2026 NCAA Men's Tournament: Last Time Elite Eight Teams Reached Final Four

And then there were eight!

We've reached the Elite Eight round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, and there are several high-profile programs who have made the cut. 

With that in mind, here's the last time each of the eight teams that reached this year's Elite Eight made the Final Four.

Note: Schools are mentioned in alphabetical order.

Arizona earned a No. 2 seed in the 2001 NCAA Tournament and proceeded to go on a run to the title game, defeating, most notably, the No. 1 seed Illinois, fellow No. 1 seed Michigan State and No. 3 seed Ole Miss. That said, Arizona came up just short, losing to Duke in the championship game.

The Elite Eight is familiar territory for Duke under both current coach Jon Scheyer and coach Mike Krzyzewski. Last year, Duke not only made the Elite Eight, but it made the Final Four — a run that included standout victories over Baylor, Arizona and Alabama, among other teams. At the same time, said trip to the Final Four became a nightmare for the Blue Devils, who blew a six-point lead with 1:14 remaining in the second half to Houston, who won 70-67.

The Fighting Illini have made the NCAA Tournament in each of the past six seasons, but they haven't been able to play "Connect Four" since 2005. In said season, Illinois reached the national championship, defeating Lute Olson's Arizona team in the Elite Eight and Rick Pitino's Louisville squad in the Final Four. Ultimately, though, North Carolina beat the Fighting Illini in the title game, 75-70.

It's been a minute for the Hawkeyes. Nevertheless, Iowa went on one of the best runs in program history in 1980 when it reached the Final Four. It was a stretch that featured wins over Syracuse and Georgetown. However, it came to a close in the