March Madness officially tips off Tuesday evening with the First Four, which will determine the last four teams in the 64-team first-round field.
The No. 16 seeds got the action started early Tuesday as Howard held off a furious late rally by UMBC in the final minutes to win 86-83. The Retrievers had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer, but the shot glanced off the rim.
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It was the first-ever NCAA tournament win for Howard.
[Yahoo Fantasy Bracket Mayhem: Make your picks for $50K in total prizes]
On tap in the second matchup of the night is a game between No. 11 seeds Texas Longhorns (18-14, 9-9) and NC State Wolfpack (20-13, 10-8). The winner will advance to play AJ Dybantsa and No. 6 BYU.
In case you were wondering, we did, in fact, have AI predict every March Madness game … and our good friend Claude got the first game of the night wrong by picking UMBC. NC State is a slight favorite in the second game, and Claude likes the Wolfpack.
Texas vs. NC State start time: 9:15 p.m. ET
TV channel/live stream: TruTV
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for the latest out of the men’s NCAA tournament, tipping off with the First Four on Tuesday.
Live34 updatesTue, March 17, 2026 at 6:31 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 7:43 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 7:24 PM PDT
Nick Bromberg
The Longhorns started hot and ended the first half ice cold.
Texas is now shooting 29% from the field. NC State is at 35%. Not the prettiest half of basketball you’ll ever see.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 7:24 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Longhorns led by double digits at one point in the first half, but it’s just a one-point game as we head to halftime.
NC State’s Darrion Williams is leading all scorers at the break with 14 points.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 7:20 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Wolfpack have closed the gap late in the first half and it’s a one-point game with just under a minute left.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 7:05 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Longhorns are still in control of this one as the first half ticks down inside the 5-minute mark. They are controlling the boards (21 to 10).
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 6:53 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Longhorns are up 19-14 as we hit the 10-minute mark in the first half. NC State’s Darrion Williams had 10 of his team’s first 12 points.
Texas is 5-for-7 shooting from 3-point range so far.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 6:51 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The former Texas Tech player has 10 of the Wolfpack’s 12 points.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 6:42 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
This game should have an entertaining production for those who are fans of Chuck and Dickie V. They’re joining play-by-play announcer Brian Anderson for the duration of this one.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 6:38 PM PDT
Nick Bromberg
The Longhorns enter the first TV timeout on a 9-0 run after NC State took a 2-0 lead to open the game. All of those points are on 3-pointers by three different players.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 6:36 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
We are underway with the No. 11 seed matchup between Texas and NC State and the Wolfpack is on the board first.
NC State was a 1.5-point favorite coming into the game and is led by a four-pronged attack of Paul McNeil Jr., Quadir Copeland, Ven-Allen Lubin and Darrion Williams. The first 3 average 13.9 ppg. Williams averages 13.8.
Dailyn Swain buoys the Longhorns with team-high averages of 17.8 ppg, 7.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 5:56 PM PDT
Nick Bromberg
2026 is the Bison’s fifth NCAA tournament appearance. They’ve always been a No. 16 in those tournaments and lost in the First Four in 2024.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 5:55 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Well, the comeback fell just short. UMBC had a clean 3-point look that would’ve tied the game at the buzzer but missed the mark.
Ose Okojie led the way for the Bison with 23 points. Harris had 19 points, 14 boards and 5 assists.
So Howard will advance to face No. 1 seed Michigan in Buffalo on Thursday.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 5:47 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
It’s a 2-point game under the 1-minute mark after a furious late rally by the Retrievers!
They’re on a 9-0 run in the last 90 seconds to keep UMBC alive and maybe produce an early March miracle.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 5:34 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Bison are keeping UMBC at arm’s length with just under 5 minutes left in the game.
It’s 79-67. Do the Retrievers have a comeback in them?
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 5:25 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
There’s just over 8 minutes left in the game and UMBC has cut it back to 72-67. Jah’Likai King has 17 points as the Retrievers try to creep back into this one.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 5:18 PM PDT
Nick Bromberg
As the Retrievers try to cut into Howard’s deficit, much of the lead has been gained at the stripe. At the under-12 timeout, Howard is 15-of-18 from the foul line while UMBC is 9-of-15.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 5:10 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Four different Howard players are now in double figures as the game winds down inside of 15 minutes.
Ose Okojie still leading the way with 19, but the Bison are 7-for-13 combined from behind the arc.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 4:59 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
We are back for the second half and Howard has taken a double-digit lead right off the bat. We’ll see if UMBC can get back in this thing.
Tue, March 17, 2026 at 4:40 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff