Jimmy Boyd in 
College basketball is one of the most popular sports in the United States. There is nothing quite like the NCAA Tournament to take over the country’s attention during March Madness.
There is a rich history to the sport with plenty of iconic moments to fall back on, but which programs have remained at the top consistently for a long period of time?
Sure, some schools catch fire with a good coach and a superstar. Davidson with Steph Curry comes to mind where they had a couple year run that will likely go unmatched in school history.
But the transient nature of the sport is what makes what the blue bloods do so special. They keep their name at the top of the odds to win the NCAA Tournament each and every year.
Let’s take a look at some of the schools I think have shown time and again that they are the real deal and a top CBB program to reckon with. This is an important list because with an increased fan base, there is generally more “dumb” money bet on these teams so you can use that bias with your own NCAA basketball handicapping.
1. UCLA Bruins
Nobody had a better run in the sport than the Bruins did in the 1960’s and 70’s. They won ten tournaments during that span and had another stretch of making ten straight Final Fours!
Overall, they have 19 Final Fours, 13 championship game appearances, and 11 titles. That’s simply unmatched and puts them at the top of my list even though in recent years the team hasn’t been anywhere near the powerhouse that it once was.
2. Kentucky Wildcats
Kentucky has the all-time highest winning percentage in college basketball with 76.5% and is second all-time in wins. They lead all school in tournament appearances with 59, Sweet 16s with 45, and Elite Eights with 38. They have played in 17 Final Fours, 12 championship games, and have won eight championships. That puts them into second behind only UCLA.
3. North Carolina Tar Heels
The team with the most Final Four appearances is North Carolina with 21. It is the only school to reach the Final Four in nine straight decades and at least two in six straight decades. They are third in overall wins and have won seven national championships. It also helps that the Tar Heels produced the greatest basketball player of all-time with Michael Jordan, but they have plenty of other notable players as alumni too.
4. Kansas Jayhawks
The list of accomplishments by the Kansas basketball team is long and impressive. They have won six national titles as well as being runners-up six times. They have the most conference titles in the nation including the 14 straight they won between 2005 and 2018. This program is the all-time leader in wins, which immediately puts it near the top of any list featuring premier CBB teams.
5. Duke Blue Devils
The Blue Devils caught fire a little later on when Mike Krzyzewski took over the program in 1980, but the records started piling up fast. This team has won five national championships, appeared in 11 championship games, and 17 Final Fours. They have won 75.5% of their NCAA Tournament games, which is the best in the land. Eleven of their players have been named national player of the year.
6. Indiana Hoosiers
The Hoosiers have won five national championships, rank sixth with 41 tournament appearances, and have been to eight Final Fours. They rank sixth in number of weeks spent ranked No.1 in the AP poll. Attendance at Assembly Hall in Bloomington is always one of the highest in the land, giving them one of the best college basketball home court advantages around.
7. Connecticut Huskies
Upon might be a little further down the list in all-time wins but there is no doubt that their championship pedigree has earned them a place on this list. This is a team with five national championships which puts them with Indiana and Duke for fourth all-time. They have gone to the NCAA Tournament 36 times while participating in six Final Fours. What makes that stat kind of crazy is that they have gone on to win it all five of their six trips to the Final Four!
There are a lot of other teams that you can consider as college basketball blue bloods.
Temple had a crazy run of success and have been to over thirty NCAA tournaments, however they have never won one.
Syracuse won a national championship with Carmelo Anthony and company and rank sixth in total victories.
St. John’s has always had a solid team, even though they’ve not had a lot of success in the tournament. Maybe that changes with the addition of Rick Pitino.
Purdue has the most Big Ten championships, even more than Indiana has. They’ve been to two Final Fours and one championship game.
Michigan State has taken off under Tom Izzy, winning the national championship twice and making the Final Four ten times, including three straight from 1999-2001.
Some teams become popular in a short period of time, and that’s important to know when betting college basketball. The public finds a darling and bets them enough the books have to adjust their odds, creating an edge for us.
At the end of the day there are a lot of teams that you can say deserve a spot among the list of most popular NCAA basketball schools. I think the top seven has separated themselves a little bit in terms of both long-term winning of games and most importantly, bringing home national championships.