How many No. 1 seeds won the NCAA basketball tournament?
This is not to be a Cinderella-hating, bracket-buster buzz kill, but ...
Odds are, a No. 1 seed is going to be snipping net at the end of “One Shining Moment.”
Since the NCAA men’s basketball tournament went to a 64-team field, a No. 1 seed has won 24 of the 37 championships. Kansas’ win over North Carolinain last year’s tournament final was the fifth straight by a top dog and the 11th in the last 15 seasons. A two seed (five times) and a three seed (four) have accounted for nine of the remaining 13 titles. The remaining four crowns have gone to four, six, seven and eight seeds.
The lowest seed to win a championship is Villanova, which won it all in 1985, the inaugural year of the 64-team format.
The 2021 Baylor-Gonzaga finals matchup was the ninth meeting of two No. 1 seeds since 1985. North Carolina has played in four of those games, winning each of them (1982 against Georgetown; ’93 against Michigan; 2005 against Illinois; and 2017 against Gonzaga).
UCLA has been a top seed in three tournaments since 1985, winning the 1995 national championship. The Bruins also were a No. 1 in 1990 (Elite 8 loss to Indiana) and 2008 (Final Four loss to Memphis).
