Gonzaga Elite Eight Facts

Gonzaga defeated UCLA 74-62 to advance to the Elite Eight.

Gonzaga is in their 2nd Elite Eight and their first since 1999.

Gonzaga is 0-1 in the Elite Eight.  They lost to Connecticut 67-62 in 1999.  Gonzaga came into the tournament tied for 9th with the most appearances (17) without a Final Four.  Conference mate Brigham Young has the most with 29.

Gonzaga's Elite Eight is the first for Mark Few in 16 tournament appearances.  He was tied with Fran Dunphy (currently at Temple) for the most tournaments with no Elite Eights.

The coach that he defeated, Steve Alford, now has 9 tournament appearances with no Elite Eight which is tied for 9th all-time and 4th among active coaches.

Gonzaga is the first team from the West Coast Conference to advance to the Elite Eight since Gonzaga last went in 1999.  It is the 16th overall.  San Francisco has the most Elite Eights among West Coast Conference members:

• San Francisco 7
• Santa Clara 4
• Gonzaga 2
• Loyola Marymount 1
• Pacific 1
• St. Mary's 1

With Gonzaga advancing to the Elite Eight, it is the 7th consecutive year that exactly 2 #2 seeds have advanced to the Elite Eight.

Gonzaga is the first team from the state of Washington to advance to the Elite Eight since Gonzaga last went in 1999.  It is the 8th overall.  Washington has the most Elite Eights:

• Washington 4
• Gonzaga 2
• Seattle 1
• Washington State 1

Sweet Sixteen Quick Facts

Number of Sweet Sixteen Appearances with Sweet Sixteen Record for this years teams
Kentucky 42 (31-10)
UCLA 33 (21-11)
North Carolina 31 (24-6)
Duke 28 (19-8)
Louisville 28 (13-14)
Michigan State 19 (12-6)
Arizona 18 (10-7)
Notre Dame 16 (5-10)
Utah 16 (5-10)
North Carolina State 13 (5-7)
Oklahoma 10 (5-4)
West Virginia 9 (3-5)
Wisconsin 8 (3-4)
Xavier 7 (2-4)
Wichita State 6 (4-1)
Gonzaga 6 (1-4)
 
Consecutive Sweet Sixteen Appearances
Louisville 4
Michigan State 4
Arizona 3
Kentucky 2
UCLA 2
Wisconsin 2

Sweet Sixteen Droughts Snapped with Last Year in Sweet Sixteen
Notre Dame - 2003
Utah - 2005
Gonzaga - 2009
Oklahoma - 2009
West Virginia - 2010
North Carolina - 2012
North Carolina State - 2012
Xavier - 2012
Duke - 2013
Wichita State - 2013

Longest Sweet Sixteen Streaks Snapped
Florida 4
Michigan 2

Number of Teams by Conference (Record in Parenthesis)
Atlantic Coast 5 (11-1)
Pacific Twelve 3 (7-1)
Big Ten 2 (7-5)
Big Twelve 2 (5-5)
Big East 1(5-5)
Missouri Valley 1 (3-1)
Southeastern 1 (4-4)
West Coast 1 (2-1)

The 5 Sweet Sixteens by the ACC ties the record for the most set by the Big East in 2009.

Number of Teams by State (Record in Parenthesis)
North Carolina 3 (6-1)
Kentucky 2 (4-0)
Arizona 1 (2-0)
California 1 (3-2)
Indiana 1 (3-4)
Kansas 1 (3-1)
Michigan1 (2-0)
Ohio 1 (6-3)
Oklahoma 1 (2-1)
Utah 1 (2-1)
Washington 1 (2-1)
West Virginia 1 (2-0)
Wisconsin 1 (2-0)

Sweet Sixteen Tournament Rematches

Midwest

• Kentucky is 1-1 vs. West Virginia
• West Virginia defeated Kentucky 73-66 in the 2010 Elite Eight
• Kentucky defeated West Virginia 71-63 in the 2011 Round of 32
• Notre Dame and Wichita State have never met in the tournament

West

• North Carolina defeated Wisconsin 88-82 in the 2005 Elite Eight
• Xavier and Arizona have never met in the tournament

East

• North Carolina State and Louisville have never met in the tournament
• Michigan State defeated Oklahoma 54-46 in the 1999 Sweet Sixteen

South

• Duke defeated Utah 79-77 in the 1966 National Third Place Game
• UCLA defeated Gonzaga 73-71 in the 2006 Sweet Sixteen

Both 1 and 2 seed missing Sweet Sixteen in Same Regional

Both #1 Villanova and #2 Virginia were defeated in the Round of 32 in the East Regional.  This marks the 6th time since the field expanded to 64 that both the #1 and #2 seeds failed to advance to the Sweet Sixteen.

• 1990 Midwest - #1 Oklahoma, #2 Purdue
• 1992 Midwest - #1 Kansas, #2 Southern California
• 2000 South - #1 Stanford, #2 Cincinnati
• 2000 West - #1 Arizona, #2 St. John's
• 2004 Midwest - #1 Kentucky, #2 Gonzaga
• 2015 East - #1 Villanova, #2 Virginia

Round of 32 Streaks

Here are the teams that have been in 3 or more consecutive Round of 32 and their Round of 64 matchup in this year's tournament:

• Kansas - 8 (New Mexico State)
• Gonzaga - 6 (North Dakota State)
• Syracuse - 6 Not in Tournament
• Florida - 4 Not in Tournament
• North Carolina - 4 (Harvard)
• Creighton - 3 Not in Tournament
• Iowa State - 3 (UAB)
• Louisville - 3 (Cal-Irvine)
• Michigan State - 3 (Georgia)
• Saint Louis - 3 Not in Tournament

North Carolina holds the record for the most consecutive Round of 32 appearances with 24.  Here are the longest all-time streaks:

• North Carolina - 24 (1975 to 1998)
• Kentucky - 16 (1992 to 2007)
• Kansas - 15 (1990 to 2004)
• Duke - 11 (1984 to 1994)
• Georgetown - 11 (1982 to 1992)
• Duke - 10 (1997 to 2006)
• Stanford - 10 (1995 to 2004)
• Marquette - 9 (1971 to 1979)
• UNLV - 9 (1983 to 1991)
• Arkansas - 8 (1989 to 1996)
• Cincinnati - 8 (1995 to 2002)
• Idaho State - 8 (1953 to 1960)
• Kansas - 8 (2007 to 2014)
• Louisville - 8 (1977 to 1994)
• Notre Dame - 8 (1974 to 1981)
• Oklahoma - 8 (1983 to 1990)
• Syracuse - 8 (1973 to 1980)
• Syracuse - 8 (1983 to 1990) 

By Year - Longest Current Streak (starting in 1954 because 1953 was first year with Round of 32)

Note:  This only includes teams that played in this round.  There were byes in the Round of 32 through 1974.

1954 - 2 (Fordham, Idaho State, Navy, Notre Dame, Santa Clara, Seattle)
1955 - 3 (Idaho State, Seattle)
1956 - 4 (Idaho State, Seattle)
1957 - 5 (Idaho State)
1958 - 6 (Idaho State)
1959 - 7 (Idaho State)
1960 - 8 (Idaho State)
1961 - 2 (Ohio, Oregon, Princeton, USC)
1962 - 2 (Arizona State, Seattle, Wake Forest)
1963 - 3 (Arizona State, Seattle)
1964 - 4 (Arizona State, Seattle)
1965 - 3 (Connecticut, Oklahoma City, Princeton)
1966 - 4 (Oklahoma City)
1967 - 3 (Dayton, Houston)
1968 - 4 (Houston)
1969 - 3 (New Mexico State, St. John's)
1970 - 4 (New Mexico State)
1971 - 5 (New Mexico State)
1972 - 5 (Weber State)
1973 - 6 (Weber State)
1974 - 5 (Penn)
1975 - 6 (Penn)
1976 - 6 (Marquette)
1977 - 7 (Marquette)
1978 - 8 (Marquette)
1979 - 9 (Marquette)
1980 - 8 (Syracuse)
1981 - 8 (Notre Dame)
1982 - 8 (North Carolina)
1983 - 9 (North Carolina)
1984 - 10 (North Carolina)
1985 - 11 (North Carolina)
1986 - 12 (North Carolina)
1987 - 13 (North Carolina)
1988 - 14 (North Carolina)
1989 - 15 (North Carolina)
1990 - 16 (North Carolina)
1991 - 17 (North Carolina)
1992 - 18 (North Carolina)
1993 - 19 (North Carolina)
1994 - 20 (North Carolina)
1995 - 21 (North Carolina)
1996 - 22 (North Carolina)
1997 - 23 (North Carolina)
1998 - 24 (North Carolina)
1999 - 10 (Kansas)
2000 - 11 (Kansas)
2001 - 12 (Kansas)
2002 - 13 (Kansas)
2003 - 14 (Kansas)
2004 - 15 (Kansas)
2005 - 14 (Kentucky)
2006 - 15 (Kentucky)
2007 - 16 (Kentucky)
2008 - 5 (North Carolina)
2009 - 6 (North Carolina)
2010 - 5 (Pittsburgh, Texas A&M)
2011 - 6 (Pittsburgh)
2012 - 6 (Kansas, Purdue, Wisconsin)
2013 - 7 (Kansas)
2014 - 8 (Kansas)

Round of 32 Rematches

The following games in the Round of 32 are rematches from past tournaments:

• Kansas defeated Stanford 86-63 in the 2002 Round of 32
• North Carolina is 2-0 vs. Iowa State (73-51 in 1995 Round of 32, 92-65 in 2005 Round of 32)
• Arizona defeated Gonzaga 96-95 (2OT) in the 2003 Round of 32
• Texas and Michigan are 1-1 vs. each other (Michigan won 84-79 in 1994 Round of 32, Texas won 80-76 in 1996 Round of 64)

Gonzaga - Wichita State Tournament Facts

Here are some NCAA Tournament facts about Gonzaga and Wichita State:

Post-Game:
Wichita State is in the Sweet Sixteen for the 5th time.  It is their first appearance since 2006.

This is the 5th time that a team from the Missouri Valley has defeated the AP #1 team.  Only the SEC (7) and Big Ten (6) have more victories over the #1 team.  Here are the 5 wins over #1's for the Missouri Valley:

• 1959 - Cincinnati defeated #1 Kansas State 85-75 in Elite Eight
• 1961 - Cincinnati defeated #1 Ohio State 70-65 in National Championship
• 1962 - Cincinnati defeated #1 Ohio State 71-59 in National Championship
• 2010 - Northern Iowa defeated #1 Kansas 69-67 in Round of 32
• 2013 - Wichita State defeated #1 Gonzaga 76-70 in Round of 32

Gonzaga is now a tournament worst 0-4 on March 23.

Missouri Valley is now 2-1 vs. the West Coast Conference.

Pre-Game:
Gonzaga is in the Round of 32 for the 12th time.  It is their 5th consecutive trip.  They are 5-6 in the Round of 32.

Gonzaga is 1-0 vs. the Missouri Valley.  They defeated Indiana State 85-68 in the 2001 Round of 32.

Gonzaga is 0-3 on March 23 which is the worst record on this date.

Wichita State is in the Round of 32 for the 4th time.  It is their first appearance since 2006.  They are 2-1 in the Round of 32.

Wichita State is 0-1 vs. #1 seeds.  They were defeated by Louisiana State 96-85 in the 1981 Elite Eight.

Wichita State has never played the AP #1 team in the tournament, but they are 0-3 vs. teams ranked in the Top 10.

Gonzaga - Southern Tournament Facts

Here are some NCAA Tournament facts about Gonzaga and Southern:


Post-Game:
This was the 13th time that the #1-#16 game was decided by single digits:

1989	Oklahoma	East Tennessee State	72	71
1989	Georgetown	Princeton	50	49
1996	Purdue	Western Carolina	73	71
1985	Michigan	Fairleigh Dickinson	59	55
1990	Michigan State	Murray State	75	71
1989	Illinois	McNeese State	77	71
2013	Gonzaga	Southern	64	58
1986	Duke	Mississippi Valley	85	78
2012	Syracuse	North Carolina-Asheville	72	65
1997	North Carolina	Fairfield	82	74
1986	St. John's, New York	Montana State	83	74
1990	Oklahoma	Towson	77	68
1996	Connecticut	Colgate	68	59

Gonzaga is in the Round of 32 for the 5th straight year.  That is third longest to Wisconsin and Kansas.

Gonzaga's 64 points is the fewest that Southern has allowed in 9 tournament games.  Their previous low allowed was 70 vs. Duke in the 2006 Round of 64.

Pre-Game:
Gonzaga has won in the Round of 64 in the past 4 tournaments.  With a win, it would be the longest streak in school history.

Gonzaga is 3-2 when playing in the state of Utah.

Gonzaga is 10-5 on Thursdays, but is 7-10 on other days.

Southern is 1-7 all-time in the tournament.  Their only win was in 1993 against Georgia Tech 93-78 in the Round of 64.

Southern is 0-1 when playing in the state of Utah. 

Schools that achieved their highest ever Seed

Teams that achieved their highest ever Seed in this tournament.  Those that achieved it for the first time are in bold.

#1 Seed

• Gonzaga (1st time) - Previous high #2 in 2004
• Indiana (3rd time) - Last time was 1993
• Kansas (11th time) - Last time was 2011
• Louisville (3rd time) - Last time was 2009

#2 Seed

• Miami, Florida (2nd time) - Last time was 1999

 #3 Seed

• New Mexico (3rd time) - Last time was 2010
• Marquette (4th time) - 2nd consecutive year

#4 Seed

• Saint Louis (1st time) - Previous high #7 in 1994

#8 Seed

• Colorado State (1st time) - Previous high #10 in 1989 and 1990

#11 Seed

• Belmont (1st time) - Previous high #13 in 2011
• Middle Tennessee State (2nd time) - Last time was 1982

#12 Seed

•  Akron (1st time) - Previous high #13 in 2009

#13 Seed

• Boise State (1st time) - Previous high #14 in 1988, 1993, 1994 and 2008
• South Dakota State (1st time) - Previous high #14 in 2012

#14 Seed

• Northwestern State (2nd time) - Last time was 2006

#15 Seed

• Florida Gulf Coast (1st time) - First tournament appearance

 #16 Seed

• Liberty (3rd time) - Last time was 2004

RPI Facts - NCAA Tournament

Southern Mississippi has the highest RPI of any team that missed this year's tournament at #30.

California has the lowest RPI of any at-large team that made this year's tournament at #53.  The record is #74 held by New Mexico in 1999.

Duke is the 6th team to finish #1 in the RPI (since it began in 1994) and not receive a #1 seed.  The other #1 RPI teams to not get a #1 seed and their results are:

• 1995 North Carolina - #2 Seed - Lost in National Semifinals to Arkansas 
• 2000 Cincinnati - #2 Seed - Lost in Round of 32 to Tulsa
• 2005 Kansas - #3 Seed - Lost in Round of 64 to Bucknell
• 2008 Tennessee - #2 Seed - Lost in Sweet Sixteen to Louisville
• 2009 Duke - #2 Seed - Lost in Sweet Sixteen to Villanova

The top 2 teams in the RPI (Duke and New Mexico) did not receive a #1 seed.  It is the first time that neither of the top 2 teams in the RPI were a #1 seed.

This is the 6th time that Duke has finished #1 in the RPI.  Kansas has finished #1 5 times.  The only other teams to finish #1 multiple times are Kentucky and North Carolina with 2.

Duke has finished in the Top 10 of the RPI 6 consecutive years and 15 of the last 17.  Miami and Indiana finish in the Top 10 of the RPI for the first time since it began in 1994.

The RPI's of the #1 Seeds are:

• #3 Louisville
• #5 Kansas
• #6 Gonzaga
• #7 Indiana

The sum of their RPI's is 21.  That is the second highest RPI sum of the #1 seeds since 1994.  The highest was 27 in 2000 when the #1 Seeds and their RPI's were:

• #2 Duke
• #3 Arizona
• #9 Stanford
• #13 Michigan State

Only 2 teams that finished #1 in the RPI have won the National Championship in the 19 years of the RPI.  They were Kentucky in 1996 and Duke in 2001.  Both of them were #1 seeds also.

The most common RPI to win the Championship is #3 which has 5 Championships.  No other RPI has more than 2.  Louisville is #3 in the RPI this year.  Those 5 are:

• Kentucky - 1998
• Connecticut - 1999
• Maryland - 2002
• North Carolina - 2009
• Duke - 2010

Out of those 5, only Kentucky was not a #1 seed.

Tournament Streaks

As Selection Sunday approaches, I thought I would take a look at some active streaks that are in jeopardy.

Consecutive Tournament Appearances:

1. Kansas 23
2. Duke 17
3. Michigan State 15
4. Gonzaga 14
    Texas 14
    Wisconsin 14

Texas' string of appearances will end at 14 while the others are definite locks.

Other streaks in jeopardy:
Xavier - 7
Brigham Young - 6
Purdue - 6
West Virginia - 5

Consecutive At-Large Appearances:
1. Texas 14
2. Marquette 7
3. Brigham Young 6
    Xavier 6
5. Syracuse 4
    Wisconsin 4

Texas, Brigham Young and Xavier will all miss the tournament this year, so Marquette will now have the most consecutive at-large apperances.  Syracuse and Wisconsin are in, but their streaks would be snapped if they win their conference tournaments.

The 14 consecutive at-large bids for Texas is an all-time tournament record.

Consecutive years with at least a Top 4 seed:

1. Kansas 12
2. Duke 5
3. Syracuse 4
4. Kentucky 3
    Ohio State 3
    Wisconsin 3

Kansas, Duke and Ohio State are safely Top 4 seeds. ESPN Bracketology had Syracuse at a 4 in yesterday's bracket, but with their run in the Big East tournament, they will most likely continue that streak.  Wisconsin was on the 5 line, so they are on the borderline of receiving a Top 4 seed.  Kentucky will definitely not be a Top 4 seed and may not even make the tournament.

Consecutive appearances in Round of 32:

1. Kansas 6
    Purdue 6
    Wisconsin 6
4. Gonzaga 4
    Syracuse 4
6. Kansas State 3
    Kentucky 3
    Ohio State 3

For the teams making the tournament, we will have to wait until Thursday or Friday to find out if they continue the streak, but Purdue's streak will come to an end and Kentucky's streak is in serious jeopardy.

Consecutive appearance in Sweet Sixteen:

Kentucky and Ohio State have both been to the last 3 Sweet Sixteens.  Kentucky's streak is most likely to end even if they make the tournament.  Ohio State has a great shot to return.  Five teams (Florida, Kansas, Marquette, North Carolina and Wisconsin) have all been to the Sweet Sixteen the last two years.  All have a legitimate shot of returning with North Carolina projected as the lowest seed (#7) on yesterday's bracketology.

Consecutive Tournament Bids

13 schools have been to the tournament each of the past 5 seasons.  Here is a list of those schools with the longest active tournament streaks along with their RPI as of 1/18/2013

• Kansas 23 (RPI - 2)
• Duke 17 (RPI - 1)
• Michigan State 15 (RPI - 17)
• Gonzaga 14 (RPI - 10)
• Texas 14 (RPI - 144)
• Wisconsin 14 (RPI - 46)
• Marquette 7 (RPI - 16)
• Xavier 7 (RPI - 83)
• Brigham Young 6 (RPI - 47)
• Louisville 6 (RPI - 7)
• Purdue 6 (RPI - 119)
• Temple 5 (RPI - 32)
• West Virginia 5 (RPI - 81)

Wisconsin and Brigham Young's RPI's put them on the bubble.  However, Wisconsin will most likely get in due to the fact that their strength of schedule will increase with playing in the Big Ten.

West Virginia, Xavier, Purdue and Texas will need to improve to be able to continue their string of tournament appearances.

If Texas misses the tournament, it would be the 9th time since 2000 that a double-digit streak has been snapped.

Longest Active Streaks Snapped Each Year
2012 - Pittsburgh 10
2011 - Cornell, Siena 3
2010 - Arizona 25
2009 - Kentucky 17
2008 - Florida 9
2007 - Alabama, Connecticut, NC State 5
2006 - Cincinnati 14
2005 - Maryland 11
2004 - Indiana 18
2003 - UCLA 14
2002 - North Carolina 27 (Longest streak in tournament history)
2001 - Purdue 8
2000 - New Mexico 4
1999 - Massachusetts 7
1998 - Wake Forest 7
1997 - Arkansas 9
1996 - Oklahoma State 5
1995 - Duke 11
1994 - Louisiana State 10
1993 - Georgetown 14
1992 - UNLV 9
1991 - Illinois, Oklahoma 8
1990 - DePaul 6
1989 - Kentucky 9
1988 - UAB 7
1987 - Villanova 7
1986 - Arkansas 9
1985 - Louisville 8
1984 - Iowa, Tennessee 5
1983 - DePaul 5
1982 - UCLA 15
1981 - Marquette 10
1980 - San Francisco, Utah 3
1979 - Kentucky, Providence 2
1978 - Michigan 4
1977 - Alabama, Georgetown, Indiana, Rutgers, San Diego State 2
1976 - Penn 6
1975 - South Carolina 4
1974 - Kentucky, Weber State 6
1973 - Villanova 4
1972 - New Mexico State 5
1971 - Davidson, Santa Clara 3
1970 - North Carolina, St. John's 3
1969 - Houston 4
1968 - Dayton, SMU 3
1967 - Oklahoma City 4
1966 - UCLA 4
1965 - Arizona State, Seattle 4
1964 - Cincinnati 6
1963 - Ohio State 3
1962 - Utah 3
1961 - Idaho State 8
1960 - Kentucky 5
1959 - San Francisco 4
1958 - Oklahoma City 6
1957 - Seattle 4
1956 - Bradley, Colorado, La Salle, Penn State 2
1955 - Santa Clara 3
1954 - Kansas, TCU, Wyoming 2
1953 - NC State 3
1952 - Brigham Young 2
1951 - Baylor, Bradley, CCNY, Holy Cross, Ohio State, UCLA 1
1950 - Wyoming 3
1949 - Holy Cross 2
1948 - CCNY, Navy, Oklahoma, Oregon State, Texas, Wisconsin 1
1947 - Ohio State 3
1946 - Utah 2
1945 - Dartmouth 4
1944 - DePaul, Georgetown, New York, Oklahoma, Texas, Washington, Wyoming 1
1943 - Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Penn State, Rice, Stanford 1
1942 - Arkansas, Creighton, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Washington St, Wisconsin, Wyoming 1

1942 was the first year that a team went to consecutive tournaments when Dartmouth did.