Louisville's March Madness Hub: Schedule, Seed, Opponent and Path to the Final Four

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - At long last, the NCAA Tournament is finally here. Selection Sunday is now in the books, and for the Louisville men's basketball program, they'll be gearing up for their second trip to the Big Dance in as many seasons under head coach Pat Kelsey.

Year two under Kelsey has been a bit of a disappointment when compared to preseason expectations, but as we all know, anything can happen when March Madness rolls around. All it takes is 2-3 great weeks of basketball to completely change the perception of a season.

Below is the full NCAA Tournament bracket, the schedule and breakdown of Louisville's pod, who the Cardinals could face on a potential run to the Final Four, and their history as the No. 6 seed:

The full 2026 NCAA Tournament Bracket

The 2026 NCAA Tournament field and bracket | NCAA.com

THE BRACKET 🤩

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— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 15, 2026

Louisville's immediate NCAA Tournament schedule:

Thursday, March 19

Game 1 — #6 Louisville vs. #11 South Florida (1:30 p.m. EST, TNT)
Game 2 — #3 Michigan State vs. #14 North Dakota State (approx. 4:05 p.m. EST, TNT)

Saturday, March 21

Game 3 — Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (Tip Time and TV TBD)

Meet the teams in the Cardinals' tournament pod:

Led by first-year head coach Bryan Hodgson, South Florida is one of the hottest teams in the nation right now. After starting 14-8, they've since fired off 11 consecutive wins for the third-longest winning streak in D1 hoops, winning both the American Athletic Conference regular season and tournament championship

The heart and soul of the Bulls is undoubtedly Izaiyah Nelson. The forward is averaging 16.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.3 blocks per game, and was named the AAC Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. First-Team All-AAC point guard Wes Enis Jr. (16.7 PPG), and Third-Team All-AAC guard/forward Joseph Pinion (14.5 PPG) are also notable pieces for USF.

Currently in his 31st season coaching Michigan State and a member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, head coach Tom Izzo needs no introduction. His current Spartans squad got off to a red hot start, winning 19 of their first 21 games. Since then, they have been a bit hit-or-miss, only winning six of their last 11 - which included a one-and-done showing in the Big Ten Tournament.

MSU is led by one of the top playmakers in all of college basketball. After averaging 15.7 points and a D1-best 9.2 assists per game, point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. took home Third-Team All-American and First-Team All-Big Ten honors. Their front court of Jaxon Kohler (12.7 PPG, 9.0 RPG) and Carson Cooper (10.8 PPG, 7.1 RPG) is deadly as well.

Head coach Dave Richman has North Dakota State in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019, and they're riding a wave of momentum right now. The Bison began the season at 10-5, have since won 17 of their last 19, capturing both the Summit League regular season and tournament championship

NDSU is paced by guard/forward Trevian Carson, who was named First-Team All-Summit League and to the Summit League All-Defensive Team after putting up 12.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.9 steals per game. Second-Team All-Summit League shooting guard Damari Wheeler-Thomas (14.4 PPG) and All-Summit League honorable mention point guard Andy Stefonowicz (9.2 PPG, 4.9 APG) are impact guys as well.

Who could they face en route to the Final Four?

Should Louisville advance to the Sweet 16 in Washington D.C., their most likely matchup would come against UConn. The second-seeded Huskies open up their NCAA Tournament run against No. 15 Furman, and they're matched up against No. 7 UCLA vs. No. 10 UCF. Dan Hurley's squad might have bowed out in the second round last season, but they won back-to-back titles before that.

Then if the Cardinals make it to the Elite Eight, there are a few teams that stand out here. There's obviously former UofL head coach Rick Pitino and his No. 5 St. John's team, as well as Bill Self's No. 4 Kansas team - who beat Louisville in the preseason. No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 9 TCU is an enticing matchup as well.

Of course, they're most likely Elite Eight matchup would be Duke. They're the No. 1 overall team in the field, and are fresh off of winning both the ACC regular season and conference tournament. Jon Scheyer's Blue Devils have pounded Louisville twice already this season, but as they say... it's hard to beat a team three times.

The Cardinals' NCAA Tournament history as the No. 6 seed

Since seeding began in 1979, Louisville has been tabbed as a No.6 seed just three times in their program's history. That being said, two of those prior instances saw them get to as least the second weekend of the tournament.

Led by DeJuan Wheat and Samaki Walker, the Cardinals received a six seed for the 1996 iteration of the NCAA Tournament. They squeaked by Tulsa in the first round with an 82-80 overtime win, earned a 68-64 victory over Villanova in the Round of 32, but then fell 60-59 to Tim Duncan and Wake Forest in the Sweet 16.

A year later for Wheat's senior year, Louisville also earned a No. 6 seed in the 1997 NCAA Tournament, but this time got all the way to the Elite Eight. Their run started with a 65-57 win over UMass, was followed up by a narrow 64-63 victory over New Mexico, and then a 78-63 decision against Texas for head coach Denny Crum's final NCAA Tournament victory. North Carolina dispatched Louisville in the regional final with a 97-74 loss.

Louisville's last time getting a six seed in the NCAA Tournament came in 2007 during Rick Pitino's sixth year at the helm. Terrence Williams and Edgar Sosa helped guide the Cards to a decisive 78-58 opening round win over Stanford, but then fell to Billy Gillespie's Texas A&M squad in the second round, 72-69.