The 25 greatest Final Four games of all time

This was the second NCAA Tournament, and it took place back when it was an eight-team field to decide the national champion. Kansas was coached by the legendary Phog Allen, but his Jayhawks were facing 19-2 USC, which held a distinct height advantage over its opponents. However, Kansas hung with the Trojans and ultimately prevailed, in part from a steal via Allen's son, Robert, and a key late bucket from Howard Engleman.

Sure, the end result didn't really live up to the massive pregame hype between these storied Bluegrass rivals. Favored, multi-talented Kentucky shot a sizzling 57.1 percent and stymied the Cardinals to fewer than 35 percent-shooting from the field. However, Louisville hung in the game, and didn't allow the Wildcats to pull away, thanks to a 40-33 rebounding advantage, which featured a 19-6 edge on the offensive glass. A 15-5 run by Louisville tied the game at 49-49 with 9:11 remaining. However, the Wildcats answered and Darius Miller's 3 shortly after, put the Wildcats in control for good, and on their way to the program's eighth and most-recent title.

Duke was on its way to a second straight national championship, but things weren't all that easy against the Hoosiers in this national semifinal. The Blue Devils trailed by 12 with roughly two minutes remaining in the first half. However, they regrouped and held Indiana without a point for the first 5:53 of the second half, and just three points 10:20 into the final stanza. Duke led 73-64 when the Hoosiers sank three 3-pointers in 25 seconds, and it was a four-point game with less than 30 seconds to go. However, the Blue Devils were able to hold on despite Indiana shooting 8-of-15 from distance. Duke's Bobby Hurley went 6-of-9 from 3-point range and finished with 26 points.

Kansas led for a little under 4 minutes against Ohio State in this semifinal matchup against Ohio State. The Buckeyes led by 13 at one point in the first half, and 34-25 at the break. However, they missed their first 10 shots in the second half, while the Jayhawks got back in the game with a 13-4 spurt. It was tight the rest of the way, and a pair of free throws from Tyshawn Taylor sent Kansas up 64-61 with 8.3 seconds remaining. Ohio State's Aaron Craft made a free throw, then intentionally missed the second, but the Buckeyes couldn't save themselves and Kansas was headed for its shot at another national title.

This was not just about North Carolina reaching its first national championship, but also one of the more unheralded moments in the storied history of Tar Heels basketball. That would be Bob Paxton's deep shot in the final seconds that sent the game into overtime. Now, there has been debate over just the how long the ball traveled once out of Paxton's hand — 30 or more feet? Regardless, it sent North Carolina to overtime, where it recorded six of the nine points scored to continue its historic run.

Yes, Maryland recovered to win the 2002 national championship, But, the way the Terrapins' 2001 NCAA Tournament still stings. Maryland led rival Duke, in their fourth meeting of the season, by as many as 22 points with 6:57 left in the first half and 49-38 at halftime. Then Duke woke up and steamrolled the Terps, outscoring them 57-35 in the second half. Blue Devils stars Shane Battier and Jason Williams combined for 48 points, and set a Final Four record for the largest half-time deficit overcome. 

One of the great comeback moments within Final Four history, UConn trailed the Blue Devils 75-67 with roughly four minutes remaining in regulation. Then Emeka Okafor took over. Plagued by foul trouble in the first half, Okafor played just 22 minutes, but scored all 18 of his points after halftime, including five with three rebounds during the Huskies' run of 12 straight points. Okafor was even more dominant with 24 points and 15 boards during UConn's national championship-game victory over Georgia Tech two days later.

Entering the 1983 Final Four, many fans and hoops pundits felt this was the true national championship game. Houston's "Phi Slama Jama" was the No. 1 team in the nation, and Louisville was No. 2. Both loved to move the ball up and down the court, and a high-flying game was expected. It did live up to the hype — for the most part. Houston threw down 14 dunks in the game and shot 55.4 percent, but trailed by five at halftime and 57-49 with 13 minutes left in regulation. Then the Cougars went to a man-to-man defense, and a 21-1 run in their favor followed. Houston's biggest star Hakeem Olajuwon was relentless with 21 points, 22 rebounds, and eight blocks.

Houston was making its third straight appearance in the Final Four, while Virginia got there one year after star Ralph Sampson graduated. The Cavaliers, who lost the regular-season matchup between these teams by nine, managed to slow down the up-tempo, high-flying Cougars and frustrated their star big man Hakeem Olajuwon — who scored eight of his 12 points from the field and committed eight turnovers — in this rematch. And, Houston couldn't hold a two-point lead with 29 seconds remaining in regulation. The teams combined for 10 points in overtime, but Houston scored the first four and held on for a second consecutive trip to the national final.

Illinois was a top seed, and already beat Michigan twice — by a combined 28 points — during the Big Ten portion of the 1988-89 season. However, this matchup was much different. The "Flyin' Illini" were still a force, but Michigan was on its surprise, destined course under interim coach Steve Fisher, and the result was a good old-fashioned blacktop battle — physical, intense, with both teams shooting better than 44 percent. The Wolverines held a 45-39 advantage on the boards, and none bigger than Sean Higgins' rebound of a missed 3-pointer with two seconds left in regulation, that led into a short game-winning jumper for the sophomore forward.

Sometimes it's as simple as forgetting to box out to play a major part in the outcome of the game. But twice in a matter of seconds? With North Carolina up 77-76 over Oregon and 5.8 seconds left in their national semifinal contest, the Ducks' Jordan Bell failed to box out on a Tar Heels missed free throw. Carolina's Theo Pinson did get a hand on the rebound and tapped it back to teammate Joel Berry, who was fouled. With four seconds remaining, Berry missed his free throw, and again, Bell missed the rebound, and the Tar Heels' Kennedy Meeks gained position to preserve the one-part margin of victory. Bell was quite emotional after the game, knowing exactly what he failed to get done during a game where both teams actually missed plenty of chances while combining to shoot 37.3 percent and commit 27 turnovers.

Chris Webber's title-game blunder is likely the most memorable Michigan moment from the '93 NCAA Tournament. However, perhaps the biggest postseason victory of the "Fab Five" era in Ann Arbor came with this semifinal matchup versus fellow No. 1 seed Kentucky. Michigan shot 47.5 percent overall and led by five at the break, but the Jamal Mashburn-led Wildcats flexed their muscle during the second half. The game went to overtime, where Kentucky led by three with 1:12 remaining. However, it was the Wolverines turn to step up. They took the lead and seal the game on Jalen Rose's steal off Travis Ford and ensuing two free throws.

Kentucky's road to a second national championship in three years was pretty intense — especially this barnburner against a talented, but underdog Stanford. It was tight, and the lack of overly accurate shooting by both teams was overshadowed by the physicality of the game and determination of both squads. The Cardinal went toe-to-toe with the blue-blood Wildcats, who overcame a 10-point second-half hole and 11 opposing made 3-pointers. From the roughly the 10-minute mark on, the game was nip and tuck. Jamaal Magloire's late block and a Jeff Sheppard free throw helped Kentucky prevail toward another moment of glory.

One couldn't write a Hollywood script better than this. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski's storied college coaching career was in its final days with retirement looming, and the eighth-seeded, archrival Tar Heels were the only thing standing in the way of his final game coming with a national title on the line. In the end, though, the goodbye was bittersweet for Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils, who shot 5-of-22 from 3-point range, went 12-of-20 from the free-throw line and couldn't hold a three-point halftime edge. In the end, this tight, highly entertaining classic, was essentially determined on a 3 out of the hands of Caleb Love (28 points) with 25 seconds remaining in regulation to put Carolina ahead by four.

The Magic Johnson-Larry Bird national championship game of 1979 remains one of the most legendary moments in NCAA Tournament history. However, many college hoops fans probably don't remember — or know — just how competitive and entertaining Indiana State's semifinal matchup with DePaul ended up. It was a rather remarkable display, with DePaul shooting 54.5 percent and the Sycamores making a ridiculous 62.5 percent of their shots. The game was back-and-forth, and Indiana State overcame 22 turnovers to lead by one in the final seconds. Down a point, the Blue Demons had a chance to go ahead, but Mark Aguirre's late shot didn't ball. Following an Indiana State free throw, DePaul got another chance, but didn't get a serious shot off. The victorious Sycamores got 35 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists from Bird, who also turned the ball over 11 times.

Virginia was down two points with 1.5 seconds remaining in regulation. That's when the Cavaliers' Kyle Guy got the ball in the corner and threw up a 3-pointer. Jumping up with him was Auburn's Samir Doughty, who nudged the shooter and apparently didn't give Guy enough room to land, causing official James Breeding to whistle a foul — giving three free throws to Guy. He made them all with 0.6 seconds to go for Virginia's 63-62 victory. It was a remarkable finish to a remarkable game, where Auburn was in position to win despite allowing the Cavaliers to shoot 49 percent.

Kentucky's Aaron Harrison was no stranger to hitting clutch shots during the 2014 NCAA Tournament. Perhaps none were bigger than the one he hit against Wisconsin in this national semifinal contest. The upstart, No. 8-seeded Wildcats were on an improbable run to the final, and Harrison was the star. Wisconsin, meanwhile, was the No. 2 seed and went 19-of-20 from the free-throw line during the game. However, the one miss — by Traevon Jackson — on the first of three after being fouled on a 3-point attempt with 16.4 seconds left in the game proved costly. After Jackson made the next two, Kentucky got the ball and eventually went to Harrison — off a pass from twin brother Andrew — who sank a deep, go-ahead 3 with 5.7 seconds remaining that ultimately gave Kentucky the remarkable victory. 

Texas beat the rival Sooners by 12 during their previous matchup earlier in the 1946-47 season, but now a spot in the national-title game was on the line in this contest. The Longhorns led by nine during one point in this rematch, but Oklahoma worked its way back and had the ball in the hands of star Gerald Tucker as the final seconds wound down. However, Tucker opted to pass the ball to teammate Ken Pryor, who never made a shot in his NCAA Tournament career up to that moment. But, with a defender in his face, Pryor two-handed a jump shot with five seconds remaining that banked in off the glass and gave Oklahoma a remarkable victory.

Certainly Wisconsin was thinking about a little revenge after what happened in the 2014 national semifinal. Also, the Badgers knew they were a pretty good unit worthy of taking down a Wildcats team flirting with history, as Kentucky was undefeated and poised to run the table. None of that didn’t matter to the Badgers. Behind 20 points and 11 rebounds from birthday boy Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin battled the Wildcats inch for inch. The Badgers answered when Kentucky went on an 8-0 second-half run, and completed the upset thanks to a 34-22 advantage on the glass over the Wildcats’ group of “one-and-doners.”

Fifth-seeded San Diego State and No. 9 seed FAU were two surprise participants in the 2023 Final Four. However, these unlikely semifinalists delivered one of the greatest games in NCAA Tournament history. The Aztecs' trademark air-tight defense was popped by the Owls, who led by as many as 14. However, SDSU persevered, and chipped that deficit down to a point with 36 seconds remaining. After FAU star Johnell Davis missed a contested layup, SDSU went down the court, but didn't call a timeout. Instead, Lamont Butler took matters into his own hands, moved to the near wing and popped a step-back jumper before the buzzer sounded that snapped the net and sent the Aztecs to the national final.

Marquette's road to the program's first — and, to date, only — national title, wasn't easy, notably with this semifinal matchup against UNC Charlotte. However, it's a good thing Jerome Whitehead was there to save Marquette and continue its run toward destiny. It wasn't the prettiest game-winning shot in NCAA Tournament history, but it was certainly memorable to those basketball fans of a certain age. The late Whitehead first had to catch a three-quarter-court inbound pass, which also happened to be tipped. Then, off the dribble, the Marquette star made his move to the goal and tried to dunk, but it turned into more of a layup that bounced off the backboard and back iron before falling in for the win.

Denny Crum spent years as an assistant coach under the legendary John Wooden. Now, the student and pupil were facing off with a spot in the national championship game on the line. Crum's Cardinals led by four with less than a minute remaining in regulation, but the Bruins rallied to force overtime. Louisville then led by one with 20 seconds remaining in overtime, but Terry Howard missed the front end of a one-and-one. The Bruins got the ball, which eventually landed in the hands of Richard Washington, who knocked down a last-season baseline jumper for the win. Moments after, Wooden announced he would retire after the title game.

The juggernaut known as the UCLA program had won seven straight national championships, but it also had its 88-game winning streak ended during the 1973-74 regular season. However, the Bill Walton-led Bruins had the talent to extend their championship streak. The Wolfpack, meanwhile, had two of the game’s best in David Thompson and 7-foot-4 Tom Burleson. UCLA held a double-digit lead in the second half, but NC State rallied to reach overtime. That’s when Thompson (28 points, 10 rebounds) and Burleson (20 points, 14 rebounds) shined in the extra sessions to end the Bruins’ run and pave the way for a Wolfpack national title.

Led by guards Johnny Juzang and Jaime Jaquez Jr., UCLA took on undefeated Gonzaga in the 2021 national semifinal. Zags star Drew Timme and guard Joel Ayayi each had over 20 points. Juzang scored 29 and Jaquez had 19 on the other end. Jaquez made two free throws to tie the game at 81-81 before the final 30 seconds of the second half was filled with turnovers and steals. In overtime, Juzang put on a heroic performance, which included a missed jump shot, own rebound, and putback to tie the game at 90-90 with three seconds left. In the end, though, it would be Gonzaga guard Jalen Suggs with an incredible half-court 3-pointer to stun the crowd and continue Gonzaga’s run toward history.

When it comes to perhaps the greatest upset in college basketball history, there are plenty of choices. Lucky for us, the greatest national-semifinal contest and all-time upset should be considered one and the same. The defending national champion Runnin’ Rebels were riding a 45-game winning streak and poised to become the first program since Indiana in 1975-76 to finish undefeated. The Blue Devils, though, were confident despite losing by 30 to UNLV in the 1990 title game. Behind 28 points from star Christian Laettner, Duke shot 51.8 percent and played some stifling defense against the Rebels, whose last-chance 3-pointer from Anderson Hunt missed the mark.