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NC State’s Dereck Whittenburg lofted an airball, but center Lorenzo Charles, waiting under the basket, outboxed Olajuwon and tapped it in for the 54–52 victory. This battle of underdogs versus superstars would come down to the last shot. (The Drexel and Olajuwon duo was known as Phi Slamma Jamma for their high-scoring and dunk-filled style of play.) But Houston was led by future NBA Hall of Famers Clyde Drexler and Akeem Olajuwon, and the Cougars were heavily favored to win. Led by notorious rabble-rousing coach Jim Valvano, NC State carried that momentum into a matchup with #1 seed Houston in the NCAA title game. After putting up a respectable, if not spectacular 17–10 regular-season record, the Wolfpack took the ACC Tournament title from Virginia. To this day, the story of the 1983 “Cardiac Pack” still evokes awe among sports fans. Later, still fond of Syracuse, he donated $3 million to his alma mater to build the Carmelo K. Together, these first-year phenoms blazed a trail through the tournament, culminating with an 81–78 victory over Kansas.Īnthony was named the NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player and months later was drafted in the first round by the NBA’s Denver Nuggets. The Syracuse Orangemen, as they were known at the time, were led by freshmen Carmelo Anthony and Gerry McNamara. On the other sideline was Kansas head coach Roy Williams, who had reached the Final Four four times, finishing as runner-up in 1991. On one side was Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim, who in his 27 years as head coach, had taken his team to the Final Four just two times, in 19. The 2003 NCAA Championship would be the first title for one of two legendary coaches.
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The 2003 Syracuse Orange Craig Jones // Getty Images Imhoff was then drafted third overall in the 1960 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks, right behind Robertson and West. Men’s Olympic basketball team-a team coached by the Golden Bears’ own Pete Newell. Just one year later, California center Darrall Imhoff would go on to win gold with the 1960 U.S. The title game was a white-knuckle bout against #10 West Virginia and future NBA Hall of Famer Jerry West, but the Golden Bears squeaked out a 71–70 win. After wins over Utah and Saint Mary’s, both top 20 teams, Cal made it to the championship game by beating #5 Cincinnati (and its three-time Sporting News Player of the Year Oscar Robertson). But beginning with a decisive 60–36 win over San Jose State to open the season, the team went on to finish the regular season in impressive fashion, posting a 21–4 record. The 1959 California Golden Bears (tie) San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers // Getty ImagesĬoming off a modest 19–9 campaign, no one expected much from the Golden Bears heading into the 1958–1959 season. This would be the beginning of a brief dynasty, as the Gators also won the 2007 championship, becoming the first school to win back-to-back titles since Duke in the early 1990s. The Gators then handled upstart George Mason on the way to a 73–57 win over UCLA, who has more NCAA men’s basketball championships than any other school. With coach Billy Donovan returning for his 10th season in the Sunshine State and a lineup that featured Joakim Noah, Al Horford, Corey Brewer, and Chris Richard-all of whom would go on play in the NBA-along with team captain Adrian Moss, the Gators took home the SEC Championship against South Carolina after posting a 24–6 regular-season record.Ĭoming into the NCAA tournament ranked 11th in the country, the team beat Big East dynamos Georgetown and Villanova. Prior to the 2005–2006 season, the Florida Gators had been bounced out in the first round of the tourney each of the past two years. The 2006 Florida Gators (tie) Streeter Lecka // Getty Images Two days later, on April 3, Michigan won the title with an 80–79 overtime victory over fellow underdog Seton Hall. But win they did, 83–81, in a nail-biting classic. There, they faced fellow Big Ten member Illinois in a match that few expected the Wolverines to win. After a 24–7 regular-season record (12–6 in the Big Ten Conference), Michigan barreled through the tournament, besting ACC powers North Carolina and Virginia to reach the Final Four.
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Conference foes Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa all put up winning records, while Purdue, ranked as high as #3, slipped into the rearview. Going into the 1988–1989 season, everyone had their eye on the Wolverines, who were coming off a respectable 26–8 season, but still smarting from a loss to North Carolina in the 1988 Sweet Sixteen. The Big Ten is a notoriously tough conference prided on defense.