FOURTUITOUS

They finally caught up.

No, not the police. Rather, one of the other power conferences finally caught up with Duke and North Carolina in total Final Four berths since 1990.

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When Wisconsin triumphed over Arizona in the regional finals, the Big 10 had its 17th representative in the Final Four over the past quarter-century, what might be called modern history. Remarkably, the 17 appearances match the combined total for Duke and North Carolina over the same period.

Until now, the conspicuous Triangle rivals had surpassed every league except the ACC in sending squads to the Final Four during those years.

The ACC meanwhile has mounted its own streak, enduring Final Four shutouts every season since 2010. That drought matches the longest in conference history. The previous four-year dry spell occurred from 1958 through 1961. The league started competition in 1954.

Best to take a longer view.

Extend consideration to Final Four participation since 1990, and the ACC is still the leader. Over the last quarter-century the league has sent 21 teams to the Final Four. No conference can match that.

As for NCAA titles, ACC schools captured eight since 1990 - four by Duke (1991, 1992, 2001, 2010), three by UNC (1993, 2005, 2009), and one by Maryland (2002). That's two more than the Southeastern Conference, the next-closest league with six championships over that span.

The SEC has two entrants in this year's Final Four, Florida and Kentucky. UConn, late of the Big East, and UK won in 2011 and 2012, respectively. Florida, winner of 30 in a row, is the most recent back-to-back title winner, emerging as NCAA champions in 2006 and 2007 under current coach Billy Donovan.

Wisconsin last won an NCAA title in 1941, three years before the ACC's oldest contemporary coach, Syracuse's Jim Boeheim, was born.