More than 130 days have passed since the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season tipped off. It has been a season of captivating storylines, from the dominance of the freshman class to Miami (Ohio)’s perfect regular-season run — and it’s about to get even better.
The first round of the 2026 NCAA tournament has finally arrived and ESPN reporters are on-site to give you a real-time look at the Madness.
Follow along as they and the rest of the staff track all the live action on Thursday, with more games left to tip:
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(16) Siena vs. (1) Duke: 2:50
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(12) McNeese vs. (5) Vanderbilt: 3:15
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(14) North Dakota State vs. (3) Michigan State: 4:05
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(13) Hawai’i vs. (4) Arkansas: 4:25
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(11) VCU vs. (6) North Carolina: 6:50
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(16) Howard vs. (1) Michigan: 7:10
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(11) Texas vs. (6) BYU: 7:25
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(10) Texas A&M vs. (7) Saint Mary’s: 7:35
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(14) Penn vs. (3) Illinois: 9:25
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(9) Saint Louis vs. (8) Georgia: 9:45
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(14) Kennesaw State vs. (3) Gonzaga: 10
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(15) Idaho vs. (2) Houston: 10:10
Jump to: Post-game takeaways
How TCU won: The Horned Frogs led by 15 at the half, looking poised to cruise into the second round; teams with halftime leads of 15 or more points were a perfect 34-0 over the previous three tournaments, according to ESPN Research. But the Buckeyes had no interest in going down without a fight, climbing all the way back to take a 51-50 lead at the 7:24 mark. The two teams traded blows the rest of the way — until a nifty dish from David Punch to Xavier Edmonds with four seconds to play proved the difference in a TCU victory. Punch was the late-game hero for the Horned Frogs, racking up 13 of his 16 points, 7 of his 13 rebounds and 2 assists in the second half to keep his team dancing.
How Nebraska won: The Cornhuskers made history with their first NCAA tournament win in program history as they throttled Troy with a dominant performance on both ends of the floor; they entered the game as the only program of any power conference without an NCAA tournament win after going 0-8 in their previous appearances. Junior forward Pryce Sandfort erupted with a program record 7 3-pointers in an NCAA tournament game, one short of his career-high set earlier this season. As a team, Nebraska shot 14 of 39 from beyond the arc while holding Troy to 8 of 28 from 3. The Cornhuskers not only dominated the glass, but turned those rebounds into 19 second-chance points — well over their season average of 9.2. Nebraska also forced Troy to commit 17 turnovers and turned those mistakes into 17 points. –– Brooke Pryor
