NCAA basketball: 25 best college basketball teams of all time

21. 2006-2007 Florida Gators

Teams that can sustain excellence are a shoo-in for this list, and the 2006-2007 Florida Gators are the most modern example of that. Florida won the national championship in 2006 on the strength of future pros like Joakim Noah, Al Horford and Corey Brewer, setting them up for some interesting decisions.

Most of the time, players like that will bolt for the pros after they win a title since there is nothing left for them to accomplish at the collegiate level. That trio opted to pursue history, returning to school to join Taurean Green and Lee Humphrey to ensure the Gators’ starting lineup was fully intact.

That level of continuity made the regular season a formality for Florida, which did appear bored at times waiting for March Madness. The Gators dropped three of their final five regular-season games, leading to some questions about whether they could flip the switch in March.

That wasn’t a problem for Florida, which did turn the afterburners on after that brief slump. The Gators won their final 10 games, including a tough stretch from the Sweet 16 on with wins over Butler, Oregon, UCLA and a Greg Oden-led Ohio State to capture their second straight national championship.

The starting five all went pro after that win and no team has come close to repeating since Florida pulled it off. That fact alone earns this Gators’ team a spot on the list.