Not quite.
Yes, the upstarts are closing in, as Kentucky's 2012 national championship demonstrates.The triumph draws both the Wildcats and SEC just a step or two off the pace. But the ACC in general, and Duke and North Carolina in particular, still rule the highest peaks of the modern game.
Kentucky's NCAA title was the school's eighth, three short of the record set by UCLA. Four of UK's titles came between 1948 and 1958 under coach Adolph Rupp, the Baron of the Bluegrass.
(Rupp also was known as the Man in the Brown Suit. To get Rupp's goat, Ray Mears wore brown when he first took a Tennessee team to Lexington; he so discombobulated the master it led to a Volunteer victory.)
Four other UK coaches each captured a championship - Joe B. Hall, a former Rupp assistant, over Duke in 1978; Rick Pitino against Syracuse in 1996; Tubby Smith against Utah in 1998; and now John Calipari over Kansas.
But during recent decades -- say since 1980, when the Big East was founded and Georgia Tech joined the ACC -- neither the Cats nor their league have kept pace with the Blue Devils, Tar Heels, and ACC.
Besides the three Kentucky titles during those 33 years, Florida won in consecutive seasons and Arkansas topped Duke in Charlotte to win the 1994 championship.
Very impressive. Those six combined titles for modern SEC members are good enough to rank third in recent times -- behind the ACC (8) and the Duke-UNC combo (7).
Since 1982 the Heels and Devils are tied with four NCAA championships each. UK and UConn stand next with three titles apiece.
By the way, in case you forgot Mike Krzyzewski directed Duke to all four of its titles. Only UCLA's John Wooden won more championships, with 10 between 1964 through 1975. Dean Smith (1982, 1993) and Roy Williams (2005, 2009) each secured a pair of titles for Carolina.
|
PEAK PERFORMANCE |
||
| Entity | Since 1990 | Since 1980 |
| ACC | 8 | 10 |
| Duke/UNC | 7 | 8 |
| SEC | 6 | 6 |
| Big East | 4 | 6 |
| Pac-12 | 2 | 2 |
| Big 10 | 1 | 4 |
| Big 12 | 1 | 2 |
| Titles By School Since 1980: | ||
| Duke | 4 | 1991, 1992, 2001, 2010 |
| UNC | 4 | 1982, 1993, 2005, 2009 |
| Kentucky | 3 | 1996, 1998, 2012 |
| UConn | 3 | 1999, 2004, 2011 |
| Kansas | 2 | 1988, 2008 |
| Florida | 2 | 2006, 2007 |
| Indiana | 2 | 1981, 1987 |
| Louisville* | 2 | 1980, 1986 |
| N.C. State | 1 | 1983 |
| Georgetown | 1 | 1984 |
| Villanova | 1 | 1985 |
| Michigan | 1 | 1989 |
| UNLV | 1 | 1990 |
| Arkansas | 1 | 1994 |
| UCLA | 1 | 1995 |
| Arizona | 1 | 1997 |
| Michigan St. | 1 | 2000 |
| Maryland | 1 | 2002 |
| Syracuse | 1 | 2003 |
|
* Not member of Big East until 2005. |
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|
SEMIS CIRCLE |
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| No. | League/School | Members,Years Appeared |
| 21 | ACC | North Carolina (9), Duke (8), Georgia Tech (2), Maryland (2) |
| 17 | Duke/UNC | 1990, 1991 (2), 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001,2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010 |
| 16 | Big 10 | Michigan State (6), Ohio State (3), Indiana (2), Michigan (2), Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin |
| 14 | SEC | Kentucky (6), Florida (4), Arkansas (2), LSU, Mississippi State |
| 10 | Big East | Connecticut (4), Syracuse (2), Georgetown, Louisville, Villanova, West Virginia |
| 10 | Big 12 | Kansas (6), Oklahoma State (2), Oklahoma, Texas |
| 9 | UNC | 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2009 |
| 8 | Duke | 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2010 |
| 8 | Pac-12 | UCLA (4), Arizona (3), Stanford |
| 6 | Kentucky | 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2011, 2012 |
| 6 | Kansas | 1991, 1993, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2012 |
| 4 | Connecticut | 1999, 2004, 2009, 2011 |
| 4 | Florida | 1994, 2000, 2006, 2007 |
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