MICHIGAN, USA — March Madness is here and Michigan will only be sending two teams to the big dance this year.
Michigan is home to seven Division I basketball programs, with a long history of success in the tournament. Two programs stand out among the rest: The University of Michigan and Michigan State University, but other schools have also made runs in March.
Here's how Michigan's D1 basketball programs have faired all-time in the NCAA Basketball Tournament:
Michigan State University Spartans
- Appearances: 36
- Championships: 2 (1979, 2000)
- Runner-up: 1 (2009)
- Final Four: 10
- Elite Eight: 14
- Sweet Sixteen: 21
- Tournament Record: 72-35
Michigan State University has become synonymous with March Madness ever since Tom Izzo took control of the program in 1995. Izzo has led the Spartans to 25 NCAA Tournaments in a row, beginning in his second season as head coach.
During his tenure, Izzo has claimed an NCAA Championship and 8 Final Four appearances with 52 wins in the tournament.
Izzo was the assistant head coach for 11 years under Jud Heathcote, State's head coach from 1976 until 1995. Heathcote claimed Michigan State's first NCAA Championship in 1979 with Earvin "Magic" Johnson on the team.
Michigan State is second to only Indiana University in NCAA tournament appearances.
The Spartans are expected to extend their tournament appearance streak this year, despite a rather rocky 2023-24 season.
University of Michigan Wolverines
- Appearances: 28*
- Championships: 1 (1989)
- Runner-up: 4* (1965, 1976, 2013, 2018)
- Final Four: 6*
- Elite Eight: 14*
- Sweet Sixteen: 17*
- Tournament Record: 59-27*
The University of Michigan has been another powerhouse in the NCAA Tournament throughout history, despite a controversy that forced the program to vacate many tournament wins.
The Wolverines have only claimed a single NCAA Championship, despite seven appearances in the finals. However, Michigan still has an elite record in March, with six Final Four appearances, 14 Elite Eight, 17 Sweet Sixteen and an overall tournament record of 59-27.
Some of Michigan's post-season success was vacated by the NCAA after the University of Michigan basketball scandal surrounding players on the 1988-89 team. Four players were found to have accepted loans from a U of M booster, who was laundering money from an illegal gambling operation.
Following the scandal, the NCAA vacated all or part of five seasons, including two March Madness runs to the finals in 1992 and 1993. In total, the NCAA vacated 12 tournament wins and four losses.
Since the sanctions were imposed by the NCAA, the Wolverines have made 11 tournament appearances under head coaches John Beilein and Juwan Howard. In those 11 appearances, Michigan has made it to the finals twice and the Sweet Sixteen seven times.
University of Detroit Mercy Titans
- Appearances: 6
- Championships: 0
- Runner-up: 0
- Final Four: 0
- Elite Eight: 0
- Sweet Sixteen: 1
- Tournament Record: 3-6
Michigan's third most successful D1 basketball program is also home to one of the NCAA's top-scoring players of all time. Antoine Davis has the second most career points in history with 3,664 during his career.
Despite Davis' personal success, he was unable to lead the team to any NCAA Tournament appearances when he played between 2018 and 2023.
But, the private Roman Catholic university still has the third most appearances in the NCAA Tournament among Michigan teams with six.
The furthest the Titans have made it into the tournament is the Sweet Sixteen in 1977. Detroit Mercy's biggest win in the tournament was likely in 1999 when they upset No. 5-seeded UCLA in the first round 56-53.
The last time the Titans made the tournament was in 2012 when they lost to No. 2-seeded Kansas in the first round.
Central Michigan University Chippewas
- Appearances: 4
- Championships: 0
- Runner-up: 0
- Final Four: 0
- Elite Eight: 0
- Sweet Sixteen: 1
- Tournament Record: 3-4
Central Michigan University has only been a Division I school since 1975, but in that short time, it has earned some accolades during the month of March.
The Chippewas have had four NCAA Tournament appearances since 1975, with a Sweet Sixteen appearance that year after beating Georgetown in the first round of the tournament. CMU went on to win the Regional Third Place game that year as well when third-place games were still played.
Central Michigan's most recent appearance was in 2003 when they made it to the second round after defeating Creighton before falling to Duke. The Chippewas have a tournament record of 3-4 all-time.
Eastern Michigan University Eagles
- Appearances: 4
- Championships: 0
- Runner-up: 0
- Final Four: 0
- Elite Eight: 0
- Sweet Sixteen: 1
- Tournament Record: 3-4
Eastern Michigan University hangs its hat on head coach Ben Braun, who led the Eagles to their most successful decade during his tenure. From 1985 until 1996, Braun led the led to three NCAA Tournaments, including the program's best showing in 1991 when the Eagles made it to the Sweet Sixteen.
After Braun left in 1996, the Eagles would only make one trip to the big dance in 1998, where they lost to Michigan State in the first round.
With an overall tournament record of 3-4, the Eagles' most impressive win among the bunch is the upset over No. 8-seeded Duke in the first round of the 1996 tournament.
Western Michigan University Broncos
- Appearances: 4
- Championships: 0
- Runner-up: 0
- Final Four: 0
- Elite Eight: 0
- Sweet Sixteen: 1
- Tournament Record: 2-4
Despite one of the worst overall tournament records among D1 schools in Michigan, Western Michigan University has seen more recent success than other schools in the state.
The Broncos have a total of four appearances, with the most recent in 2014 where they lost to Syracuse in the first round.
Western Michigan hasn't won a tournament game since the 90s where they upset Clemson in the first round of the tournament in 1998.
The Broncos best showing in the tournament was in 1976 when they made it to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to Marquette.
Oakland University Golden Grizzlies
- Appearances: 3
- Championships: 0
- Runner-up: 0
- Final Four: 0
- Elite Eight: 0
- Sweet Sixteen: 0
- Tournament Record: 1-3
Oakland University has the fewest appearances in the NCAA Tournament, but this program is shaping up to be one of the better in the state.
The Golden Grizzlies only became a Division I school in 1999 and in the short time since then, Oakland has made three NCAA Tournament appearances.
Oakland only has one win in the tournament, which came during the play-in game in 2005 where Oakland upset Alabama A&M as the No. 16 seed, before losing to No. 1 seeded North Carolina in the first round.
The Golden Grizzlies will be adding another appearance to their record in 2024 after winning the Horizon League Conference Tournament.
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