomas Wolfe penned, "you can never come home again," he didn't have some successful college basketball coaches in mind. Playoff participation must be extra gratifying for the following nine individuals guiding their alma mater in college basketball's grandest prize - a berth in the NCAA Tournament (three of them in their inaugural campaign):

In a caste-like era separating the haves from the have-nots, imperial universities are seeking mega-conferences and, perhaps in the near future, a restrictive upper division. But the socially elite won't ever be able to exclude small schools from making a big impact on the NCAA playoffs.

Smaller colleges, many of them in the hinterlands, have supplied a striking number of the biggest names in coaching. From 1995 through 2000, five of the six NCAA Tournament championship coaches (Jim Calhoun, Jim Harrick, Tom Izzo, Lute Olson and Tubby Smith) graduated from obscure colleges with smaller enrollments. In fact, it is a rarity for a Final Four not to feature at least one coach who graduated from a non-Division I school.

John Calipari, a graduate of Clarion (Pa.) State, guided Kentucky to the 2012 national championship before Michigan's John Beilein (Wheeling Jesuit NY) and Wichita State's Gregg Marshall (Randolph-Macon VA) directed teams to the Final Four six years ago. Taylor (Ind.) classmates John Groce and Chris Holtmann are among the following alphabetical list of 2022 NCAA Tournament mentors who worked their way up the ladder after graduating from a small college:

NOTE: Albany and UC Davis subsequently were classified as NCAA Division I universities.