The college basketball offseason is here, and we decided to have some fun over the next few months, ranking ALL 364 teams in D1. Number 331 is Prairie View A&M basketball.
Before you say we’re crazy – or that all of this is up for debate, let’s go over the very intricate process of how we came to this conclusion. We took a very statistical approach – with the help of Chat GPT – taking into consideration everything from March Madness wins and finishes, to AP Poll appearances, to conference players of the year. And then, a good friend of ours, Scott Blanchard, took our approach to the MAX.
Click here to visit the FIRST article, which explains how the formula works!
Here’s the breakdown of Prairie View A&M basketball!
NCAA Tournament Success
- Championships: 0
- Finals appearances: 0
- Final Fours: 0
- Elite Eights: 0
- Sweet 16s: 0
- NCAA wins: 1
- Bids: 3
Consistency Over Time
- Wins per season: 9.4
- Bids per season: 0.06
- AP Polls: 0
Player Quality & Talent
- All-Americans: 0
- NBA players drafted & played: 2
- Conference Players of the Year: 2
Conference & Other Success
- Conference regular season titles: 4
- Conference tournament titles: 3
- NIT titles: 0
- Other tournament titles: 0
Overall scoop on Prairie View A&M basketball
For having some of the fewest wins per season on this countdown of programs, Prairie View A&M has had some memorable moments.
The Panthers have made the NCAA Tournament three times – 1998, 2019, and most recently, in 2026. The 1998 one was unexpected, as they only won 13 games, but took the SWAC Tournament. They got destroyed by Kansas in the first round, falling 110-52. In 2019, they lost in the First Four to FDU, and in 2026, they won a First Four game over Lehigh, but got bounced by Florida, 114-55.
The Panthers have also had FOUR regular season titles in the SWAC, coming in 2003, 2019, 2020, and 2021. In fact, from the 2018-19 season through 2020-21, Prairie View A&M basketball went a ridiculous 44-5 in conference play.
As far as notable players, Gregory Burks was the SWAC Player of the Year in ’03 and Devonte Patterson in ’20. Way back in 1962, Zelmo Beaty was the third overall pick in the NBA Draft. He had an NBA and ABA career, averaging 16.0 PPG in eight seasons in the Association and 19.1 PPG in four years in the ABA. He was later named to the ABA’s 30-man all-time team in 1997. But in college, before PVA&M went DI, Beaty was incredible, averaging about 25 points and 20 boards per game. He led the Panthers to the 1962 NAIA title, with 28 points and 29 rebounds in the championship game.
A lot of history has happened for a school like Praire View A&M. Life as a DI school hasn’t always been kind, but here and there they’ve had some cool historic moments.