Ranking March Madness Sweet 16 coaches, from Rick Pitino to Sean Miller
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The rest of the NCAA Tournament could be a chess match.
While plenty of stars remain alive in March Madness, from Darius Acuff and Cameron Boozer to Braden Smith and Yaxel Lendeborg, the Sweet 16 and beyond will be all about the head coaches.
10 have been to the Final Four. Six have been to a national championship game. Four have won a national championship. In the East Region, the four remaining coaches combine for 18 Final Fours and five national championships.
Ranking the remaining coaches is a near-impossible task, but a few of the leaders on the sideline stand out above the rest.
The Sporting News ranks the March Madness Sweet 16 head coaches from best to worst.
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1. Kelvin Sampson, Houston
- Age: 70
- Career record: 754-317
- Final Four appearances: 3
- National championships: 0
Four remaining coaches in the NCAA Tournament have won a national championship, and Kelvin Sampson isn’t one of them.
It doesn’t matter.
The job Sampson has done to take Houston from complete irrelevance to a national powerhouse is indescribable. The Cougars had been to the NCAA Tournament once in the previous 25 seasons before making their first trip under Sampson in 2018. Now, it’s a mild disappointment when they aren’t a No. 1 seed.
Houston hasn’t lost more than eight games in a season in nine years, has played in the Final Four twice and appeared in the championship game a year ago under Sampson. A game the Cougars led most of the way slipped away, denying Sampson his first title, but even at 70, he still has a legitimate chance to finish the job.
DECOURCY:Ranking the Sweet 16 teams' chances to win national championship
2. Rick Pitino, St. John's
- Age: 73
- Career record: 915-317
- Final Four appearances: 7
- National championships: 2
For any concerns about his style of past controversies, there is no disagreement that Rick Pitino can coach. After the job he has done at St. John's, it's hard to call him anything but one of the greatest coaches of all-time.
The 73-year-old won a national championship at both Kentucky and Louisville and reached the Final Four at Providence, totaling seven Final Fours between his six full-time stops. After scandal ended his time at Louisville in 2017, Pitino successfully rose to prominence again with a 64-22 stint at Iowa before taking a downtrodden St. John's program to back-to-back Big East titles.
Pitino's job this season might be one of his best. St. John's appeared to be teetering two months into the season without a true point guard and a lack of shooting, but the team found a way to consistently win and looks far more equipped now to compete with the nation's best than it did in early January.
MORE: Watch Dylan Darling's buzzer-beater to send St. John's to Sweet 16
3. Dusty May, Michigan
- Age: 49
- Career record: 186-82
- Final Four appearances: 1
- National championships: 0
In his short time on the national stage, Dusty May has proven his ability to evaluate talent and make all of the pieces fit perfectly.
Taking FAU to the Final Four is a career-defining accomplishment in itself, but when you look back at the roster he built, May's eye for talent is what really stands out. After taking Michigan to the Sweet 16 in his first season in Ann Arbor, May built a juggernaut this season, losing only three games on the road to the NCAA Tournament and obliterating the competition early on.
Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr. weren't the flashiest portal additions last spring after starting a combined nine games in 2024-25, but both have become indispensable pieces for the Wolverines. When May adds talent, it's worth listening — and a national championship feels inevitable at some point in his career.
SN AWARDS: All-America team | Player of the Year | Coach of the Year
4. Dan Hurley, UConn
- Age: 53
- Career record: 347-179
- Final Four appearances: 2
- National championships: 2
It can be easy to overlook Dan Hurley with UConn not quite among the championship favorites this year, but do so at your own peril.
Back-to-back national championships in this era requires the coaching job of a lifetime, and let's not forget how easy the Huskies made those runs look. Hurley is 15-3 in the NCAA Tournament at UConn and 15-1 in the tournament over the last fur seasons, with three 30-win seasons to his name. Hurley's antics and fiery personality aren't for everyone, but he defends his intensity because it gets results.
Even if a title isn't in the cards this season, UConn is poised to be a national contender as long as Hurley is in charge.
5. Ben McCollum, Iowa
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- Age: 44
- Career record: 54-16
- Final Four appearances: 0
- National championships: 0
Ben McCollum doesn't nearly have the Division I accolades as most of the other coaches in the Sweet 16, but at 44, he has plenty of time.
Like Curt Cignetti, McCollum simply wins wherever he goes. A four-time national champion at the Division II level, McCollum took a roster primarily of D-2 players and won an NCAA Tournament game in his only season at Drake, finishing 31-4. At Iowa, he has taken a roster severely lacking talent around star Bennett Stirtz and earned a trip to the Sweet 16, something Fran McCaffery never did with the Hawkeyes.
McCollum's teams don't play an exciting brand of basketball, draining the shot clock on just about every possession and grinding out games with defense, but it works. Whether at Iowa or elsewhere, McCollum is going to be around for a long time.
MORE:What to know about Iowa's Alvaro Folgueiras after game-winning shot
MORE: Alex Karaban's final journey at UConn could be historic
6. Tom Izzo, Michigan State
- Age: 71
- Career record: 764-309
- Final Four appearances: 8
- National championships: 1
Tom Izzo has been at it for 31 years, through different eras, and he continues to win, even with limited use of the transfer portal. Izzo is one of the true program-builders remaining in college basketball, valuing culture and fit more than anything, and the result is zero losing seasons in more than three decades.
Izzo has eight Final Fours to his name, one national championship, 764 wins and 28 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. While he would like one more title before he steps away, Izzo's legacy is fairly secure regardless of how his career ends.
MORE:How Jeremy Fears Jr. is related to Jeremiah Fears
7. Matt Painter, Purdue
David Banks-Imagn Images
- Age: 55
- Career record: 525-228
- Final Four appearances: 1
- National championships: 0
Matt Painter took his share of criticism for Purdue's March failures in the early 2020s, but it's hard to question the machine of a program he's built in West Lafayette. Painter uses the transfer portal when needed but still relies heavily on player development and player retention, with Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn leading the Boilermakers' push this season.
Painter hasn't had a losing season since 2013-14 and has won at least 20 games in 16 of his 21 seasons at Purdue. After shocking upsets in 2022 and 2023, the Boilermakers had their March breakthrough with a trip to the national championship game in 2024 and should be back there under Painter before all is said and done.
8. Tommy Lloyd, Arizona
- Age: 51
- Career record: 146-35
- Final Four appearances: 0
- National championships: 0
Tommy Lloyd has built a powerhouse at Arizona. All that's left to do now is to reach the Final Four and at least compete for a national championship.
Lloyd has excelled as a program-builder, going 146-35 through his first five seasons with the Wildcats and earning two No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament. This will be the fourth time Arizona finishes higher in the final AP Poll than it was in the initial rankings, so Lloyd continues to exceed expectations relative to the talent on his rosters.
A longtime Gonzaga assistant under Mark Few, Lloyd shares many of Few's best qualities and can establish himself as one of the faces of the sport if he brings a national championship to Tucson.
9. John Calipari, Arkansas
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- Age: 67
- Career record: 905-285
- Final Four appearances: 6
- National championships: 1
There was a time when John Calipari was unquestionably in the conversation with the best coaches in the nation, but times change and coaches have to adapt. There is no doubt Calipari had a bit of a tough time adapting at the end of his tenure at Kentucky, which included a national championship and three Final Four appearances before some early exits overshadowed that success. Some believed Calipari's roster-building became too NBA-oriented and not oriented enough toward championship success at this level.
At Arkansas, Calipari has started to turn that reputation around. While he's still selling top recruits on the promise of an NBA future, Calipari has built winning teams in a new environment, reaching back-to-back Sweet 16s with the Razorbacks. If the goal is winning a national championship, Arkansas probably isn't there yet, but Calipari's track record isn't something to bet against with 905 wins and six Final Fours to his name.
MORE: Darius Acuff's NBA Draft scouting report
10. T.J. Otzelberger, Iowa State
- Age: 48
- Career record: 223-115
- Final Four appearances: 0
- National championships: 0
T.J. Otzelberger is still seeking his first Elite Eight appearance at Iowa State, but it's a testament to the job he's done in Ames that Elite Eights and Final Fours seem to be the new standard for the Cyclones. Otzelberger took over a program coming off a 2-22 season and won 22 games in year one, reaching the Sweet 16, and he has now taken Iowa State back to the Sweet 16 two more times.
Otzelberger has excelled at player retention in recent years, and his players consistently get better over time. A trip to the Final Four would help Otzelberger morph into one of the game's most recognizable young coaches.
11. Jon Scheyer, Duke
- Age: 38
- Career record: 123-24
- Final Four appearances: 1
- National championships: 0
Not all successors to legends go on to become successes themselves, but Jon Scheyer was clearly the right choice for Duke. The Blue Devils have enormous resources and a brand name, but Scheyer has continued to push the right buttons, winning close to 84 percent of games and reaching the Final Four in 2025 after an Elite Eight appearance in 2024.
While Scheyer took some criticism after falling short of the national championship game as title favorites in 2025, his ability to evaluate talent and bring in key contributors like Sion James and Maliq Brown next to his star freshmen was impressive.
Starting 34-2 this season with a core largely comprised of last season's role players surrounding Cameron Boozer is arguably an even better job, though a near-upset at the hands of Siena revealed a bit of a flaw in Scheyer's preparation system when Brown told a reporter he thought the game would be a "cakewalk."
DECOURCY: Patrick Ngongba gives Duke big lift on way to Sweet 16
12. Nate Oats, Alabama
- Age: 51
- Career record: 266-115
- Final Four appearances: 1
- National championships: 0
Nate Oats has earned some criticism for the off-court issues within Alabama's program, from Darius Miles' murder charge and Brandon Miller's potential involvement in 2023 to Aden Holloway's drug arrest this year, but the job he's done to turn the Crimson Tide into a basketball powerhouse shouldn't be overlooked.
Before Oats arrived, Alabama had reached the NCAA Tournament in just 11 of the previous 13 seasons. Now, the Tide have won at least 25 games in five of the last six seasons, with a Final Four appearance in 2024.
Oats' teams play fast and aggressive, often at the expense of defense, which might have to change slightly if Alabama wants to win a national championship. For now, though, Oats and the Crimson Tide appear here to stay as one of the SEC's elite.
13. Rick Barnes, Tennessee
(Getty Images)- Age: 71
- Career record: 860-434
- Final Four appearances: 1
- National championships: 0
Rick Barnes has been the target of criticism for his lack of championship-level success in March, and plenty of it is justified. For all of his success, he has only been to one Final Four and has never won a national title. Still, his second act in Knoxville has entrenched himself as one of college basketball's most respected figures.
After going to the NCAA Tournament 16 times in 17 years at Texas, Barnes has turned Tennessee into one of the SEC's top programs, reaching the Sweet 16 five times and Elite Eight once while doing so with both high-powered offenses and defense-heavy teams.
14. Fred Hoiberg, Nebraska
- Age: 53
- Career record: 227-170
- Final Four appearances: 0
- National championships: 0
It took some time, but Fred Hoiberg has Nebraska somewhere it hasn't ever been before: the Sweet 16. The former Iowa State coach received a second chance at the collegiate level after his firing by the Chicago Bulls, and the build-up was gradual. The Cornhuskers didn't post a winning season until year five under Hoiberg, and this is only their second NCAA Tournament appearance in seven years.
For a program that has struggled on the court so much throughout its history, however, what Hoiberg is currently doing is a remarkable achievement. A trip to the Elite Eight would be Hoiberg's first as a head coach.
15. Brad Underwood, Illinois
Ron Johnson-Imagn Images
- Age: 62
- Career record: 300-136
- Final Four appearances: 0
- National championships: 0
Brad Underwood doesn't get the same level of attention as some of his Big Ten counterparts, but Illinois regularly finds itself in the mix near the top of the conference.
After nearly taking Stephen F. Austin to the Sweet 16 in 2016, Underwood has earned a No. 1 seed, reached the Elite Eight and won a Big Ten Tournament with the Illini. He's posted seven consecutive seasons of at least 20 wins and has turned Illinois into a destination for European talent. A Final Four or more would serve as a gigantic boost to Underwood's resume and national profile.
MORE: Illinois' Keaton Wagler among SN's top 10 freshmen in March Madness
16. Sean Miller, Texas
- Age: 57
- Career record: 508-210
- Final Four appearances: 0
- National championships: 0
Someone has to be last, but there is no doubt Sean Miller can build a program. His success in his second stint at Xavier, which included a Sweet 16 appearances, continues to age well, and he got the ship turned around in year one at Texas, albeit nearly too late into the season.
Miller won big at Arizona, winning more than 73 percent of games and putting together a stretch of six consecutive seasons with at least 25 wins in six consecutive seasons in the 2010s, but the absence of a Final Four appearance with the talent he had hung over him like a dark cloud. That kind of run may not be in the cards for Texas this season, but Miller will have the resources moving forward to have a legitimate chance at finally getting there.