March Madness, Sweet 16 Spotlight: Which conferences have had the best showing at the NCAA Tournament?

Katie Devon
March 23, 2022

The Playbook @genius_playbook

💫 Roger Schmidt’s #Benfica have been electric this season. Their form at the Estádio da Luz was the key:

🔴 45 goals
🔴 47.3 xG
🔴 6.7 shots on goal per game
🔴 34.5 touches in opp. box per game
🔴 33.9 line-breaking passes per game

#SLB38 | #EuAmoOBenfica twitter.com/slbenfica_en/s…

SL Benfica

@slbenfica_en

W FOR 𝑹𝑶𝑮𝑬𝑹 𝑩𝑨𝑳𝑳 🔥🔥🔥

The Playbook @genius_playbook

🔴 @SLBenfica: campeões 🏆

A 3-0 win over Santa Clara sealed the deal for #Benfica, who claimed their record-extending 38th league title. It’s their first #LigaPortugal championship victory in four years. 🔥

#SLB38 | #EuAmoOBenfica

The Playbook @genius_playbook

📊 The game that lost @FCNordsjaelland the title.

@FCKobenhavn were handed the title by #fcn‘s loss to rivals @BrondbyIF. Nordsjaelland had more shots, more corners, and OVER 300 MORE completed passes (397-700).

But #Brøndby won where it matters most. ⚽️

#fcklive | #sldk

Men’s March Madness

Round one saw 10 lower-seeded teams upset higher-seeded teams and Round two saw six upsets. Overall, these 16 upsets impact how many teams remain from each of the “power conferences.”

Entering the Tournament:

The 32 conferences are listed in descending order with the conference with the most teams entering the NCAA Tournament at the top.

(9) Big 10
(6) SEC, Big 12, & Big East
(5) ACC
(4) Mountain West
(3) Pac-12 & WCC
(2) American & A-10
(1) Remaining 22 conferences

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – MARCH 17: The St. Peter’s Peacocks were the only team representing the MAAC Conference, and are still in the dance. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

Going into the Sweet 16:

The teams are listed in descending order based on the percentage of the number of teams that entered the tournament for that given conference vs how many are moving on to the Sweet 16 round.

100% – MAAC (1): Saint Peter’s Peacocks

67% – Pac-12 (2): UCLA Bruins & Arizona Wildcats

60% – ACC (3): Duke Blue Devils, Miami Hurricanes, & North Carolina Tar Heels

50% – BIG 12 (3): Iowa State Cyclones, Kansas Jayhawks, & Texas Tech Red Raiders

50% – AAC (1): Houston Cougars

33% – Big East (2): Villanova Wildcats & Providence Friars

33% – WCC (1): Gonzaga Bulldogs

22% – BIG 10 (2): Michigan Wolverines & Purdue Boilermakers

17% – SEC (1): Arkansas Razorbacks

The Sweet Sixteen for the Men’s NCAA Tournament begins on Thursday, 3/24.

Women’s March Madness

Round one saw eight lower-seeded teams upset higher-seeded teams and Round two saw five upsets. Overall, these 13 upsets impact how many teams remain from each of the “power conferences.”

Entering the Tournament:

The 32 conferences are listed in descending order with the conference with the most teams entering the NCAA Tournament at the top.

(8) ACC & SEC
(6) Big 10, Big 12, & Pac-12
(4) Big East
(2) American, A-10, MVC, & WCC
(1) Remaining 22 conferences

The South Dakota Coyotes represent the only team from the Summit conference. They’re still going strong in Sweet 16.

Going into the Sweet 16:

The teams are listed in descending order based on the percentage of the number of teams that entered the tournament for that given conference vs how many are moving on to the Sweet 16 round.

100% – Summit (1): South Dakota Coyotes

67% – BIG 10 (4): Maryland Terrapins, Michigan Wolverines, Indiana Hoosiers, & Ohio State Buckeyes

50% – ACC (4): Louisville Cardinals, NC State Wolfpack, Notre Dame Fighting Irish, & North Carolina Tar Heels

50% – Big East (2): UConn Huskies & Creighton Bluejays

33% – BIG 12 (2): Texas Longhorns & Iowa State Cyclones

25% – SEC (2): South Carolina Gamecocks & Tennessee Lady Vols

17% – Pac-12 (1): Standford Cardinal

The Sweet Sixteen for the Women’s NCAA Tournament begins on Friday, 3/25.