A breakdown of the longest streaks of consecutive Sweet 16 appearances in NCAA Tournament history.
When it comes to college basketball, only one team gets to cut down the nets at the conclusion of the NCAA tournament. Considering the field is massive (68), it is exceptionally difficult to become a dynasty in the traditional sense.
Instead, men’s college basketball programs are often recognized as a dynasty (in some form) by churning out consistent postseason performances year in and year out.
Regardless of the roster, some teams have managed to navigate March Madness better than the rest, routinely making it to the Sweet 16.
In order to make it to the Sweet 16, it requires at least two victories (three if a team began in the First Four), which is obviously no easy task.
Which Team Holds the Record for the Most Consecutive Sweet 16 Appearances?
First, we need to establish some ground rules. For the purposes of this list, we’re only going to count 1985–2024, because the NCAA tournament expanded to 64 teams that year.
Prior to 1985, the tournament field was 32 teams (or fewer) and in some cases gave byes to the top seeds. So reaching the Sweet 16 wasn’t nearly as impressive as it is now.
So, having established that, it brings us to the Gonzaga Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs have the longest active streak (nine), reaching the Sweet 16 each year from 2015–24.
That streak ties Gonzaga with North Carolina (1985–93) and Duke (1998–06) for the longest in history.
The second-longest active streak belongs to the Houston Cougars, who have made it five-straight seasons.
Longest Sweet 16 Streaks (Post-1985)
How Rare Is a Long Sweet 16 Streak?
Reaching the Sweet 16, simply put, is not easy.
Just how impressive is the nine-year streak for Duke, Gonzaga and North Carolina? To put it into context, Duke has an additional seven-year streak. No other program in history has a streak of more than five. Kansas (1993–97), Kentucky (1995–99), Michigan (2017–22) and Houston (2019–present) each made five-straight Sweet 16 appearances. The Cougars have a chance to reach six straight in the 2025 tournament.
If Gonzaga makes the Sweet 16 again in 2025, it will be 10 straight for the Bulldogs and it’ll mark the first time since post-tournament expansion that a program has made 10 consecutive appearances.
The Bulldogs have been a powerhouse since the early 2000s, which has been highlighted by this dominant tournament run.
Gonzaga’s seed in the tournament by year over the last nine seasons: Nos. 2, 11, 1, 4, 1, 1, 1, 3 and 5.
Outside of Gonzaga and Houston, no team has an active Sweet 16 streak of more than two. Alabama, UConn, Creighton, San Diego State and Tennessee have all appeared in back-to-back Sweet 16s.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Record for the Most Consecutive Sweet 16 Appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
