WVU Learns First Round Opponent for 2026 NCAA Tournament

The Mountaineers are officially ready for March Madness.

Mar 8, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; West Virginia Mountaineers guard Jordan Harrison (10) brings the ball up court during the first half against the TCU Horned Frogs at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Sunday evening, the West Virginia Mountaineers learned that they will be the No. 4 seed in the Fort Worth Region and will face No. 13 Miami (Ohio) in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament.

WVU had a strong finish to the end of the regular season, winning seven of its final eight heading into the Big 12 Conference tournament, which is where, of course, they ripped off three straight wins to cut down the nets in Kansas City. By taking down TCU in the championship game, they locked up a spot inside the top 16, giving them the right to be one of the hosts for the first two rounds of the tournament, marking the first time they've done so in program history.

Mark Kellogg's defensive identity has really carried to the ladies he puts on the court, who make it incredibly tough for teams to get a shot off. Jordan Harrison won the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year award, thanks to her absurd average of 3.3 steals per game.

The full region for West Virginia

1. Texas vs. 16. Missouri State/Stephen F. Austin

8. Oregon vs. 9. Virginia Tech

5. Kentucky vs. 12. James Madison

4. West Virginia vs. 13. Miami OH

6. Alabama vs. 11. Rhode Island

3. Louisville vs. 14. Vermont

7. North Carolina State vs. 10. Tennessee

2. Michigan vs. 15. Holy Cross

Mark Kellogg earlier this week on his success at WVU and this year's team:

“I think we’ve gotten a little bit better every year. That first year, I don’t think anybody expected for us to necessarily do what we did, and then we had the whole Iowa game and the NCAA Tournament, and winning a game. We got a lot of notoriety, I guess, if that’s the term from that one. We do it again the next year, but finish higher in the conference standings, and our seed in the NCAA Tournament was a little bit better, and then we one-upped it again this year, finishing second in the league, winning the tournament, and we’re going to have a higher seed in the NCAA Tournament. There’s been a progression. You dream about it and have a vision. You just keep playing and keep having fun. They like each other, and they don't get very tired of each other."

The Mountaineers and RedHawks will square off on Saturday inside Hope Coliseum in Morgantown. Tip-off time and TV channel will be announced soon.