Odds Were Against Nova Reaching F4 Let Alone Repeat as NCAA Champion
Someone has to be first but the odds were stacked against Villanova. The Wildcats, after losing three times this season as the nation's top-ranked team, faced an uphill battle reaching the Final Four, let alone repeating as NCAA champion. Nova became the 19th team to lose at least three times atop the national polls in the same campaign and subsequently fail to win the national title.
Many in the national media and NCAA Division I Committee simply showed their amateurish historical perspective when they hailed Nova as the best bet to capture the championship. Only four of the first 19 squads in this category reached the Final Four (including Michigan '65 and Georgetown '85 succumbing in national final). Following is a chronological look at NCAA playoff progress for schools with at least three defeats as the nation's top-ranked team in a single season:
| Season | #1 Three-Time Loser | Opponents Beating Same #1 | What Happened to #1? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951-52 | Kentucky | Minnesota/St. Louis/St. John's | UK lost in regional final |
| 1953-54 | Indiana | Oregon State/Northwestern/Notre Dame | IU lost in regional semifinals |
| 1964-65 | Michigan* | Nebraska/St. John's/Ohio State/UCLA | UM lost in national final |
| 1973-74 | UCLA | Notre Dame/Oregon State/Oregon | UCLA lost in national semifinals |
| 1983-84 | North Carolina | Arkansas/Duke/Indiana | UNC lost in regional semifinals |
| 1984-85 | Georgetown | St. John's/Syracuse/Villanova | Hoyas lost in national final |
| 1985-86 | North Carolina | Virginia/Maryland/North Carolina State | UNC lost in regional semifinals |
| 1989-90 | Kansas | Missouri (twice)/Oklahoma | KU lost in NCAA second round |
| 1992-93 | Indiana | Kansas (twice)/Ohio State | IU lost in regional final |
| 1993-94 | North Carolina* | UMass/Georgia Tech (twice)/Boston College | UNC lost in NCAA second round |
| 1997-98 | Duke | Michigan/North Carolina (twice) | Duke lost in regional final |
| 1997-98 | North Carolina | Maryland/North Carolina State/Utah | UNC lost in national semifinals |
| 1999-00 | Cincinnati | Xavier/Temple/Saint Louis | UC lost in NCAA second round |
| 2000-01 | Stanford | UCLA/Arizona/Maryland | Stanford lost in regional final |
| 2001-02 | Duke | Florida State/Maryland/Indiana | Duke lost in regional semifinals |
| 2002-03 | Arizona | Louisiana State/Stanford/UCLA | UA lost in regional final |
| 2005-06 | Duke | Georgetown/Florida State/North Carolina | Duke lost in regional semifinal |
| 2012-13 | Indiana | Butler/Illinois/Minnesota | IU lost in regional semifinal |
| 2016-17 | Villanova | Butler/Marquette/Wisconsin | Nova lost in NCAA second round |
*Michigan '65 and North Carolina '94 are the only teams to lose four times in a single season when ranked #1.