The Athletic has live coverage of the 2026 Men’s March Madness first round. 

The rumors of Cinderella’s death might be exaggerated.

While there is plenty of evidence that this era, driven by name, image and likeness and frequent player movement, has made life difficult for the little guys, VCU, Texas and High Point refused to follow the script Thursday.

VCU, an 11 seed from the Atlantic 10, made up a 19-point deficit and ousted 6-seeded North Carolina in overtime. Texas, also an 11 seed, followed up its First Four win by knocking out sixth-seeded BYU. Earlier, High Point, a 12 seed out of the Big South Conference, rallied late to knock off No. 5 seed Wisconsin in a thrilling finish.

Facing a seeming mismatch didn’t bother 16-seed Siena either, as the Saints pushed top overall seed Duke to the limit before falling, 71-65. No. 6 Louisville also received a scare before holding on to beat No. 11 USF.

And that’s not the only fun that has gone down so far on Day 1. The Athletic has you covered with takeaways from Thursday’s games.

You can follow the action via our March Madness live blog.

No. 11 VCU 82, No. 6 North Carolina 78, OT

VCU rallied from a 19-point second-half deficit behind an electric performance from sophomore guard Terrence Hill Jr., who scored 34 points and made a game-winning stepback 3 in the final minute of overtime to lead the Rams to the upset win.

North Carolina had a chance to tie the score with 4.2 seconds left, but center Henri Veesaar missed the first of two free throws. He then tried to miss the second intentionally, but the ball never touched the rim, a violation.

That error was symbolic of the latter portion of the game, when the Tar Heels seemed to run out of gas against the faster, deeper Rams. Veesaar had dominated the first two-thirds of the game and finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds, but he and the rest of the Tar Heels gave up a 14-point lead in the final seven minutes. North Carolina played four of its five players the entire second half and overtime.

Hill led a furious Rams comeback by making seven 3s. Yet he also tormented the Tar Heels coming off ball screens, especially going to his right, and either finished at the rim or found a teammate for a perimeter shot (he finished with five assists). The game winner, however, came going to his left in crunch time. — John Hollinger, senior writer

No. 11 Texas 79, No. 6 BYU 71

BYU slogged through multiple scoring droughts, AJ Dybantsa’s teammates combined to score just 36 points and the No. 6 Cougars were upset by 11th-seeded Texas.

In what was likely his only NCAA Tournament game, the future lottery pick and freshman All-American Dybantsa had 35 points, 10 rebounds one assist and five turnovers.

It was the second victory in three days for the Longhorns, who won a First Four game over NC State on Tuesday in Dayton, Ohio, and then flew to Portland, Ore., to face BYU. Running on limited sleep, UT snagged 16 offensive boards and turned them into 16 second-chance points, helping Texas build as much as a 17-point lead. Texas, which led for 39 minutes, seven seconds, got 23 points and 16 rebounds from Matas Vokietaitis. — Linsday Schnell, senior writer

No. 9 Saint Louis 102, No. 8 Georgia 77

Saint Louis started the season 24-1 but cooled off down the stretch. The Billikens finished 4-4 and were knocked out of the Atlantic 10 tournament by Dayton in the semifinals.

Coach Josh Schertz said earlier this week he didn’t necessarily think his team was playing poorly coming into the NCAA Tournament. The Billikens backed up their coach’s confidence by carving up Georgia in an 8-versus-9 game that looked more like 1-versus-16.

Saint Louis beat the Bulldogs to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2014.

Saint Louis’ cutting and passing created all kinds of good looks going to the basket. The ninth-seeded Billikens (29-5) led 49-32 at half with 36 points in the paint. They started the second half on a stunning 18-0 run that included nothing but dunks and layups.

Dion Brown scored 18 points, including the first six of the initial second-half run, and Robbie Avila — aka Cream Abdul-Jabbar — had 12 points, five rebounds and four assists.

The Saint Louis lead reached 40 when Ishan Sharma made a 3 with 4:17 left to give the Billikens their eighth 100-point game of the season.

The loss was the first in this NCAA Tournament for the SEC after a 5-0 start. The Bulldogs (22-11) have made the NCAA Tournament the last two years under former Florida coach Mike White — snapping a nine-year drought — but still have not won a game in it since 2002.

Georgia was a 2-point favorite coming into the final game of the night at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y., and suffered its most lopsided loss of the season, allowing a season high in points.

Saint Louis faces top-seeded Michigan on Saturday in the Midwest Region, a matchup of Schertz and his close friend, Wolverines coach Dusty May. — Ralph Russo, senior writer

No. 2 Houston 78, No. 15 Idaho 47

Idaho’s first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1990 was short and rather unpleasant.

Alex Pribble’s South Region No. 15 seed Vandals couldn’t get much done against No. 2 seed Houston, which led 48-24 at the half and cruised to the win at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City. The precision of Houston guards Kingston Flemings, Milos Uzan and Emanuel Sharp — 46 combined points on 19-for-32 shooting — stood out.

Houston had just seven turnovers, which of course will be key when the Cougars (29-6) play the pressing No. 10 seed Texas A&M Aggies (22-11) on Saturday with a trip to the regional semis in Houston on the line.

The Cougars also got a career-high 18 rebounds from freshman Chris Cenac Jr. Idaho’s highlight was 14 points from sophomore guard Kolton Mitchell. — Joe Rexrode, senior writer

No. 3 Illinois 105, No. 14 Penn 70

The inside-out combination of David Mirkovic and Keaton Wagler destroyed the Quakers, combining for 47 points and 24 rebounds as Illinois looked every bit a Final Four team, leading early and then building its edge throughout the evening. Illinois led by 10 at the break even though Wagler struggled in the early going, as Mirkovic had a double-double by halftime and the Illini had an amazing 14 offensive boards; they then broke the game open with a 14-2 run early in the second half.

Wagler finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, while Mirkovic owned the paint with 29 points and 17 rebounds.

Not only did Illinois dominate inside on offense, but Penn didn’t even attempt a free throw until there were 10 minutes left in the game. Michael Zanoni scored 20 to keep the Quakers close for 25 minutes. — John Hollinger, senior writer

No. 1 Michigan 101, No. 16 Howard 80

Well, Howard had it going for a half.

The 16th-seeded Bison made 10 3-pointers in the first half and trailed top-seeded Michigan by only two when they scored the first bucket of the second half.

When the shots stopped falling, Howard had no chance. The Wolverines’ size was too much, and they cruised to a first-round victory in the Midwest Region. Michigan faces the winner of the Buffalo nightcap between No. 8 Georgia and No. 9 Saint Louis on Saturday.

Howard from the MEAC earned the school’s first NCAA Tournament victory in the First Four by beating UMBC, the program that was the first 16 to beat a 1 in the men’s tournament in 2018. Since then, Fairleigh Dickinson repeated the feat against Purdue in in 2023.

The Bison were trying to do the Retrievers and Knights one better, becoming the first 16 seed to come out of Dayton and beat a top seed on a two-day turnaround. Howard went 10-for-16 from behind the arc in the first half, including a corner 3 at the first-half buzzer from Bryce Harris to cut the Wolverines’ lead to 50-46. Cam Gillus finished with 21 points and was 5-for-6 from 3.

But unlike Siena, which pushed No. 1 Duke for a full 40 minutes earlier in the day, Howard eventually got overwhelmed. The 6-foot-9 Morez Johnson Jr. took over in the second half with 17 points, and 7-3 Aday Mara scored 19 on 8-for-10 shooting. Johnson finished 8-for-8 from the field.

When Howard coach Kenny Blakeney removed his starters in the final minute, they received a much-deserved standing ovation from the small but vocal contingent of Bison fans at the KeyBank Center. — Ralph Russo, senior writer

No. 10 Texas A&M 63, No. 7 Saint Mary’s 50

Texas A&M presses and plays fast. Saint Mary’s is one of the slowest teams in the nation, with two 7-footers rotating inside. The Gaels had their NCAA Tournament matchup at the pace they like, and were never really in it.

Bucky McMillan’s South Region No. 10 seed Aggies controlled No. 7 seed Saint Mary’s from start to finish, winning 63-50 in Oklahoma City. Texas A&M (22-11) even had a 28-12 edge in points in the paint. It was a tremendously impressive performance in a surprisingly successful debut season for McMillan, and it sets up the opportunity for a major splash — if No. 2 seed Houston avoids the Idaho upset and advances to Saturday’s round of 32.

Rashuan Agee was the Aggies’ star with 22 points, while Joshua Dent had 18 for Saint Mary’s (27-6). — Joe Rexrode, senior writer

No. 12 High Point 83, No. 5 Wisconsin 82

No. 12 seed High Point, unbothered and free-wheeling, outlasted Wisconsin, the No. 5 seed, as only it can. In a fast-paced game in which turning down shots was prohibited, the Panthers rallied from eight down in the final seven minutes to post an upset victory and capture the program’s first NCAA Tournament victory.

Guard Rob Martin (23 points, 10 assists) was electric. After struggling from the field for most of the game, High Point made seven of its final nine shots. Chase Johnston, a 3-point specialist who hadn’t hit a 2-point shot all season, made a breakaway layup for the go-ahead bucket. That proved to be the game winner when Owen Aquino blocked Wisconsin star guard Nick Boyd’s shot with four seconds remaining. — Jerry Brewer, senior columnist

No. 1 Duke 71, No. 16 Siena 65

Duke trailed Siena for almost the entirety of this first-round matchup before Jon Scheyer’s Blue Devils survived, avoiding the infamy that has befallen only two other 1 seeds: Virginia in 2018 (to UMBC) and Purdue in 2023 (to Fairleigh Dickinson).

After becoming the first No. 1 seed ever to trail a No. 16 at halftime, the Blue Devils outscored the Saints 39-22 in the second half to claw back from an 11-point deficit at intermission, ending the contest on a decisive 15-4 run over the final seven minutes.

Much of the credit there goes to freshman point guard Cayden Boozer, who stabilized the wobbly Blue Devils midway through the second half and wound up finishing with a career-high 19 points, plus five assists, two rebounds and no turnovers. His twin brother, Cameron Boozer, the likely Wooden Award winner, also did his part, bullying the undersized Saints inside en route to 22 points, 13 rebounds and three assists.

After the game, Scheyer said he was outcoached by Siena’s Gerry McNamara, a former Syracuse legend who is expected to be considered strongly for his alma mater’s job opening. — Brendan Marks, college basketball writer

No. 3 Michigan State 92, No. 14 North Dakota State 67

Tom Izzo improved his NCAA Tournament record to 60-26 with one of the least-stressful March Madness victories Michigan State has had in his three decades as coach of the Spartans. Third-seeded Michigan State cruised past North Dakota State to advance to a second-round matchup in the East Region against sixth-seeded Louisville on Saturday. The Spartans were up 20 points at halftime. High-flying Coen Carr punctuated the first-half blitz with a slam off an alley-oop pass from Jeremy Fears Jr.

Coen Carr did the thing ‼️#MarchMadness @MSU_Basketball pic.twitter.com/871lMTBi9G

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 19, 2026

The closest the margin got in the second half was 16 points with 4:18 remaining.

Carson Cooper tied a career high with 20 points for Michigan State, while Fears had 11 assists, nine in the first half. The Spartans have not gone one-and-done in the NCAA Tournament since losing a First Four game to UCLA in 2021. The last time Izzo’s team lost in the Round of 64 was 2016, when Middle Tennessee stunned the second-seeded Spartans.

The Summit League champion Bison, better known for being an FCS powerhouse, were playing in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019. — Ralph Russo, senior writer

No. 4 Arkansas 97, No. 13 Hawaii 78

Fourth-seeded Arkansas scored the first 11 points, went up 20-4 less than seven minutes in and then proceeded to sleepwalk through the remainder of its easy win over No. 13 Hawaii, advancing to Saturday’s second round. UA dominated the paint, outscoring Hawaii 64-40, and threw down a handful of rim-rattling lob dunks coming soon to a highlight reel near you.

Arkansas All-American guard Darius Acuff scored 24 points and dished seven assists, while Trevon Brazile added 19 and six rebounds. Most noteworthy for the Razorbacks, though, is that guard Meleek Thomas (21 points, eight rebounds and five assists) seemed OK after he appeared to tweak his right ankle early in the second half, briefly returning to the locker room. — Linsday Schnell, senior writer

No. 5 Vanderbilt 78, No. 12 McNeese 68

South Region No. 5 seed Vanderbilt got much more of a challenge Thursday than No. 4 seed Nebraska did — perhaps because Cornhuskers fans are occupying just about every inch of Oklahoma City’s Paycom Center — but sophomore star Tyler Tanner helped the Commodores outlast No. 12 seed McNeese to earn a Saturday game against Nebraska. In a grinder with little fluidity, Tanner popped off with game highs of 26 points and a team-high five assists. He threw in seven rebounds, too. Vandy’s defense tightened after an early 11-point deficit, earning the program’s first NCAA Tournament win since 2012. — Joe Rexrode, senior writer

No. 6 Louisville 83, No. 11 USF 79

Louisville avoided a near-record-setting collapse and won an NCAA Tournament game for the first time since 2017, Rick Pitino’s last season as the Cardinals’ coach, beating a relentless 11th-seeded South Florida to advance to the second round of the East Region.

The Cardinals built a 23-point lead in the second half but couldn’t take care of the ball. Louisville, playing without injured point guard Mikel Brown Jr., committed 22 turnovers, and the lead was down to seven with 4:15 left in regulation. Eventually, the Bulls whittled it to four points with 5.2 seconds left.

The NCAA Tournament record for the largest comeback victory is 25 points by BYU against Iona in 2012. Coach Pat Kelsey’s team managed to bring home the victory for the ACC, with Isaac McKneely matching a career high with seven 3-pointers. The senior led the Cardinals with 23 points. American Conference player of the year Izaiyah Nelson had 22 points and nine rebounds for the Bulls. Joseph Pinion added 27 points for the Bulls.

Neither Kelsey nor Brown would commit to the guard’s status for a second-round game against Michigan State, but neither seemed particularly optimistic about his return from a back injury.— Ralph Russo, senior writer

No. 9 TCU 66, No. 8 Ohio State 64

Well, what appeared to be a slog at halftime turned out to be anything but, as TCU survived a valiant Ohio State comeback to win, marking the Horned Frogs’ first NCAA Tournament victory since 2023. After absolutely blitzing the Buckeyes from 3 in the first half and leading by 15 at the break, coach Jamie Dixon’s Horned Frogs went ice cold after intermission, allowing Jake Diebler’s squad to hang around juuust long enough to make things interesting.

A 15-1 run late in the second half even briefly gave OSU the lead, but TCU kept knocking down clutch baskets — none more so than Xavier Edmonds’ game-winning layup with four seconds left — to eke out a win.

Playing in his first NCAA Tournament game, Ohio State guard Bruce Thornton — one of just five high-major players to start for the same school for four seasons — had a halfcourt heave at the buzzer to win … but missed, ending one of the most underrated college careers in recent memory. Next up for TCU? No. 1 overall seed Duke. — Brendan Marks, college basketball writer

TCU holds on and advances in a THRILLING opening game of the day!

They take down Ohio State 66-64. pic.twitter.com/YV8g7m1j1L

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) March 19, 2026

No. 4 Nebraska 76, No. 13 Troy 47

No. 4 Nebraska has been hearing all about the fact it was the last Power 5 school without a men’s basketball NCAA Tournament win, and the Cornhuskers were determined to end that in Oklahoma City. Also? They were determined for it not to be the end of arguably the best team in program history.

Nebraska crushed No. 13 Troy and looked more like the team that started 20-0 and was one of the best stories in the sport this season. The Cornhuskers’ “no middle” defense was suffocating. Their ball movement was crisp. Forward Pryce Sandfort was hitting. And the home-court advantage was powerful. This will be a tough out Saturday. — Joe Rexrode, senior writer