The 2025 Florida Gators became men’s national champions for the third time in program history last year. They'll look to defend their title as a top seed in the tournament this year.
The 2025 national championship came down to the final moments, as Florida stifled Houston on its last offensive possession to win 65-63 after erasing a 12-point second-half deficit.
The title game capped off a thrilling semifinal in San Antonio, with all three games seeing teams come from behind to win. Florida’s 12-point comeback marks the third-biggest deficit overcome to win the national championship in tournament history.
Florida’s title game triumph officially ends UConn’s two-year reign, with the Huskies’ bid for a third-straight national championship falling short in the round of 32 against the Gators.
From Florida in 2025, to UConn’s back-to-back titles, all the way back to the inaugural men’s national championship game in 1939, we take a look at a full list of men’s college basketball national champions.
List of Men's Basketball Tournament National Champions
Year | Champion |
1939 | Oregon |
1940 | Indiana |
1941 | Wisconsin |
1942 | Stanford |
1943 | Wyoming |
1944 | Utah |
1945 | Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) |
1946 | Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State) |
1947 | Holy Cross |
1948 | Kentucky |
1949 | Kentucky |
1950 | City College of New York |
1951 | Kentucky |
1952 | Kansas |
1953 | Indiana |
1954 | La Salle |
1955 | San Francisco |
1956 | San Francisco |
1957 | North Carolina |
1958 | Kentucky |
1959 | California |
1960 | Ohio State |
1961 | Cincinnati |
1962 | Cincinnati |
1963 | Loyola Chicago |
1964 | UCLA |
1965 | UCLA |
1966 | Texas Western |
1967 | UCLA |
1968 | UCLA |
1969 | UCLA |
1970 | UCLA |
1971 | UCLA |
1972 | UCLA |
1973 | UCLA |
1974 | North Carolina State |
1975 | UCLA |
1976 | Indiana |
1977 | Marquette |
1978 | Kentucky |
1979 | Michigan State |
1980 | Louisville |
1981 | Indiana |
1982 | North Carolina |
1983 | North Carolina State |
1984 | Georgetown |
1985 | Villanova |
1986 | Louisville |
1987 | Indiana |
1988 | Kansas |
1989 | Michigan |
1990 | UNLV |
1991 | Duke |
1992 | Duke |
1993 | North Carolina |
1994 | Arkansas |
1995 | UCLA |
1996 | Kentucky |
1997 | Arizona |
1998 | Kentucky |
1999 | UConn |
2000 | Michigan State |
2001 | Duke |
2002 | Maryland |
2003 | Syracuse |
2004 | UConn |
2005 | North Carolina |
2006 | Florida |
2007 | Florida |
2008 | Kansas |
2009 | North Carolina |
2010 | Duke |
2011 | UConn |
2012 | Kentucky |
2013 | Louisville |
2014 | UConn |
2015 | Duke |
2016 | Villanova |
2017 | North Carolina |
2018 | Villanova |
2019 | Virginia |
2020 | Tournament not held |
2021 | Baylor |
2022 | Kansas |
2023 | UConn |
2024 | UConn |
2025 | Florida |
Schools with the Most Men's College BasketaballTournament Championships
School | Championships |
UCLA | 11 |
Kentucky | 8 |
North Carolina | 6 |
UConn | 6 |
Duke | 5 |
Indiana | 5 |
Kansas | 4 |
Villanova | 3 |
Florida | 3 |
There are 36 schools which have won at least one national title, with just 15 of those lifting multiple championships.
The most successful program in men's tournament history is UCLA, having won 11 championships. However, the Bruins won 10 of those 11 titles during a dominant spell in the 1960s and 70s, with their last triumph coming in 1995.
Kentucky follows with eight championships, the last of which came in 2012 when Anthony Davis led them to glory.
North Carolina and Connecticut are joint-third with six titles apiece. The Tar Heels have made more appearances as one of the last four teams (21) than any other team and progressed to the national championship on 12 occasions, winning half of those.
The Huskies have won all six of their titles since 1999, making them the most successful men's program in the modern era. Under head coach Dan Hurley, UConn dominated men's college basketball for two years between 2022 and 2024, winning all 12 of its tournament games by double-digits en route to two titles.
Duke and Indiana are next up at five titles each. The Blue Devils are considered the cream of the crop when it comes to men's college basketball programs, but have not won a title since 2015 despite some deep tournament runs. Duke trails only UNC for the most appearances with 18, being one of the last four teams standing.
Indiana, a dynasty under head coach Bob Knight in the 1970s and 80s, is without a title since 1987.
Kansas won the 2022 championship to reach four titles, while Villanova and now Florida are tied on the list with three championships apiece. Lousiville, who had their 2013 title vacated, is only recognized for winning two championships.
Coaches with the Most Tournament Championships
Coach | Championships |
John Wooden | 10 |
Mike Krzyzewski | 5 |
Adolph Rupp | 4 |
Roy Williams | 3 |
Bob Knight | 3 |
Jim Calhoun | 3 |
No one has come close to John Wooden, who is the most successful coach in men's college basketball history. He coached UCLA from 1948 to 1975, leading the Bruins to 10 of the 11 titles won by the program.
It took 16 years for Wooden to claim his first title in 1964 before going on to win nine more in the next 11 years before his retirement. That includes an unmatched streak of seven consecutive titles between 1967 and 1973.
After that, it’s Mike Krzyzewski, who retired from his illustrious coaching career at Duke after the 2022 tournament. He was in charge for all five national titles won by the Blue Devils during a 32-year spell as head coach. He picked up the last of those titles in 2015, defeating Wisconsin in the national championship.
Longtime Kentucky head coach Adolph Rupp is sole third on the list with four championships to his name, all of which came between 1948 and 1958 in the midst of his incredible 41-year tenure as Kentucky head coach.
Roy Williams won three titles, all of which came with UNC between 2005 and 2017 following a 15-year spell at Kansas in which he reached four semifinal rounds.
Bob Knight won three titles with Indiana over an 11-year span between 1976 and 1987, while legendary UConn head coach Jim Calhoun, known as the founder of the now-storied Huskies men's program, won the program's first three championships in 1999, 2004 and 2011.
