There’s nothing quite like March Madness. Every year, 68 Division I men’s basketball teams compete in a wild, unpredictable tournament full of upsets, buzzer-beaters, heartbreak and glory. The last team standing cuts down the nets and is crowned the champion.
For all of its chaos, the NCAA Tournament has been largely dominated by a small number of elite programs. There are over 350 schools in men’s Division I basketball, but fewer than 40 have won a national championship since the first NCAA Tournament in 1939.
Additionally, 15 schools account for 62 of the 84 championships so far (there was no tournament in 2020 due to Covid-19 and one title was vacated).
There are several reasons for that. Bigger programs have more money to recruit star players and build higher-quality facilities. They’re also able to pay and retain top coaches, helping their teams sustain excellence despite the turnover of college athletes.
The occasional betting underdog will get hot at the right time, but it’s hard for them to regularly compete with established programs. Accordingly, schools with a track record of success are usually safer bets to go far in the tournament.
With that in mind, here’s a look at which programs have won the most championships in March Madness history.
Teams With Most NCAA Championships
UCLA has won the most NCAA Tournaments with 11 – three more than any other program. However, nearly all of that success occurred in the 1960s and 1970s, as the Bruins have won only one championship since 1975, with their most recent title coming in 1995.
In all, 15 schools have won multiple NCAA Tournaments, with those teams accounting for 62 combined titles. There have been 22 teams with only one NCAA Tournament championship, while hundreds of schools are still searching for their first.
Let’s look at the college basketball teams that have won at least two NCAA Tournaments.
UCLA (11)
As mentioned, UCLA leads the pack with 11 NCAA championships.
The Bruins won 10 championships during a 12-year span from 1964 to 1975 under head coach John Wooden. He led the team to seven straight titles from 1967 to 1973.
UCLA also went undefeated four times between 1964 and 1973.
Wooden’s teams featured several future NBA Hall of Famers, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (then known as Lew Alcindor) and Bill Walton. Wooden was also inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
The Bruins have struggled to regain their dominance following Wooden’s retirement in 1975, having only won one title since.
Kentucky (8)
Kentucky is the closest to UCLA’s record with eight championships.
The Wildcats have won championships in five different decades, including three in a four-year span from 1948 to 1951. Kentucky added a fourth championship in 1958.
The Wildcats went 20 years before winning their next title in 1978, then another 18 years before their sixth title in 1996. They won again in 1998, with their most recent title coming in 2012.
Five different coaches have won titles with Kentucky – an NCAA record. Adolph Rupp won the first four, while Joe Hall, Rick Pitino, Tubby Smith and John Calipari all won once.
The Wildcats may not have the most championships, but they still hold several NCAA records, including total NCAA Tournament games (185) and appearances (61).
North Carolina (6)
UNC ranks third all-time with six NCAA championships, which have been spread out across five decades.
The Tar Heels won their first championship in 1957 but didn’t win their second until 1982. They won again in 1993, 2005, 2009 and 2017.
UNC has developed many NBA stars, including Michael Jordan, Vince Carter and Bob McAdoo.
The Tar Heels have several NCAA records. Not only are they the only school to reach the NCAA Championship Game in nine straight decades, they’ve also played in a record 21 Final Fours and have averaged more wins per season (20.7) than any other college basketball program.
UConn (6)
After winning back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024, UConn is tied with UNC for the third-most championships with six.
Like Duke, all six of the Huskies’ championships came during the shot clock era. UConn leads all schools with six titles in the last 26 years, winning in 1999, 2004, 2011, 2014, 2023 and 2024.
The Huskies didn’t become a true basketball powerhouse until 1990, but they have enjoyed immense success over the last three decades.
They’ve graduated numerous players to the pros, including Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton and Kemba Walker.
UConn also has a dominant women’s program, making it a great all-around basketball school.
Duke (5)
While Duke has long been regarded as a top college basketball program, most of its championships have come recently. All five of its titles came during the 43-season tenure of head coach Mike Krzyzewski, known as “Coach K.”
The Blue Devils won back-to-back titles in 1991 and 1992, followed by championships in 2001, 2010 and 2015. Coach K retired after the 2022 season.
Largely thanks to his success, Duke ranks fourth all-time in NCAA men’s basketball wins. The Blue Devils also have the highest winning percentage in NCAA Tournament history.
Current NBA stars Jayson Tatum, Kyrie Irving and Zion Williamson attended Duke, among others.
Indiana (5)
Indiana has five championships but hasn’t won since 1987.
The Hoosiers won the second NCAA Tournament ever in 1940. They won again under head coach Branch McCracken in 1953, then won three championships under Bobby Knight in 1976, 1981 and 1987.
Indiana’s 1976 team is the last undefeated NCAA champion.
The Hoosiers have struggled to advance deep into the tournament lately, with their last Elite Eight appearance coming in 2002 when they lost to Maryland in the NCAA championship.
Kansas (4)
Kansas ranks seventh with four championships. James Naismith (the inventor of basketball) was the program’s first coach, although he ironically is the only coach with a losing record in program history.
The Jayhawks won their first title in 1952 but didn’t win their second until 1988. They’ve had more success recently, winning in 2008 and 2022. They’ve also been runner-up six times.
Kansas has won the most conference titles in the nation and holds the record for most consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (28), which it accomplished from 1990 to 2017.
Paul Pierce and Andrew Wiggins are some of the most notable players to come out of the program.
Villanova (3)
Villanova is eighth on this list with three championships, two of which came recently.
The Wildcats won their first title in 1985, then two in three years under Jay Wright from 2016 to 2018. While relatively brief, their championship history has been dramatic.
Villanova won the 1985 title as a No. 8 seed – still the lowest seed to win the tournament. In 2016, the Wildcats became the second team to win the National Championship on a buzzer-beater with Kris Jenkins’ last-second 3-pointer against UNC.
https://x.com/ThrowbackHoops/status/1235365587770982401?s=20
Villanova won again in 2018, led by future NBA players such as Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Donte DiVincenzo.
Louisville (2)
Louisville has technically won three titles, but its 2013 title was vacated by the NCAA in 2018 after the program’s controversial 2015 scandal.
The Cardinals’ other two titles came in the 1980s (1980 and 1986) under head coach Denny Crum. Crum turned Louisville into a premier program during his tenure from 1971 to 2001, leading his teams to 23 NCAA Tournament appearances and a 43-21 tournament record.
The Cardinals are currently in a downturn. They have missed the NCAA Tournament in five straight seasons and are 12-52 over the last two years combined.
Cincinnati (2)
Cincinnati won its two titles in consecutive seasons, winning back-to-back titles in 1961 and 1962.
The Bearcats nearly won a third straight title in 1963 but finished runner-up to Loyola in a 60-58 overtime loss. That marked their fifth straight Final Four appearance – a feat topped only by UCLA.
Cincinnati has been up and down since then, with just one Final Four appearance in 1992. Still, the Bearcats rank 12th all-time with nearly 1,900 wins.
The program’s most notable player is Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson, who starred at Cincinnati from 1957 to 1960.
Florida (2)
Like Cincinnati, Florida also won its titles in consecutive seasons. The Gators won championships in 2006 and 2007, making them the last team to win back-to-back titles before UConn went back-to-back in 2023 and 2024.
Florida’s championships were the byproduct of a stellar 2004 recruiting class by head coach Billy Donovan. All five starters on the 2006-07 team later played professionally: Corey Brewer, Al Horford, Joakim Noah, Lee Humphrey and Taurean Green.
The continuity and talent helped the Gators repeat and elevated the program to new heights. Florida made another Final Four appearance in 2014 and has remained competitive in the years since.
Michigan State (2)
Michigan State’s two championships came in 1979 and 2000.
The Spartans’ 1979 victory came in the most-watched college basketball in history, as Magic Johnson led Michigan State to a 75-64 victory over Larry Bird’s undefeated Indiana State team, setting the stage for their epic NBA rivalry.
The Spartans won again in 2000 under head coach Tom Izzo, who’s been with the program since 1995 and has led MSU to 26 straight NCAA Tournament appearances – the longest active streak in college basketball.
NC State (2)
NC State won both of its titles in the span of a decade, winning in 1974 and 1983.
The Wolfpack might have won a championship in 1973 as well, as they went a perfect 27-0 but were barred from the postseason due to recruiting violations.
NC State made up for it by winning the title the following year. The Wolfpack also won the 1983 NCAA Championship as major underdogs against Houston, which featured future NBA stars Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon. NC State eeked out a 54-52 victory over the Cougars.
The Wolfpack made two more Elite Eight appearances in the 1980s and surprisingly made the Final Four as a No. 11 seed in 2024.
Oklahoma State (2)
Oklahoma State won two of the earliest NCAA Tournaments, becoming the first program to win back-to-back titles with victories in 1945 and 1946.
The Cowboys lost the National Championship Game in 1949 and reached the Final Four in 1951, continuing their run of dominance under Henry Iba.
Other teams quickly caught up to Oklahoma State, however. The Cowboys have only reached the Elite Eight four times since the 1950s and haven’t had much recent success in the tournament. Their last time reaching the Sweet Sixteen was in 2005.
San Francisco (2)
San Francisco enjoyed early success thanks to Bill Russell, who led the school to back-to-back national championships in 1955 and 1956 before starting a new dynasty with the Boston Celtics.
USF reached the Final Four in 1957 without Russell and remained a strong program through the 1960s and 1970s. The Dons faded during the 1980s, however, and haven’t been much of a factor since then.
USF has made only two NCAA Tournament appearances in the last 40 years (1998 and 2022).
Photo by Rich Clarkson/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images
