Michigan could be college basketball's most consistent modern program
· Yahoo Sports
The Michigan Wolverines are not a basketball blue-blood the way Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky, and UConn are. They haven't won a national championship since 1989. On an all-time scale, they do not belong in the very top tier -- the Mount Rushmore -- of college basketball programs. Yet, if you looked at the past 15 years and asked yourself which programs have been the most consistent at a relatively high level, Michigan has to be on the very short list.
Perspective and context
We're not saying Michigan has been the best program of the past 15 years, only the most consistently strong program. UConn and Villanova have won multiple national titles since 2012, and the various blue-blood programs mentioned above -- Duke, Carolina, Kentucky -- have all won a national title in the past 15-year window. However, UConn went through several very rough seasons under Kevin Ollie after the 2014 championship. Villanova is irrelevant right now in the aftermath of Jay Wright's departure. North Carolina is struggling, as is Kentucky. In terms of being really good on an annual basis, blue-blood programs and championship programs don't even come close to a high standard. They max out in one or two seasons but aren't there every season. This is where Michigan has excelled since 2012, the 15-year period which has brought us to the present moment.
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Saturday's win over Saint Louis
The victory over Saint Louis gave Michigan a ninth Sweet 16 over the past 15 seasons. That's more than any program other than Gonzaga, which will try for 10 in 15 when it faces Texas in the second round. (This story was published before Gonzaga-Texas began on Saturday evening.) Arizona will try for eight Sweet 16s since 2012 on Sunday when it plays Utah State. Those are the three leaders in Sweet 16s over the past 15 years of college basketball.
Michigan over Arizona
Michigan clearly wins a head-to-head comparison with Arizona over the past 15 seasons. The Wildcats haven't been to a Final Four in that time while Michigan has reached multiple national championship games in that same span. Interestingly, these schools could meet in the 2026 Final Four national semifinals if they win their regions.
Gonzaga
Gonzaga could make a 10th Sweet 16 in 15 seasons if it beats Texas. Yet, many will say that playing in the West Coast Conference has given GU an advantage Michigan doesn't have. Gonzaga owning (potentially) one more Sweet 16 than Michigan since 2012 -- with both teams having two appearances in the national title game in that period of time -- doesn't end the conversation or the comparison between the teams. In many ways, it begins it.
Michigan compared to Gonzaga
What's fascinating about the Michigan-Gonzaga comparison over the past 15 seasons is that Gonzaga's nine Sweet 16s (10 if it beats Texas) were achieved by one coach, Mark Few. Michigan has done this with John Beilein, then Juwan Howard, and now Dusty May. Different coaches can come to Ann Arbor and thrive. It speaks to the quality of Michigan's program.
John Beilein
John Beilein took Michigan to two national title games in six seasons. He also made the Elite Eight in 2014 and the Sweet 16 in 2017 and 2019. When we think of great college basketball coaches in the 21st century, Beilein is easy to overlook because he never won a national title. Yet, his achievements were enormous, and they laid a foundation Dusty May has built on.
Speaking of Dusty...
Dusty May
Michigan belted the home run Indiana failed to hit. This hire has become a grand slam, with the former Florida Atlantic coach making his third Sweet 16 in four seasons, and making the Sweet 16 in each of his first two seasons at Michigan. Dusty May seems headed for superstardom in coaching. He has Michigan poised to remain a heavyweight as long as he stays in Ann Arbor.
Raising the bar
Michigan is not a top-10 all-time program in college basketball. Duke, UNC, Kentucky, UCLA, Indiana, Kansas, UConn, Florida, Louisville and Villanova are the 10 programs with at least three national titles. Michigan has only one. However, if Dusty May lives up to his potential, we could be sitting here in another 15 years -- 2041 -- with Michigan having several national championships and a pile of Final Fours.
The parallels
Florida had no NCAA national championships in 2005 and now has three. UConn had no national titles in 1998 and now has six. We have seen 15, 20-, and 25-year segments dramatically change the college basketball record books. Michigan could be standing at the start of an era in which the Wolverines can rewrite a lot of historical records and measurements.
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This article originally appeared on College Sports Wire: Michigan basketball 15-year run sets very high March Madness standard