Throw Purdue in the mix.
But coaching changes made the difference at many of those places.
Wisconsin was no good for decades until they got a coach that started building things (Dick Bennett) and then lucked into a second coach (Bo Ryan) who took it to the next level.
Michigan was terrible throughout the 2000s, firing a couple of coaches (Tommy Amaker, Brian Ellerbe) until they got it right with Beilein and he turned it around.
Purdue was fading fast under the legendary, but aging Gene Keady. They hired Matt Painter and they've been a contender nearly every year since.
Indiana was a national power under Knight, then faded under Davis and sanctions imposed under Sampson. Crean got em a couple of Big Ten titles.
Illinois went through Jon Groce, but found Brad Underwood.
Coaching matters.
Glad you brought up all of those historical points. Some people have short memories.
I would also add Michigan State to a degree before Izzo. Yes, Heathcote won a national title in 1979 with Magic and Kelser but didn't make the NCAA tournament during the five years following that, only made the NCAA tournament in 8 of his last 16 years, and only made the regional semifinals twice during those 16 years. That's still not a bad record, of course, but it's a far cry from Izzo's performance.
Yes, of course coaching matters, especially in college basketball but even in the pros! It's understandable that Minnesota's futility after Clem could give some people a sense of fatalism about how much coaching can change things but you've cited some excellent examples. We could go outside the Big Ten for more:
Duke was just an occasional NCAA participant before Coach K.
Houston was great under Guy Lewis but had barely done anything for decades after until Kelvin Sampson arrived.
Auburn went 14 years without making the tournament until Bruce Pearl took them there and reached the final four a year later. They're having a mediocre year this year but had three straight years of 25 or more wins before this year.
