NCAA basketball rivalries: Ranking the top 25 college basketball rivalries

NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 10: A fan of the North Carolina Tar Heels (L) and the Duke Blue Devils pose for a photo while holding a sign referring to the Duke/UNC rivalry during the semifinals of the ACC Basketball Tournament at Barclays Center on March 10, 2017 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /

13 of 26

(Photo by Corey Perrine/Getty Images) /

No. 14 – Penn Quakers vs. Princeton Tigers

All-Time Series: Penn leads 126-113

When you combine historical significance with the relative importance of each game, you get an important and distinguished rivalry, and so it is with the two historical powerhouses of the Ivy League. Prior to 2017, when the Ivy League implemented a conference tournament to determine its NCAA Tournament representative, the regular-season championship was the ultimate decider of who danced in March. In the history of the Ivy League, no teams earned that distinction more than the Quakers and the Tigers, whose annual clashes frequently determined the Ivy’s champion.

Of the 76 NCAA Tournament bids granted to the champion of the Ivy League, 49 belong to Penn or Princeton, and the split between the two programs is 25 for Princeton and 24 for Penn. Historically, these games truly mattered to the overall success of the program, and given the volume of games contested between the schools over the years, this rivalry is a worthy inclusion on this list.

Game of Note: February 9, 1999 – Princeton def Penn 50-49

While the rivalry’s frequency offers many possible selections, the game of note is one filled with drama and disbelief. After Princeton score the first three points of the game, Penn went on a 29-0 run and led at halftime 33-9. With 15 minutes to go, Penn led by 27 points. And then, ridiculousness ensued. Princeton capped off one of the more dramatic and improbable comebacks in college hoops history, finishing the game on its own 37-9 run to take the 50-49 victory while Penn supporters at the Palestra looked on in disbelief. Penn would secure its revenge later in the season, winning the return match on its way to the 1999 Ivy League title.