What a first weekend it was in the men's NCAA Tournament. The Madness was alive and well with defending national champions and No. 1 seed Florida falling to Iowa in the second round on Sunday night, and we also saw Kansas come all the way back just to lose at the buzzer against St. Johns as well as No. 6 seed Tennessee stunning Virginia. The first two rounds of the Big Dance – even if we didn’t see any mid-majors make Cinderella runs past the second round – were as exciting as we needed it to be.
Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The 2026 NCAA Tournament's second round concluded with major upsets, reshaping the bracket for the Sweet 16.
- Defending champions and a top seed fell, while other unexpected teams advanced to the next stage.
- Key regional matchups now set to determine who progresses toward the Elite Eight and Final Four in Indianapolis.
Brackets are busted – though it took 43 games for the final brackets to get busted – and now our attention turns to the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. Here’s the updated bracket and more information you need to know as we’ll crown a new college basketball champion in this year’s NCAA Tournament.
Printable updated NCAA Tournament bracket
Interested in looking at an updated, printable bracket ahead of the Sweet 16? Simply click the image above and you’ll have yourself a bracket with the first two rounds completed (and a second chance to right last weekend’s wrongs).
Remaining March Madness schedule ahead of Sweet 16, Elite Eight
MARCH MADNESS ROUND | DATES | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
Sweet 16 | March 26-27 | Various locations (listed below) |
Elite Eight | March 28-29 | Various locations (listed below) |
Final Four | April 4 | Indianapolis, IN (Lucas Oil Stadium) |
National Championship | April 6 | Indianapolis, IN (Lucas Oil Stadium) |
Sweet 16 and Elite Eight locations: Houston, TX (Toyota Center, March 26 and 28); San Jose, CA (SAP Center, March 26 and 28); Chicago, IL (United Center, March 27 and 29), Washington D.C. (Capital One Arena, March 27 and 29)
With more than 75 percent of the original 68-team field eliminated, the field changes locations this weekend, with the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds hosted at the same site. The Final Four and national championship will then follow in two weekends from Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium.
What to watch in the Sweet 16 round this weekend
No. 1 Duke Blue Devils vs. No. 5. St. John’s Red Storm
This could be one of the most anticipated matchups of the weekend. Duke is the top seeded team in the field thanks to a sterling regular season and the potential No. 1 overall pick in this summer's NBA Draft in Cameron Boozer,. But St. John’s just beat Kansas and legendary coach Bill Self to reach the Sweet 16 under third-year coach Rick Pitino. This was already a star-studded region to watch; Jon Scheyer has the pressure of leading Duke to a national championship this season after falling short in the Final Four last year, and his next test is against a Pitino team with the most ferocious defense in the country.
No. 2 UConn Huskies vs. No. 5 Michigan State Spartans
Like him or hate him, Dan Hurley is one of the toughest coaches to go against and you have to respect that. Legendary Michigan State coach Tom Izzo will have his work cut out for him if he wants to get back to the Elite Eight. UConn went on a two-year national title run a couple of years ago, but struggled last season after a lot of roster turnover. Izzo reached the Elite Eight last year, but hasn’t made it to the Final Four since 2019. The Spartans will need to get through UConn and either Duke or St. John’s to get there.
No. 4 Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. No. 9 Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa managed to stun Florida on Sunday night and landed in the Sweet 16 for the first time this millennium with their sights set on their first Elite Eight appearance since 1987. They couldn’t have a better matchup than Nebraska, whose historic NCAA Tournament run continues after a thrilling second-round win over Vanderbilt. The Cornhuskers were the only power conference team that had never won an NCAA Tournament game entering this year; now they’re in the Sweet 16. The perfect March Madness story.