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College Basketball Teams

Chris Wright

By Chris Wright

Last Updated:

This page serves as the home of NCAA Division I college basketball. You’ll find key conference and team information about every Power Conference team in the nation, separated by conference.

We begin with the SEC.

SEC

SEC history: The SEC played its first games in 1933, starting with 13 of the premier programs in the South. Ten original members remain in the SEC: Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Vanderbilt. Original members Sewanee (1940), Georgia Tech (1963) and Tulane (1965) left.

The SEC has selectively expanded, adding Arkansas and South Carolina for the 1992-93 basketball season. In 2012-13, it added Missouri and Texas A&M, and in 2024-25 welcomed Oklahoma and Texas to get to 16 teams.

SEC Tournament history: The SEC staged a tournament from 1933-52 before ending the annual event until 1979. The league has held a tournament every full season since, with the winner claiming an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. Kentucky has won the SEC Tournament 32 times entering 2025.

SEC’s most recent NCAA Tournament champion: Kentucky won the 2012 NCAA Tournament on the strength of its fantastic freshmen, most notably Most Outstanding Player Anthony Davis. The Wildcats have won the NCAA Tournament 8 times, second only to UCLA (11).

ACC

Conference members (18*): Boston College, Cal, Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, NC State, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, SMU, Stanford, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest.

* — Notre Dame is an ACC member in every sport except football.

ACC history: The ACC was founded in 1953 with 7 original members (North Carolina, NC State, Clemson, Duke, Maryland Wake Forest and South Carolina), all of which left the larger Southern Conference. The ACC added Virginia later that winter. South Carolina and Maryland eventually left for the SEC and Big Ten, respectively. The ACC has expanded several times, first adding Georgia Tech, then Florida State before acquiring former Big East programs Miami, Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Boston College and Pitt. In the summer of 2024, the ACC added Cal, SMU and Stanford. Notre Dame is a full ACC member in every sport except football.

ACC Tournament history: If you appreciate all that the NCAA Tournament has become, thank the ACC. It provided the blueprint — and then the reason to expand. In 1974, NC State defeated Maryland in the ACC Tournament championship game, often described as the greatest college game of all time. Because only the ACC Tournament champion received a bid into the NCAA Tournament, Maryland stayed home — despite being ranked the No. 4 team in the country. The very next season, the NCAA Tournament expanded to 32 teams and began awarding at-large bids to teams that didn’t win their conference tournament. That initial expansion an at-large bid concept led to the 68-team field we now have. Duke has won the most ACC Tournaments (22) entering 2025.

ACC’s most recent NCAA Tournament champion: Virginia won the 2019 NCAA Tournament. North Carolina and Duke have won the NCAA Tournament 6 times entering 2025, the most by an ACC program.

Big Ten Conference

Conference members (18): Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, UCLA, USC, Washington, Wisconsin.

Big Ten history: The Big Ten launched in 1895, making it the oldest college conference in the nation. The 7 founding members were: Chicago, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Purdue and Michigan. Indiana and Iowa soon joined, followed by Ohio State in 1912.

The Big Ten has been active in expanding. It added Penn State, beginning with the 1993-94 basketball season. Nebraska became the 12th league team in 2011-12. Maryland and Rutgers arrived in 2014-15. Reacting to the SEC adding Texas and Oklahoma, the B1G added USC and UCLA, and then Oregon and Washington in 2024-25.

Big Ten Tournament history: Former Indiana coach Bob Knight famously despised the idea of a conference tournament, fearing it wore down teams preparing for the NCAA Tournament. That mindset is one reason the Big Ten Tournament didn’t begin until the 1997-98 season. Michigan State has won the most tournaments, with 6 titles entering 2025. (Indiana still hasn’t won the Big Ten Tournament, by the way.)

Big Ten’s most recent NCAA Tournament champion: Purdue reached the 2024 national championship game but lost to UConn. Maryland won the 2002 NCAA Tournament, but was in the ACC at the time.

Michigan State won the 2000 NCAA Tournament, the most recent by a team actually in the Big Ten at the time.

Big 12 Conference

Conference members (16): Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, BYU, Cincinnati, Colorado, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas Tech, UCF, Utah, West Virginia.

Big 12 history: Few conferences have undergone more change than the current Big 12. The league has changed names, added teams, lost teams, etc. Technically, the Big 12 launched in 1994, but most of its core teams had been together for decades in the old Big 8 or Southwest Conference. In 2022, the Big 12 had 10 teams. Soon after, Texas and Oklahoma announced they were leaving to join to the SEC. The Big 12 then added 8 teams over the next 2 seasons to get to 16 in time for the 2024-25 college basketball season.

Big 12 Tournament history: The Big 12 Tournament started in 1997 — 1 season before the Big Ten started its tournament. Kansas has won the most Big 12 Tournament titles — 12 entering the 2025 tournament.

Big 12’s most recent NCAA Tournament champion: Kansas is the most recent winner, beating North Carolina to claim the 2022 title. Baylor won the 2021 NCAA Tournament. Kansas has won the NCAA Tournament 4 times — most in league history.

Chris Wright
Chris Wright

Managing Editor

A 30-time APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.

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