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Oklahoma Secures Hosting Duties for 2026 NCAA Tournament

Jennie Baranczyk's team will host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament at the Lloyd Noble Center.
Ryan Chapman|
Oklahoma coach Jennie Baranczyk on the sideline at the SEC Tournament.
Oklahoma coach Jennie Baranczyk on the sideline at the SEC Tournament. | Alex Martin/Greenville News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Oklahoma Sooners

The NCAA Tournament is officially returning to the Lloyd Noble Center. 

The full bracket for the 2026 NCAA Tournament will be released on Sunday evening, but Jennie Baranczyk’s Sooners have earned a hosting spot. 

The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee announced its top 16 teams on Saturday, and OU was included.

Tomorrow, Oklahoma will learn if it is a 3-seed or a 4-seed. OU will also learn if it is drawn up in a Fort Worth or Sacramento regional should it advance to the second weekend of the tournament.

The Sooners finished their second season in the SEC 24-7 overall and 11-5 in league play in the regular season. 

Losses to UCLA, Ole Miss, Kentucky, LSU, Texas and Vanderbilt put OU’s hosting credentials in doubt early in February, but the team rallied. 

The team finished the regular season with six-straight wins, including consecutive ranked victories over Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee, then Oklahoma knocked Florida out of the SEC Tournament to secure a top four seed. 

An uncompetitive 112-78 loss to LSU in the quarterfinals in Greenville meant the Sooners will likely be either a 3-seed or a 4-seed.

Barancyzk has now led the Sooners to a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament three times, including the 2022 tournament and the 2025 tournament.

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OU was able to take down 5-seeded Iowa last year in the NCAA Tournament Second Round to advance to the Sweet 16. It was the Sooners’ first trip to the second weekend of the tournament since 2013.

The Sooners have never been lower than a 5-seed under Baranczyk, and that five-year run ties OU’s program record from 2006-2010.

In total, Oklahoma has made the NCAA Tournament field 26 times, and this marks OU’s 24th tournament berth since 2000.

OU is led by ESPN Freshman of the Year Aaliyah Chavez and All-SEC First Team center Raegan Beers. Chavez is averaging 18.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Beers adds 15.7 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 0.9 blocks per game.

Forward Sahara Williams is the third-leading scorer with 12.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Payton Verhulst adds 11.9 points, 5.5 boards, 3.2 assists and 1.4 steals per contest, and Zya Vann rounds out the starting five with 10.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.3 steals. 

The Selection Show for the NCAA Tournament will start at 7 p.m. on Sunday on ESPN. 

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Ryan Chapman
RYAN CHAPMAN

Ryan is co-publisher at Sooners On SI and covers a number of sports in and around Norman and Oklahoma City. Working both as a journalist and a sports talk radio host, Ryan has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team, the Oklahoma City Energy and more. Since 2019, Ryan has simultaneously pursued a career as both a writer and a sports talk radio host, working for the Flagship for Oklahoma sports, 107.7 The Franchise, as well as AllSooners.com. Ryan serves as a contributor to The Franchise’s website, TheFranchiseOK.com, which was recognized as having the “Best Website” in 2022 by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters. Ryan holds an associate’s degree in Journalism from Oklahoma City Community College in Oklahoma City, OK. 

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