9 Big Ten Teams Selected to Participate in NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament

ROSEMONT, Ill. – Nine Big Ten teams heard their names called on Sunday’s NCAA Tournament Selection Show on CBS,  as the NCAA announced the 68 teams selected to participate in the 2025-26 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.

This is the third time the Big Ten has sent nine teams to the NCAA Tournament, matching the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Only three times in tournament history has a conference sent more than nine teams.

Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Purdue, UCLA, and Wisconsin will all be taking part in this year’s tournament. All games will be televised on CBS, TBS, TNT or TruTV beginning on Tuesday night.

Purdue earned the Big Ten’s automatic bid after topping Michigan 80-72 in Sunday’s Big Ten Tournament championship game. The Boilermakers earned a No. 2 seed and will face Queens (N.C.) on Friday in St. Louis.

The Big Ten will open NCAA Tournament play on Thursday, as No. 8 seed Ohio State face No 9 seed TCU in Greenville, S.C. A match-up between No. 3 seed Illinois and No. 14 seed Penn will close the first day’s action in Greenville.

Buffalo will also host a pair of games featuring Big Ten teams, as No. 3 seed Michigan State will meet No. 14 seed North Dakota State, followed by a match-up between No. 1 seed Michigan and the winner of a First Four contest between UMBC and Howard.

Also on Thursday, No. 4 seed Nebraska and No. 13 seed Troy will meet in Oklahoma City, while No. 5 seed Wisconsin will play No. 15 seed High Point in Portland.

On Friday night, No. 9 seed Iowa and No. 8 seed Clemson will match wits in Tampa, while No. 7 seed UCLA will meet No. 10 Central Florida in Philadelphia.

First round winners will advance to play on Saturday and Sunday.

The 2026 Final Four is scheduled for April 4 in Indianapolis, with the national championship game slated for Monday, April 6.

2026 NCAA Tournament First Round Games
Thursday, March 19
#8 Ohio State vs. #9 TCU, 12:15 p.m. on CBS (Greenville, S.C.)
#4 Nebraska vs. #13 Troy, 12:40 p.m. on TruTV (Oklahoma City, Okla.)
#5 Wisconsin vs. #12 High Point, 1:50 p.m. on TBS (Portland, Ore.)
#3 Michigan State vs. #14 North Dakota State, 4:05 p.m. on. TNT (Buffalo, N.Y.)
#1 Michigan vs. #16 UMBC/Howard, 7:10 p.m. on CBS (Buffalo, N.Y.)
#3 Illinois vs. #14 Penn, 9:25 p.m. on TNT (Greenville, S.C.) 

Friday, March 20
#9 Iowa vs. #8 Clemson, 6:50 p.m. on. TNT (Tampa, Fla.)
#7 UCLA vs. #10 Central Florida, 7:25 p.m. on TBS (Philadelphia, Pa.)
#2 Purdue vs. #15 Queens (N.C.), 7:35 p.m. on TruTV (St. Louis, Mo.)