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10 best Final Four teams of all time

By Nathaniel Reeves

Mar 4, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Former UCLA Bruins player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar waves to the crowd at half time between the Washington State Cougars and the UCLA Bruins at Pauley Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 4, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Former UCLA Bruins player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar waves to the crowd at half time between the Washington State Cougars and the UCLA Bruins at Pauley Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /
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With the National Semifinals set for Saturday, who are some of the greatest Final Four teams in NCAA Tournament history?

Following a thrilling second weekend of the NCAA Tournament, the 2017 Final Four is set for this weekend in Phoenix.

Saturday’s first National Semifinal features a pair of newcomers to the biggest stage in college basketball. The Gonzaga Bulldogs defended their 29-1 regular season and No. 1 seed with a run to their first Final Four, where they will meet this year’s Cinderella team in the South Carolina Gamecocks, who upset Duke and Baylor en route to Phoenix.

Despite losing key piece Chris Boucher just before the tournament, the Oregon Ducks will make their first Final Four appearance in 78 years in the other semifinal. They will meet the top-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels, the only traditional college basketball power to reach the final stage of the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

One of those teams will forever earn a place in college basketball lore by cutting down the nets on Monday night. While none of the four teams in 2017 will likely go down as one of the best in the sport’s history, the players and moments leading up to a title will never be forgotten.

Some of the most talented rosters ever such as the 2015 Kentucky Wildcats and 1991 UNLV Rebels reached the Final Four only to fall short of a championship. Others were able to find more success in the semifinals by completing undefeated seasons or capping off Cinderella runs.

From Lew Alcindor’s UCLA Bruins to the Anthony Davis Kentucky Wildcats, here are the 10 greatest Final Four teams of all-time.

10. 1957 North Carolina Tar Heels

While the 1957 Tar Heels became the second undefeated national champion in college basketball history, their victory over Kansas in the title game still feels like an upset of sorts.

After entering the postseason at a perfect 26-0, the Tar Heels comfortably won their first three NCAA Tournament games to advance to the second Final Four in school history. North Carolina had its closest call of the season in the National Semifinal, as it had to overcome a terrible shooting performance from superstar Lennie Rosenbluth for a triple-overtime win against Michigan State.

The very next night, the Tar Heels had to go up against No. 2 Kansas, which entered the title game at 24-2 behind Wilt Chamberlain, who turned in one of the most dominant seasons in college basketball history. Kansas destroyed defending champion San Francisco in the semifinal, and entered the game as the favorite after North Carolina had to battle so hard in the previous game.

Once again, the game went to triple-overtime, with the two teams combining for four points in the first two extra periods. Despite Rosenbluth fouling out with 1:45 to go in regulation, the Tar Heels emerged with a 54-53 win on a steal and two made free throws by Joe Quigg in the final seconds.

Chamberlain was held to just 23 points on 6-of-13 shooting, a modest performance given his ridiculous numbers for the season. No champion would go undefeated again until the John Wooden-era Bruins, and North Carolina’s ability to handle Chamberlain still stands out as one of the more impressive championship game performances ever.

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