Glenn: Roy, ACC Have Mixed NCAA History As No. 1

North Carolina coach Roy Williams knows it as well as anyone: Having the top-ranked team in the nation is no guarantee of winning a national championship.

Williams has been in this situation as a head coach before — once — and he still hasn't completely gotten over what happened.

His 1996-97 Kansas team entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 1 in the nation, just as his Tar Heels did this year. The Heels' 68-47 victory over Washington State on Thursday sent them into an Elite Eight matchup against Louisville and kept alive their hopes of an NCAA title. But the 1997 Jayhawks fell in the Sweet 16, leaving a stain on Williams' impressive resume that bothers him to this day.

In September, during his acceptance speech at his induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame, Williams called himself the "luckiest guy alive" and used most of his words to thank others — his wife Wanda, his high school coach Buddy Baldwin, his mentor Dean Smith, his colleagues, his players and many others.

Williams also incorporated into his speech two apologies — one to his children, Scott and Kimberly, for not being around more when they were younger, the other to members of his best Kansas teams for not leading them to the Final Four. Williams was the head coach of the Jayhawks for 15 seasons, from 1988-2003.

"Paul Pierce, Raef LaFrentz and Jacque Vaughn," Williams said. "The leaders of great teams that I feel I failed because I didn't get you to the Final Four."

The 1997 Jayhawks entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 1 in the nation but lost in the Sweet 16 to Arizona, the eventual national champion. The 1998 Jayhawks entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 2 in the nation but lost in the second round.

The 1997 Kansas team, which finished 34-2, was stacked with talent and experience. The starting lineup consisted of four future NBA players — point guard  Vaughn, wing forward  Pierce and big men LaFrentz and Scot Pollard — plus senior wing guard Jerod Haase, who's now an assistant under Williams with the Tar Heels. One of the Kansas reserves in 1997, C.B. McGrath, also is now on Williams' staff at UNC.

"Jacque, the best student-athlete I've ever known, winning the NBA championship this year with the Spurs brought tears to my eyes," Williams said. "It didn't make me forget not getting you to the Final Four, but it gave me a great smile to see you in that celebration."

If Williams can win the NCAA title this year with top-ranked UNC, his .500 batting average as the pre-tournament favorite probably won't make him feel better about 1997. But it certainly would be impressive, at least in the context of ACC history.

In the ACC's first 54 seasons of basketball competition, it sent 13 teams (see complete list below) into the NCAA Tournament with the No. 1 overall ranking in the national polls. Five of those teams won the national championship. Eight did not.

Even the two greatest coaching legends of ACC basketball, Smith and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, fell short of NCAA titles more often than they won them with top-ranked teams. Smith won with the No. 1 Tar Heels in 1982 but fell short with top-ranked teams in 1984 and 1994. Krzyzewski won with the No. 1 Blue Devils in 1992 and 2001 but fell short with top-ranked teams in 1986, 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2006.

Smith's other national champion, in 1993, entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 4 in the nation. Krzyzewski's other national champion, in 1991, entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 6.

Top-Ranked ACC Teams In NCAA Tournament History
(13 Appearances By No. 1 Poll Team, Five NCAA Titles)

Year — School, Coach — All-Americans — NCAA Result

1957 — UNC, Frank McGuire — Len Rosenbluth, Tommy Kearns — NCAA CHAMPIONS
1974 — N.C. State, Norm Sloan — David Thompson, Tom Burleson, Monte Towe — NCAA CHAMPIONS
1982 — UNC, Dean Smith — James Worthy, Sam Perkins — NCAA CHAMPIONS
1984 — UNC, Dean Smith — Sam Perkins, Michael Jordan — Sweet 16
1986 — Duke, Coach K — Johnny Dawkins, Mark Alarie — Title Game
1992 — Duke, Coach K — Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill — NCAA CHAMPIONS
1994 — UNC, Dean Smith — Eric Montross — Round of 32
1998 — UNC, Bill Guthridge — Vince Carter, Shammond Williams — Final Four
1999 — Duke, Coach K — Trajan Langdon, Elton Brand — Title Game
2000 — Duke, Coach K — Chris Carrawell, Shane Battier — Sweet 16
2001 — Duke, Coach K — Shane Battier, Jason Williams — NCAA CHAMPIONS
2002 — Duke, Coach K — Jason Williams, Mike Dunleavy, Carlos Boozer — Sweet 16
2006 — Duke, Coach K — J.J. Redick, Shelden Williams — Sweet 16
2008 — UNC, Roy Williams — Tyler Hansbrough — ???