Dates, Locations for 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament
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The 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament is just around the corner, and it should be another entertaining March. Several teams have a chance to carve their names into history with a deep run in March Madness.
Will Purdue be in the mix? Where could they potentially land this postseason? We can't offer much insight on the first question, but we can provide a list of the locations that will host NCAA Tournament games when March Madness rolls around.
For those potentially planning on attending this year's tournament — or if you're just looking to start scheduling your sick days well in advance — we've provided the list of dates and locations for this year's tournament.
Action will begin on Tuesday, March 17 with the First Four games in Dayton and conclude on Monday, April 6 with the National Championship Game in Indianapolis. Here's the full rundown of the NCAA Tournament schedule for 2026.
First Four
March 17 & 18
- UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio
First and second rounds
March 19 & 21
- KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y.
- Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C.
- Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Okla.
- Moda Center in Portland, Ore.
March 20 & 22
- Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla.
- Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pa.
- Viejas Arena in San Diego, Calif.
- Enterprise Center in St. Louis, Mo.
Regional rounds (Sweet 16 & Elite Eight)
March 26 & 28
- Toyota Center in Houston, Texas (South Regional)
- SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. (West Regional)
March 27 & 29
- United Center in Chicago, Ill. (Midwest Regional)
- Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (East Regional)
Final Four & National Championship
April 4 & 6
- Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind.
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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