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Get the latest updates on the 2026 March Madness bracket throughout the first and second rounds of the tournament
Mar 21, 2026
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10:25 pm ET
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3 min read
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The second round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament gets underway on Saturday afternoon, and there are some fun matchups on the board. Which teams will stamp their ticket to the Sweet 16 next week?
No. 1 seed Michigan kicks off the second-round action with a game against No. 9 seed St. Louis (12:10 p.m. ET, CBS March Madness Live). The Wolverines weathered a potential upset from Howard in the first round, but they’ll get another tricky test on Saturday. The Billikens just put on an offensive clinic in their first-round win over No. 8 seed Georgia, a 102-77 blowout.
Speaking of No. 1 seeds that got a scare in the first round, Duke narrowly avoided disaster against No. 16 seed Siena with a 71-65 win. Star Cameron Boozer helped his team rally with 22 points and 13 rebounds. The Blue Devils will now play No. 9 seed TCU (5:15 p.m. ET, CBS March Madness Live), and the Horned Frogs have to have some confidence after pulling out a dramatic win against No. 8 seed Ohio State on Thursday.
After notching its first March Madness win in program history, No. 4 seed Nebraska will try to make more history with its first Sweet 16 berth. In order to do that, the Cornhuskers will have to beat No. 5 seed Vanderbilt (8:45 p.m., TNT March Madness Live), which hasn’t reached the Sweet 16 since 2007.
2026 NCAA Tournament bracket, scores All times Eastern
East FIRST ROUND
Thursday — Greenville
(9) TCU 66, (8) Ohio State 64 (1) Duke 71, (16) Siena 65 Thursday — Buffalo
(6) Louisville 83, (11) South Florida 79 (3) Michigan State 92, (14) North Dakota State 67 Friday — San Diego
(5) St. John’s 79, (12) UNI 53 (4) Kansas 68, (13) Cal Baptist 60
Friday — Philadelphia
(7) UCLA 75, (10) UCF 71 (2) UConn 82, (15) Furman 69 SECOND ROUND
Saturday — Greenville
(1) Duke 81, (9) TCU 58 Saturday — Buffalo
(3) Michigan State 77, (6) Louisville 69 Sunday — San Diego
(5) St. John’s vs. (4) Kansas | 5:15 p.m. | CBS Sunday — Philadelphia
(7) UCLA vs. (2) UConn | 8:45 p.m. | TNT West FIRST FOUR
Tuesday — Dayton
(11) Texas 68, (11) NC State 66 FIRST ROUND
Thursday — Portland
(12) High Point 83, (5) Wisconsin 82 (4) Arkansas 97, (13) Hawaii 78 (11) Texas 79, (6) BYU 71 (3) Gonzaga 73, (14) Kennesaw State 64 Friday — San Diego
(1) Arizona 92, (16) LIU 58 (9) Utah State 86, (8)Villanova 76 Friday — St. Louis
(2) Purdue 104, (15) Queens 71 (7) Miami (Fla.) 80, (10) Missouri 66 SECOND ROUND
Saturday — Portland
(11) Texas 74 (3) Gonzaga 68 (4) Arkansas vs. (12) High Point | 9:45 p.m. | TBS Sunday — San Diego
(1) Arizona vs. (9) Utah State | 7:50 p.m. | TruTV Sunday — St. Louis
(2) Purdue vs. (7) Miami (FL) | 12:15 p.m. | CBS Midwest FIRST FOUR
Tuesday — Dayton
(16) Howard 86, (16) UMBC 83 Wednesday — Dayton
(11) Miami (Ohio) 89, SMU 79 FIRST ROUND
Thursday — Buffalo
(1) Michigan 101, (16) Howard 80 (9) Saint Louis 102, (8) Georgia 77 Friday — St. Louis
(7) Kentucky 89, (10) Santa Clara 84 (OT) (2) Iowa State 108, (15) Tennessee State 74 Friday — Tampa
(5) Texas Tech 91, (12) Akron 71 (4) Alabama 90, (13) Hofstra 70 Friday — Philadelphia
(3) Virginia 82, (14) Wright State 73 (6) Tennessee 78, (11) Miami (Ohio) 56 SECOND ROUND
Saturday — Buffalo
(1) Michigan 95, (9) Saint Louis 72 Sunday — St. Louis
(2) Iowa State vs. (7) Kentucky | 2:45 p.m. | CBS Sunday — Tampa
(4) Alabama vs. (5) Texas Tech | 9:45 p.m. | TNT Sunday — Philadelphia
(3) Virginia vs. (6) Tennessee | 6:10 p.m. | TNT South FIRST FOUR
Wednesday — Dayton
(16) Prairie View 67, (16) Lehigh 55 FIRST ROUND
Thursday — Oklahoma City
(4) Nebraska 76, (13) Troy 47 (5) Vanderbilt 78, (12) McNeese 68 Thursday — Greenville
(11) VCU 78 (6) North Carolina 82 (OT) (3) Illinois 105, (14) Penn 70 Thursday — Oklahoma City
(10) Texas A&M 63, (7) Saint Mary’s 50 (2) Houston 78, (15) Idaho 47 Friday — Tampa
(9) Iowa 67, (8) Clemson 61 (1) Florida 114, (16) Prairie View A&M 55 SECOND ROUND
Saturday — Greenville
(3) Illinois 76 (11) VCU 55 Saturday — Oklahoma City
(2) Houston 88 (10) Texas A&M 57 (4) Nebraska vs. (5) Vanderbilt | 8:45 p.m. | TNT Sunday — Tampa
(1) Florida vs. (8) Iowa | 7:10 p.m. | TBS 2026 NCAA Tournament schedule Sweet 16 Thursday, March 26 — 7:10 p.m. start (CBS, TBS)
Toyota Center (Houston), SAP Center (San Jose)
Friday, March 27 — 7:10 p.m. start (CBS, TBS)
United Center (Chicago), Capital One Arena (Washington, D.C.)
Elite Eight Saturday, March 28 — 6:09 p.m. start (TBS)
Toyota Center (Houston), SAP Center (San Jose)
Sunday, March 29 — 2:15 p.m. start (CBS)
United Center (Chicago), Capital One Arena (Washington, D.C.)
Final Four Saturday, April 4 — 6:09 p.m. start (TBS)
Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis)
National Championship Monday, April 6 — 8:50 p.m. (TBS)
Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis)
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