Last Four In, First Four Out revealed for 2026 NCAA Tournament
By David Wasson
Published:
The NCAA Tournament bubble is without question a harsh place to live, but it is even a harsher place to see your Big Dance hopes end.
Eight teams saw their fates turn on Selection Sunday, with the last four teams in – the NC State Wolfpack, the Texas Longhorns, the SMU Mustangs and the Miami (OH) RedHawks – and the first four teams out – the Oklahoma Sooners, the Auburn Tigers, the San Diego State Aztecs and the Indiana Hoosiers – all either celebrating or bemoaning.
While Miami (OH) was easily the most controversial of the bubble teams to make the 68-team field, doing so as a No. 11 seed playing in a First Four game Wednesday in Dayton, Ohio, against fellow 11 seed SMU, the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee did not consider the 31-1 RedHawks (18-0 MAC) the last team into the Big Dance despite their No. 64 NET rank.
The Last Four In and First Four Out of the 2026 NCAA tournament. pic.twitter.com/v3XoXB2Yrn
— CBB Kings (@CBBKings) March 15, 2026
“Miami (OH) was not the last team selected into the field,” committee chairman Keith Gill said to CBS. “They came in before NC State, Texas and SMU. When we did our scrubbing process, those teams scrubbed above (the RedHawks) based on predictive metrics and difference in quality of wins.”
SMU (20-13 overall, 8-10 ACC) will have to contend with a RedHawks team that ranks second in the country in scoring at 90.7 points per game and will also have to rebound from tough run of five losses in its last six games.
Texas is also headed to Dayton and a First Four matchup as an 11 seed against No. 11 seed NC State. Both the Longhorns (18-14 overall, 9-9 SEC) and Wolfpack (20-13 overall, 10-8 ACC) get up and down the floor – with Texas averaging 83.8 points per game and NC State delivering 83.7 points per outing.
Auburn (17-16 overall, 7-11 SEC) made the most noise among the first four out teams after falling in the second round of the SEC Tournament, but tough losses like a home setback to Ole Miss as well as a regular season-ending run of eight losses in 10 games were too much to overcome the Tigers’ No. 38 NET ranking. Similarly, Oklahoma (19-15 overall, 7-11 SEC) found itself on the outside looking in despite a six-game winning streak to end the regular season.
San Diego State (22-11 overall, 14-6 MWC) had the best overall record of the “first four out” teams, but ultimately saw its undoing at the hands of Utah State in the Mountain West Tournament title game. Indiana (18-14 overall, 9-11 Big 10) lost four of six games down the stretch, including a 74-61 shocker to Northwestern in the second round of the Big 10 Tournament.
An APSE national award-winning writer and editor, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
