Trending Now - Texas and Howard Progress in 2026 NCAA Tournament First Four

WHO:

Texas Longhorns, Howard Bison, NC State Wolfpack, UMBC Retrievers

Tramon Mark (Texas player), Bryce Harris (Howard player), Ose Okojie (Howard player), DJ Armstrong Jr. (UMBC player), Kenneth Blakeney (Howard coach)

WHAT:

Texas defeated NC State 68-66 in the First Four of the 2026 NCAA Tournament.

Howard defeated UMBC 86-83, marking its first NCAA Tournament win in program history.

Tramon Mark scored the go-ahead jumper for Texas with one second remaining.

Ose Okojie scored a career-high 23 points for Howard.

Howard tied its program record for most wins (24) with the victory.

WHERE:

The games took place in Dayton, Ohio.

Howard will face No. 1 seed Michigan in Buffalo, New York.

WHEN:

The games were played on March 17th, 2026.

Texas will face BYU on March 19th, 2026.

Howard will face Michigan on March 19th, 2026.

WHY:

Texas aimed to improve upon its previous year's performance, where it lost in the First Four to Xavier.

Howard sought its first NCAA Tournament victory after previously being 0-4 in March Madness.

HOW:

Texas held off a rally from NC State to secure the win.

Howard maintained a lead for most of the game and executed key plays in the final moments to secure the victory.

(UPDATED March 18, 2026 07:21 UTC)

In an exciting start to the 2026 NCAA Tournament, Texas edged out NC State with a close score of 68 to 66, thanks to a last-second jumper from Tramon Mark. Meanwhile, Howard celebrated a historic moment by defeating UMBC 86 to 83, marking the program's first NCAA Tournament win, with Ose Okojie leading the charge by scoring a career-high 23 points. Both teams will continue their tournament journeys on March 19, with Texas set to face BYU and Howard taking on No. 1 seed Michigan.