2026 NCAA Tournament Field of 68 teams, March Madness bracket revealed

The NCAA Tournament Selection Show is here to reveal how the Selection Committee has seeded the 68-team field this year. Meanwhile, fans await the announcement of when, where and who they will face in the opening weekend and on the path toward a Final Four appearance.

The Selection Committee evaluates the overall body of work of each team, splitting them into 31 automatic bids and 37 at-large bids. From there, they use the NET rankings, analytic models and more to determine where each team stacks up against the other teams in the mix.

The NCAA Tournament “bubble” refers to the teams on the edge of the at-large field, which may or may not receive a bid. This season, that conversation features plenty teams from the high-major and mid-major level, waiting to find out whether their name is called.

On3’s final edition of bracketology, projecting the 2026 Tournament field, can be found here.

First Four (Dayton)

16 UMBC vs. 16 Howard
16 Prairie View vs. 16 Lehigh
11 Texas vs. 11 NC State
11 Miami (OH) vs. 11 SMU

East (Washington DC)

Greenville
1 Duke vs. 16 Siena
8 Ohio State vs. 9 TCU
San Diego
5 St. John’s vs. 12 Northern Iowa
4 Kansas vs. 13 Cal Baptist
Buffalo
6 Louisville vs. 11 South Florida
3 Michigan State vs. 14 North Dakota State
Philadelphia
7 UCLA vs. 10 UCF
2 UConn vs. 15 Furman

South (Houston)

Tampa
1 Florida vs. 16 Prairie View/Lehigh
8 Clemson vs. 9 Iowa
Oklahoma City
5 Vanderbilt vs. 12 McNeese
4 Nebraska vs. 13 Troy
Greenville
6 North Carolina vs. 11 VCU
3 Illinois vs. 14 Penn
Oklahoma City
7 St. Mary’s vs. 10 Texas A&M
2 Houston vs. 15 Idaho

West (San Jose)

San Diego
1 Arizona vs. 16 LIU
8 Villanova vs. 9 Utah State
Portland
5 Wisconsin vs. 12 High Point
4 Arkansas vs. 13 Hawaii
Portland
6 BYU vs. 11 Texas/NC State
3 Gonzaga vs. 14 Kennesaw State
St. Louis
7 Miami vs. 10 Missouri
2 Purdue vs. 15 Queens

Midwest (Chicago)

Buffalo
1 Michigan vs. 16 UMBC/Howard
8 Georgia vs. 9 St. Louis
Tampa
5 Texas Tech vs. 12 Akron
4 Alabama vs. 13 Hofstra
Philadelphia
6 Tennessee vs. 11 Miami (OH)/SMU
3 Virginia vs. 14 Wright State
St. Louis
7 Kentucky vs. 10 Santa Clara
2 Iowa State vs. 15 Tennessee State

Like every season, the 68-team field leaves some on the outside looking in which think they had a case for one of the final spots. The first four teams out of the NCAA Tournament will be revealed after the full bracket.

The Selection Committee listed the following teams among the First Four Out: Oklahoma, Auburn, SDSU, Indiana