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The conclusion of the wild March Madness is nearly upon us. With two teams having already punched their tickets to the Final Four and the other two slots set to be decided today, the championship is well within reach.
In the NCAA Tournament's 80-year history, there have been 37 different winners. UCLA leads the pack with 11 national championships, including seven consecutive between 1967 and 1973. Kentucky (eight) and North Carolina (seven) have the next most titles, while Duke and Indiana are behind them with five apiece.
Last season, it was Kansas who cut down the nets for the fourth title in the program's history. The Jayhawks took down the North Carolina Tar Heels 72-69 with David McCormack and Jalen Wilson each leading the team with 15 points. 2022 NBA first-round picks Ochai Agbaji and Christian Braun each added 12 points.
Kansas was unable to replicate its success this season as they were knocked out of March Madness by Arkansas in the round of 32. After entering the tournament as a No. 1-seed, the Jayhwaks cruised past No. 16-seed Howard in a 28-point victory but were unable to advance any further.
Kansas' fourth championship from last year ties them with UConn for the sixth-most titles in NCAA history. Villanova and Cincinnati have each won three titles, while 28 different teams have won two or fewer titles in tournament history.
Who will win this year's March Madness?
Looking at this year's remaining slate, UConn is considered the favorite out of the remaining six teams. They put forth a convincing 82-54 victory over Gonzaga in the Elite Eight to advance to the Final Four and will face the winner of Miami and Texas, who face off at 5:05 EST today.
Florida Atlantic University is the second team to have secured its Final Four future. It produced a heart-fought 79-76 victory over Kansas State and will face the winner between Creighton and San Diego State, which will be decided at 2:20 EST. Before this season, FAU had appeared in the NCAA Tournament just twice and had never won a game in March Madness.
The Final Four matchups will take place on Friday, March 31, and March Madness will conclude next Sunday. This year's tournament has lived up to expectations with all the usual exciting endings, buzzer-beaters and tournament heroes. UConn is the only program remaining to have won a championship before.
