Trending Now - Key Questions and Updates Ahead of NCAA Selection Sunday

WHO:

NCAA selection committee, chaired by Keith Gill

Florida Gators, UConn, Houston, Duke, Michigan, Miami (Ohio), Auburn, VCU, Dayton, Ole Miss, Arkansas, San Diego State, New Mexico, Texas Tech, BYU, Michigan State, St. John's, Nebraska, Richmond, West Virginia, North Carolina, Maryland, Kentucky, Akron, Toledo, Utah State, San Diego State

ESPN's bracketologist Joe Lunardi

WHAT:

The men's 2026 NCAA tournament will feature 68 teams.

Florida Gators won 11 straight games to end the regular season.

Duke is projected to be the top overall seed with 10 Quad 1A wins, 17 Quad 1 wins, and 23 Quad 1 and 2 wins.

Miami (Ohio) finished the regular season at 31-0 but lost in the quarterfinals of the Mid-American Conference tournament.

Auburn has 16 losses and is one game above .500, which has historically disqualified teams from at-large bids.

VCU is advancing to the Atlantic 10 championship against Dayton.

San Diego State advanced to the Mountain West title game but has a poor résumé.

UConn's Silas Demary Jr. went to the locker room late in the Big East title game loss to St. John's.

UConn and UCLA are competing for the No. 1 overall seed in the women's NCAA tournament.

UConn is the only unbeaten team with nine Quad 1 wins.

UCLA has 18 Quad 1 wins and won a Big Ten tournament title.

11 automatic bids will be awarded during the conference tournament action on March 14th, 2026.

WHERE:

Indianapolis, Indiana (NCAA selection committee meeting)

Houston, Texas (South regional for NCAA tournament)

Fort Worth, Texas (potential regional for UConn)

Sacramento, California (potential regional for UCLA)

WHEN:

Selection Sunday is on March 15th, 2026.

The Big East title game occurred on March 14th, 2026.

The NCAA tournament bracket will be revealed at 8 p.m. ET on March 15th, 2026.

WHY:

The selection committee evaluates teams based on their entire body of work, including metrics like Wins Above Bubble (WAB).

The committee aims to reward teams that perform well in their respective conference tournaments.

HOW:

The selection committee uses 12 pieces of criteria to make decisions regarding team selections and seeding.

The committee has added new metrics, including Bart Torvik's rankings and Wins Above Bubble, to the selection process.

(UPDATED March 15, 2026 05:30 UTC)

Today marks Selection Sunday for the men's 2026 NCAA tournament, with the bracket set to be revealed at 8 p.m. ET. The selection committee, chaired by Keith Gill, will evaluate 68 teams based on their overall performance, including metrics like Wins Above Bubble, while 11 automatic bids were awarded during conference tournaments yesterday. Notably, Duke is projected to be the top overall seed, while the Florida Gators ended their regular season with an impressive 11-game winning streak.