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The NCAA basketball tournament started in 1939 with just eight teams, but today's March Madness captivates millions with 68 teams competing for one championship.
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The first tournament champion, Oregon, won before the event was even called "March Madness"—that catchy name didn't stick until the 1980s.
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College football's bowl games actually predate March Madness by decades, making them America's original postseason championship spectacle.
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talk about Duke
Duke basketball became a powerhouse under Coach K, winning five national titles and making the Final Four 11 times since 1986.
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Coach K's 1991 team made Duke's first championship, launching a dynasty that transformed the program from regional relevance to global basketball royalty.
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Christian Laetner's miraculous buzzer-beating shot in 1992's Elite Eight became the most iconic moment in Duke basketball history.
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Laetner's shot came against Kentucky in overtime—the only time an Elite Eight game went to overtime during that entire tournament era.
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Laetner was the only player to start in four consecutive Final Fours, a record that still stands nearly three decades later.
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Laetner was also a brutal trash-talker who stepped on Kentucky's Aminu mid-game, earning him a reputation as college basketball's most polarizing villain.
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COMPLETE
Laetner's controversial stomp was never called because officials missed it—it only became famous years later when fans rewatched footage obsessively.
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