The 2025 NCAA Tournament has been one of the most unique in recent memory. Not because of a miraculous cinderella team making a run, or a team perceived as a top national championship contender getting bounced early on, but the exact opposite. This has been the chalkiest big dance in quite some time.
All four 1-seeds made the Final Four for the first time since 2008 when Memphis, Kansas, North Carolina, and UCLA made up the entirety of the Final Four as all 1-seeds. This is also the only other time in tournament history this has happened besides 2025.
Additionally, the sheer lack of upsets in this year's dance made it one of the most unique in recent memory as well. The four Elite Eight games were made up of three 1-seed vs. 2-seed games and one 1-seed versus 3-seed game. The only 1-seed or 2-seed to be bounced before the Elite Eight was St. John's, a 2-seed which was bounced by 10-seed Arkansas in the Round of 32.
The numbers also speak for themselves in terms of how "chalky" this tournament has really been. The 2025 tournament featured the fewest Round of 64 seed line upsets since 2016. There were seven seed line upsets in the Round of 64 this year, tied with the 2023 tournament as the fewest since 2016 when there was six.
Now, how chalky this year's NCAA Tournament has been can either be a positive or negative thing, depending on what kind of fan you are. Most casual fans will probably view it as a bad thing, as most college basketball fans around the nation want to see the 11-seed or 12-seed make an unbelievable run that absolutely no one saw coming. But some more "analytic" fans, or fans of elite clubs, might enjoy seeing two juggernauts go at it in the Final Four like we are seeing this year.
Although it almost seems boring to a lot of people to see all of the top seeds make it to the Final Four, the reality is this is much rarer than seeing a Cinderella. Before this year, there was an 11-seed or worse in the Sweet Sixteen across every tournament for the past sixteen seasons. The chalk this season is almost unprecedented.
Whether you enjoy seeing the top programs go head to head in the Final Four or you're missing the wild upsets March Madness usually provides, this tournament has truly been one for the ages.