Last time Big Ten won March Madness: Revisiting 2000 Michigan State and 26-year drought before 2026 Michigan

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Last time Big Ten won March Madness: Revisiting 2000 Michigan State and 26-year drought before 2026 Michigan originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

When discussing collegiate sports, the term "Power 4" is often used. It refers to the four dominant, most prominent conferences that feature the best teams across most NCAA sports, notably being football and men's basketball. The Big Ten has long been considered one of those power conferences, partially for its annual prowess in men's basketball.

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Every year, the Big Ten sends plenty of teams to the NCAA Tournament. Plenty of elite players ever have passed through the conference in the last few decades, from one-and-done stars like Greg Oden (Ohio State) and Ace Bailey (Rutgers), to players with more sustained college success like Evan Turner (Ohio State), Zach Edey (Purdue) and Luka Garza (Michigan).

However, until April 2026, it had been a quarter-century since a Big Ten team last cut down the nets as the March Madness winner. The other three Power 4 conferences — the SEC, Big 12 and ACC — have all had plenty of champions since then. The Michigan Wolverines' championship victory over UConn in the 2026 bracket broke a historic drought for the Big Ten.

Here's a look at the Big Ten's last NCAA Tournament win prior to 2026 Michigan and a breakdown of the conference's 26-year drought that was snapped.

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Last time Big Ten won March Madness

Prior to Michigan in 2026, the last time a Big Ten team was cutting down the nets as the victor of the NCAA Tournament was in 2000, when Michigan State won its second title in program history.

The Spartans took down the Florida Gators in the 2000 championship game in Indianapolis, pulling out an 89-76 victory. Michigan State was the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region that year, while Florida came out of the East Region as a No. 5 seed.

As things played out, Michigan State was the only No. 1 seed to reach the Final Four in 2000. No. 1 Duke lost in the Sweet 16 to Florida in the East Region, No. 1 Stanford lost to No. 8 North Carolina in the second round of the South Region, and No. 1 Arizona fell to No. 8 Wisconsin in the second round of the West Region. Two eighth-seeds, UNC and Wisconsin, made the Final Four.

For the Spartans, it was their first NCAA Tournament championship since 1979. Mateen Cleaves was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament, while Morris Peterson was March Madness' leading scorer.

In the regular season, Michigan State claimed a share of the Big Ten title, then won the Big Ten Tournament by beating Illinois. The Spartans then went on to take down Valparaiso, Utah, Syracuse, Iowa State, Wisconsin and Florida to win the NCAA Tournament.

Michigan's title behind head coach Dusty May in 2026 was the first Big Ten title-winner since that 2000 Michigan State squad.

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2000 Michigan State basketball roster

The 1999-2000 Michigan State squad was led by 6-7 forward Morris Peterson, who averaged 16.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists for the season. He was the Big Ten Player of the Year that season.

Other key contributors included guard Charlie Bell, guard Mateen Cleaves and a freshman Jason Richardson, who would spend one more year at Michigan State before heading to the NBA. 

Even casual fans may also recognize another name from the team, but for a far different reason. Mat Ishbia, who is now the CEO and chairman of mortgage lender United Wholesale Mortgage and the majority owner of the NBA's Phoenix Suns and WNBA's Phoenix Mercury, was a walk-on point guard at Michigan State who was a member of the 2000 title squad.

Here's a look at the full 1999-2000 Michigan State championship roster and their season stats.

PlayerClassPositionHeightSeason AveragesMorris PetersonSeniorForward6' 7''16.8 Pts, 6.0 Reb, 1.3 AstCharlie BellJuniorGuard6' 3''11.5 Pts, 4.9 Reb, 3.2 AstAndre HutsonJuniorForward6' 8''10.2 Pts, 6.2 Reb, 1.5 AstA.J. GrangerSeniorForward6' 9''9.5 Pts, 5.3 Reb, 1.2 AstMateen CleavesSeniorGuard6' 2''12.1 Pts, 1.8 Reb, 6.9 AstMike ChappellJuniorForward6' 9''5.9 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.6 AstJason RichardsonFreshmanGuard6' 6''5.1 Pts, 4.1 Reb, 0.6 AstAloysius AnagonyeFreshmanForward6' 8''2.9 Pts, 3.0 Reb, 0.3 AstDavid ThomasJuniorGuard6' 7''2.4 Pts, 2.4 Reb, 1.5 AstAdam BallingerFreshmanForward6' 9''2.0 Pts, 1.7 Reb, 0.3 AstBrandon SmithJuniorGuard5' 11''0.4 Pts, 0.2 Reb, 0.8 AstMat IshbiaFreshmanGuard5' 10''0.5 Pts, 0.2 Reb, 0.2 AstSteve CherryJuniorForward6' 6''0.7 Pts, 0.2 Reb, 0.3 Ast

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Who coached Michigan State in 2000?

If you took a guess, you'd probably be correct. The coach of Michigan State's 2000 championship team has been the Spartans coach for every year since 1995: Tom Izzo.

The legendary coach won his only NCAA Tournament in 2000, but he's accomplished plenty more with the Spartans. They have reached seven other Final Fours, won six Big Ten Tournaments and claimed 11 Big Ten regular-season titles in his run as head coach.

A four-time Big Ten Coach of the Year and 2016 Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, Izzo has stamped himself as one of the all-time greats. He's continued coaching Michigan State into his 70s, still eyeing championship No. 2 after finishing on top in 2000.

MORE: Where does Tom Izzo rank in all-time March Madness wins?

Big Ten March Madness drought 

For the 25 years following Michigan State's 2000 title, no Big Ten team won the NCAA Tournament. Finally, in 2026, the drought for the conference was broken by Michigan as a No. 1 seed in the bracket.

While there is a current Big Ten member, Maryland, that won March Madness in that 26-year span (2002), the Terrapins were still a member of the ACC at the time.

Here's the conference breakdown of the NCAA Tournament champions from Michigan State in 2000 until Michigan broke the drought in 2026:

  • SEC: 4
  • Big 12: 3
  • ACC: 8
  • Big East: 8
  • American: 1

Members of five different conferences had won an NCAA Tournament since the Big Ten last did, including UConn as a member of the American Athletic Conference in 2014.

There are currently 18 members of the Big Ten, although a chunk of them have not been in the conference since 2000.

Below is a breakdown of each current Big Ten team's NCAA Tournament appearances since 2000, their last tournament championship and when they joined the conference.

TeamNCAA Tournament Appearances Since 2000Last NCA A Tournament ChampionshipAll-Time NCAA Tournament ChampionshipsYear Joined Big TenMichigan1320262 (1989, 2026)1896Illinois16N/A0 1896Michigan State2520002 (1979, 2000)1949Nebraska3N/A02011Wisconsin2319411 (1941)1896Purdue18N/A01896UCLA18199511 (1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1995)2024Ohio State1619601 (1960)1912Iowa11N/A01899Indiana1219875 (1940, 1953, 1976, 1981, 1987)1899Minnesota6N/A01896USC11N/A02024Washington7N/A02024Rutgers2N/A02014Northwestern3N/A01896Oregon1319391 (1939)2024Maryland142002 (ACC)1 (2002)2014Penn State3N/A01992

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