The Big East holds the record for the most teams from one conference making the NCAA DI men's basketball tournament. The Big East sent 11 teams to the 2011 NCAA Tournament under its previous collection of schools.
Here are the conferences that have had the most men's basketball teams qualify for a single NCAA tournament.
11 bids to the NCAA tournament
2011 Big East
Schools/seeds: No. 1 seed Pittsburgh, No. 2 seed Notre Dame, No. 3 seed Syracuse, No. 3 seed UConn, No. 4 seed Louisville, No. 5 seed West Virginia, No. 6 seed Cincinnati, No. 6 seed Georgetown, No. 6 seed St. John's, No. 9 seed Villanova, No. 11 seed Marquette
NCAA tournament finishes: National champion (UConn), Sweet 16 (Marquette), second round (Cincinnati, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, West Virginia), first round (Georgetown, Louisville, St. John's, Villanova)
The Big East's NCAA tournament participation a decade ago is the gold standard for postseason depth. Eleven of the conference's 16 teams made the NCAA tournament, including three that went 9-9 in conference play in the regular season. One of those three teams, UConn, ultimately won the national championship, and all 11 teams won at least 21 games that season.
9 bids to the NCAA tournament
There have been three NCAA tournaments in which a single conference has sent nine of its teams to the Big Dance. Two of those three instances were in the last three NCAA tournaments and the conference responsible was the ACC. The ACC had nine tournament teams in both 2017 and 2018. The other season that a team sent nine teams to the NCAA tournament was the Big East in 2012 — one season after it put 11 teams in the bracket.
2018 ACC
Schools/seeds: No. 1 seed Virginia, No. 2 seed Duke, No. 2 seed North Carolina, No. 5 seed Clemson, No. 6 seed Miami, No. 8 seed Virginia Tech, No. 9 seed Florida State, No. 9 seed NC State, No. 11 seed Syracuse
NCAA tournament finishes: Elite Eight (Duke, Florida State), Sweet 16 (Clemson, Syracuse), second round (North Carolina), first round (Miami, NC State, Virginia, Virginia Tech)
While the ACC had nine NCAA tournament teams in 2018, just three of them made the second weekend of the tournament and only one advanced past the Sweet 16. No. 1 seed Virginia was upset by No. 16 seed UMBC and No. 2 seed North Carolina lost to No. 7 seed Texas A&M and both losses were by at least 20 points — as two of the conference's best teams that season didn't even make it past the second round.
2017 ACC
Schools/seeds: No. 1 seed North Carolina, No. 2 seed Duke, No. 2 seed Louisville, No. 3 seed Florida State, No. 5 seed Notre Dame, No. 5 seed Virginia, No. 8 seed Miami, No. 9 seed Virginia Tech, No. 11 seed Wake Forest
NCAA tournament finishes: National champion (North Carolina), second round (Duke, Florida State, Louisville, Notre Dame, Virginia), first round (Miami, Virginia Tech)
After nine ACC schools had their name called on Selection Sunday in 2017, just one of the nine teams advanced past the first weekend. But that one team, however, was North Carolina, which won the national championship. No. 2 seeds Duke and Louisville lost in the second round, as did No. 3 seed Florida State.
2012 Big East
Schools/seeds: No. 1 seed Syracuse, No. 3 seed Georgetown, No. 3 seed Marquette, No. 4 seed Louisville, No. 6 seed Cincinnati, No. 7 seed Notre Dame, No. 9 seed UConn, No. 10 seed West Virginia, No. 12 seed South Florida
NCAA tournament finishes: Final Four (Louisville), Elite Eight (Syracuse), Sweet 16 (Cincinnati, Marquette), second round (Georgetown, South Florida), first round (UConn, Notre Dame, West Virginia)
Four of the Big East's nine NCAA tournament teams made the second weekend in 2012, including Louisville, which made the Final Four, and Syracuse, which advanced to the Elite Eight. Between the 2011 and 2012 NCAA Tournaments, the Big East was responsible for 20 tournament bids, which is an impressive figure.
MARCH MADNESS 2021: Complete schedule and dates for the 2021 tournament
Eight bids to the NCAA tournament
There have been six NCAA tournaments in which a single conference has put eight of its teams in the tournament, including the 2018 and 2019 NCAA Tournament. In the most recent NCAA tournament, the Big Ten had eight teams in and this season, the Big Ten is trying to add to that single-year best.
2019 Big Ten
Schools/seeds: No. 2 Michigan, No. 2 Michigan State, No. 3 seed Purdue, No. 5 seed Wisconsin, No. 6 seed Maryland, No. 10 seed Iowa, No. 10 seed Minnesota, No. 11 seed Ohio State
NCAA tournament finishes: Final Four (Michigan State), Elite Eight (Purdue), Sweet 16 (Michigan), second round (Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota, Ohio State), first round (Wisconsin)
In the most recent NCAA tournament, eight Big Ten teams qualified and seven of them won at least won game. Only No. 5 seed Wisconsin fell in the first round. Three of the eight teams made the Sweet 16, including Purdue, which lost to No. 1 seed and eventual national champion Virginia in overtime in the Elite Eight, and Michigan State, which beat No. 1 overall seed Duke to advance to the Final Four.
2018 SEC
Schools/seeds: No. 3 seed Tennessee, No. 4 seed Auburn, No. 5 seed Kentucky, No. 6 seed Florida, No. 7 seed Texas A&M, No. 7 seed Arkansas, No. 8 seed Missouri, No. 9 seed Alabama
NCAA tournament finishes: Sweet 16 (Kentucky, Texas A&M), second round (Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Tennessee), first round (Arkansas, Missouri)
For the first time in conference history, the SEC had eight teams in a single NCAA tournament in 2018. Six of them were seeded between a No. 5 seed and a No. 9 seed, which are often toss-up games, which is why only two of the eight teams advanced past the first weekend. Kentucky and Texas A&M bowed out in the Sweet 16, while the conference's two highest-seeded teams — No. 3 Tennessee and No. 4 Auburn — both lost in the second round.
2013 Big East
Schools/seeds: No. 1 seed Louisville*, No. 2 seed Georgetown, No. 3 seed Marquette, No. 4 seed Syracuse, No. 7 seed Notre Dame, No. 8 seed Pittsburgh, No. 9 seed Villanova, No. 10 seed Cincinnati
NCAA tournament finishes: National championship (Louisville*), Final Four (Syracuse), Elite Eight (Marquette), first round (Cincinnati, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Villanova)
*Louisville's participation in the 2013 NCAA Tournament was later vacated
The eight Big East teams that qualified for the 2013 NCAA Tournament either lost in the first round or won at least three games in the tournament. Cincinnati, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh and Villanova lost in the first round, while Marquette, Syracuse and Louisville made the Elite Eight or further. Louisville's participation in the tournament was later vacated.
2010 Big East
Schools/seeds: No. 1 seed Syracuse, No. 2 seed Villanova, No. 2 seed West Virginia No. 3 seed Georgetown, No. 3 seed Pittsburgh, No. 6 seed Marquette, No. 6 seed Notre Dame, No. 9 seed Louisville
NCAA tournament finishes: Final Four (West Virginia), Sweet 16 (Syracuse), second round (Pittsburgh, Villanova), first round (Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame)
When the Big East earned eight NCAA tournament bids in 2010, it was the third time in five years that the conference had done so. The next year, it would earn a record 11 NCAA tournament bids. Remarkably, in 2010, the Big East had five teams that earned an NCAA tournament seed that was a No. 3 seed or better. However, just two teams from the conference advanced past the second round, as No. 2 seed West Virginia made the Final Four, while No. 1 seed Syracuse lost in the Sweet 16.
2008 Big East
Schools/seeds: No. 2 seed Georgetown, No. 3 seed Louisville, No. 4 seed UConn, No. 4 seed Pittsburgh, No. 5 seed Notre Dame, No. 6 seed Marquette, No. 7 seed West Virginia, No. 12 seed Villanova
NCAA tournament finishes: Elite Eight (Louisville), Sweet 16 (Villanova, West Virginia), second round (Georgetown, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh), first round (UConn)
The Big East put eight teams in the NCAA tournament in 2008 and they earned seven different seeds, including four teams that were top-four seeds. Louisville had the longest NCAA tournament run of the bunch, making the Elite Eight, while Villanova and West Virginia made the Sweet 16.
2006 Big East
Schools/seeds: No. 1 seed UConn, No. 1 seed Villanova, No. 5 seed Pittsburgh, No. 5 seed Syracuse, No. 6 seed West Virginia, No. 7 seed Georgetown, No. 7 seed Marquette, No. 10 seed Seton Hall
NCAA tournament finishes: Elite Eight (UConn, Villanova), Sweet 16 (Georgetown, West Virginia), second round (Pittsburgh), first round (Marquette, Seton Hall, Syracuse)
For the first time in NCAA tournament history, a conference sent eight teams to the NCAA tournament in 2006, when the Big East did so. The conference also had two No. 1 seeds that season, joining an exclusive club. Four of the Big East's eight tournament teams made the second weekend of the NCAA tournament, including UConn and Villanova, which advanced to the Elite Eight.
