2026 Men's NIT Tournament bracket: Schedule, scores, dates, game times, TV channels, streaming, results
The 2026 National Invitation Tournament (NIT) bracket is set for the 32-team men's postseason event, announced on March 15, 2026. Auburn, Wake Forest, New Mexico, and Tulsa headline as No. 1 seeds.
The tournament features mostly mid-major and power-conference bubble teams (only four from power conferences: Auburn, Cal, Wake Forest, Oklahoma State), with games at campus sites for the first three rounds due to the format influenced by the new College Basketball Crown tournament.
What is NIT stand for in basketball?
NIT stands for the National Invitation Tournament, a single-elimination postseason college basketball tournament that debuted in 1938. It involves teams who aren't competing in March Madness -- and now the College Basketball Crown as well.
How many teams make the NIT?
The tournament has a field of 32 squads -- less than half the size of the NCAA Tournament. Only the top 16 teams in the field are seeded, with the remaining squads "placed into the bracket by the NIT Committee as close to their area of natural interest as possible," according to the NCAA.
Where are NIT games being played in 2026?
The first round, second round and quarterfinals feature on-campus games. The semifinals and final are played at a neutral site.
Where to watch and stream NIT games in 2026
All 2026 NIT games will be on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU or ESPN+ and will be announced after the matchups are set.
The games will also be available to stream on ESPN.com and the ESPN app.
The first semifinal game will air on ESPN and the second semifinal game will be on ESPN2. The NIT championship game will air on ESPN.
Who has declined NIT bid? Full list of teams to opt out of tournament
List as of 10 p.m. ET Sunday, March 15
Belmont
Virginia Tech
San Diego State
Seton Hall
Indiana
Florida State
Oklahoma
2026 NIT schedule, scores, dates, game times for first round matchups.
All times ET
Tuesday, March 17 — First Round
Liberty 77, George Mason 71
UNCW 68, Yale 67
Wichita State 74, Wyoming 70
Oklahoma State 84, Davidson 80
Tulsa 89, SFA 84
Auburn 78, South Alabama 67
Seattle U 67, Saint Thomas (Minnesota) 52
UNLV 75, No. 4 UC Irvine 72
Wednesday, March 18 — First Round
No. 1 Wake Forest 82, Navy 72
No. 4 Illinois State 79, Kent State 58
George Washington 79, No. 4 Utah Valley 78
No. 2 Dayton 80, Bradley 66
No. 1 New Mexico 107, Sam Houston 83
No. 2 Nevada 89, Murray State 75
Saint Joseph's, 69, No. 3 Colorado State 64
No. 2 Cal 91, UIC 73
2026 NIT second round schedule, scores, games times, tv channels, streaming
All Times ET.
Saturday, March 21 — Second round
No. 2 Dayton 80, UNCW 61,
No. 2 Nevada 73, Liberty 63,
Sunday, March 22 — Second round
4:30 p.m.: (4) Illinois State at (1) Wake Forest (ESPN2)
6:30 p.m.: (4) Seattle U at (1) Auburn (ESPN2)
7:00 p.m.: UNLV at (1) Tulsa (ESPNU)
7:30 p.m.: (3) Wichita State at (2) Oklahoma State (ESPN2)
8:00 p.m.: George Washington at (1) New Mexico (ESPN+)
9:00 p.m.: Saint Joseph's at (2) Cal (ESPNU)
2026 NIT bracket: quarterfinals Schedule, scores, game times, TV channels, streaming.
Tuesday, March 24 (Quarterfinals)Campus sites; times TBA (typically evening games on ESPN networks)
Wednesday, March 25 (Quarterfinals)Campus sites; times TBA (remaining quarterfinals)
2026 NIT bracket: Semifinals Schedule, scores, TV channels, times, locations
Thursday, April 2 (Semifinals – Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indianapolis)Starts ~7 p.m. ET (two games; ESPN or ESPN2)
When & where is the 2026 NIT championship game?
Sunday, April 5 (Championship – Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis)~8 p.m. ET (ESPN or ESPN2)
Who won the NIT Tournmanet in 2024?
The Seton Hall Pirates defeated the Indiana State Sycamores in last year's championship game for their second NIT title and first since 1953.
Who won the first NIT Championship in 1938?
The Temple Owls took down the Colorado Buffaloes at Madison Square Garden in New York to win the championship of the inaugural NIT, which featured six teams. Entering this year's tournament, 54 different schools have won the NIT at least once.
NIT history, past champions list by year Since 2000
Here's a look at past NIT winners list by year dating back to 2000 per NCAA.com:
2000: Wake Forest
2001: Tulsa
2002: Memphis
2003: St. John's *
2004: Michigan
2005: South Carolina
2006: South Carolina
2007: West Virginia
2008: Ohio State
2009: Penn State
2010: Dayton
2011: Wichita State
2012: Stanford
2013: Baylor
2014: Minnesota
2015: Stanford
2016: George Washington
2017: TCU
2018: Penn State
2019: Texas
2020: Canceled due to COVID-19 Pandemic
2021: Memphis
2022: Xavier
2023: North Texas
2024: Seton Hall
2025: Chattanooga
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