These 4 historic March Madness programs missing from Sweet 16 for first time in 72 years

The UCLA Bruins, Kentucky Wildcats, North Carolina Tar Heels and Kansas Jayhawks have combined for 29 NCAA men’s college basketball national championships.

They rank first, second, tied for third and seventh, respectively, among all men’s college basketball programs.

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And the total number of titles for those blue-blood programs will remain unchanged through the 2026 NCAA Tournament.

MORE: March Madness Sweet 16 and why this will be your Final Four

That’s because for the first time since 1954, none of those schools made it to the Sweet 16, which begins Thursday, March 26.

Bjorn Bergstrom of College Sports Wire and the WTF Stats X account shared the stunning news.

The four legendary programs qualified for the NCAA Tournament this season. But only Kansas held a seed high enough to be a favorite to advance to the Sweet 16. The Jayhawks entered as a No. 4 seed but fell to the No. 5-seeded St. John’s Red Storm in the Round of 32.

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The Tar Heels lost to the No. 11-seeded VCU Rams as a No. 6 seed in the Round of 64. Meanwhile, the Bruins and Wildcats were No. 7 seeds and lost in the Round of 32. The No. 2-seeded UConn Huskies and Iowa State Cyclones defeated them, respectively.

UCLA leads all men’s college basketball programs with 11 titles, including seven straight from 1967-73. Kentucky ranks second with eight crowns, while North Carolina is tied with UConn at six championships. Kansas stands alone in seventh place with four titles.

The Sweet 16 begins on Thursday, March 26, with the following games:

7:10 p.m.: No. 2 Purdue vs. No. 11 Texas (West), CBS

7:30 p.m.: No. 4 Nebraska vs. No. 9 Iowa (South), TBS/truTV

9:45 p.m.: No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 4 Arkansas (West), CBS

10:05 p.m.: No. 2 Houston vs. No. 3 Illinois (South), TBS/truTV

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MARCH MADNESS: 2026 Sweet 16 TV schedule, game times & dates for NCAA Tournament

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Publish date : 2026-03-26 16:29:00

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