Men's Basketball

Big 12 Record-Tying Eight Teams Selected For NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament

No. 1 seed Arizona highlighted a Conference record-tying eight teams selected to the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. No. 2 Houston, No. 2 Iowa State, No. 4 Kansas, No. 5 Texas Tech, No. 6 BYU, No. 9 TCU and No. 10 UCF join the Wildcats in the field of 68.
 
Eight selections to the field tie the Big 12 mark, first set in 2024. The Conference has sent at least seven teams to the Big Dance in each of the last four seasons.
 
The winner of both the Big 12 regular season and Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament, Arizona (32-2) parlayed its automatic bid to the field with the No. 1 seed in the West region and was the No. 2 overall seed. The Wildcats open the Big Dance Friday against LIU in San Diego, with the winner facing the victor of No. 8 Villanova and No. 9 Utah State. It is the sixth consecutive year a Conference team received a No. 1 seed.
 
No. 2 seed Houston (29-6), who reached the national championship game a year ago, looks to return to the Final Four by facing Idaho (21-14) on Thursday in Oklahoma City, a first-and-second round site hosted by the Big 12 Conference. The team that advances faces No. 7 Saint Mary’s (Calif.) or No. 10 Texas A&M with a trip to the South Regional at the Toyota Center in Houston on the line.
 
No. 2 seed Iowa State (28-6) is back in the field for the 12th time in the past 14 seasons, including all five seasons under head coach T.J. Oztelberger. The Cyclones begin their NCAA Tournament run against No. 15 Tennessee State (23-9) on Friday in St. Louis, Missouri, with a matchup with either No. 7 Kentucky and No. 10 Santa Clara awaiting the victor.
 
No. 4 seed Kansas (23-10) extends its on-court record with its 34th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, including all 22 tournaments during head coach Bill Self’s tenure. The Jayhawks face No. 13 California Baptist (25-8) Friday in San Diego, with the winner taking on either No. 5 St. John’s (N.Y.) or Northern Iowa.
 
No. 5 seed Texas Tech (22-10) opens its March Madness in Tampa, Florida against No. 12 Akron (29-5) Friday, paired with a game between No. 4 Alabama and No. 13 Hofstra. It is the Red Raiders’ seventh bid in eight years.
 
No. 6 seed BYU (23-11) has qualified for the tournament in all three of its seasons in the Big 12 Conference, opening the 2026 event by facing the winner of the First Four game between No. 11 Texas or No. 11 NC State. The winner of Thursday’s first round game in Portland, Oregon faces the winner of No. 3 Gonzaga and No. 14 Kennesaw State.
 
After a one-year absence, No. 9 seed TCU (22-11) is back in the field for the fourth time in five years. The Horned Frogs face No. 8 seed Ohio State (21-12) in Greenville, South Carolina Thursday, for the right to face the team that advances of No. 1 Duke and No. 16 Siena.
 
For the first time since 2019, and the first time as a member of the Big 12 Conference, No. 10 seed UCF (21-11) qualified for the Big Dance, earning a matchup with No. 7 UCLA (23-11) on Friday in Philadelphia. Should the Knights advance, they would face the winner of No. 2 Connecticut and No. 15 Furman.


Thursday, March 19 (First Round/Round of 64)
  • (8) Ohio State vs. (9) TCU, Greenville, S.C., 11:15 a.m. CT, CBS
  • (6) BYU vs. (11) NC State/Texas, Portland, Ore., 5:25 p.m. MT, TBS
  • (2) Houston vs. (15) Idaho, Oklahoma City, 9:10 p.m. CT*, truTV

Friday, March 20 (First Round/Round of 64)
  • (5) Texas Tech vs. (12) Akron, Tampa, Fla., 11:40 a.m. CT, truTV
  • (1) Arizona vs. (16) LIU, San Diego, 11:35 a.m. MST, TNT
  • (2) Iowa State vs. (15) Tennessee State, St. Louis, Mo., 1:50 p.m. CT*, CBS
  • (7) UCLA vs. (10) UCF, Philadelphia, 7:25 p.m. ET, TBS
  • (4) Kansas vs. (13) California Baptist, San Diego, 8:45 p.m. CT*, CBS
* - approximate tip time