March Madness 2026: 5 Cinderella teams to watch out for early in the NCAA tournament

While there is plenty of talent at the top of the bracket, a great “Cinderella” run might be the best part of the NCAA tournament each spring.

Whether one can actually make it to the Final Four remains to be seen. The highest seed to ever make it that far is a No. 8 seed, and we’re coming off a year where all four No. 1 seeds reached the Final Four. Looking at the No. 1 seeds this time around, it’s entirely plausible for that to happen again.

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Here are five Cinderellas teams — simply defined as a No. 6 seed or higher — to keep an eye on early throughout the NCAA tournament. If things go right, one of them can not only make a historic run, but also cause some bracket chaos along the way.

No. 11 Miami (OH)

First Matchup: No. 11 SMU (play-in game)

Yes, the RedHawks were one of the last teams to even make the field. But they completed an undefeated regular season, and that has to count for something. After a number of close wins throughout the year, it’s hard to ever rule the RedHawks out no matter how easy their path was in the MAC or whatever metrics don’t stack up well with the rest of the field. Wins are wins.

If the RedHawks can get out of the play-in game — which is taking place only about an hour from their campus in Ohio — look out.

No. 12 Akron

First matchup: No. 5 Texas Tech

The Zips were the best team in the MAC this season, and they took the conference tournament title after sneaking past Toledo in the title game. They only lost once in conference play, but just barely, to the RedHawks.

But the key here is their first-round matchup. The RedRaiders have struggled down the stretch after losing star JT Toppin to an ACL injury. They lost three straight to end the year, too, including a 22-point blowout to Iowa State in the Big 12 tournament. This is a great opening game for Akron. An early win may just propel the Zips into the second weekend of the tournament for the first time in history.

No. 7 UCLA

First matchup: No. 10 UCF

Calling a Big Ten team a “Cinderella” might feel weird. But UCLA, after some early struggles this season, is on a bit of a roll right now. And the Bruins fit the definition here, so why not?

The Bruins handed then-No. 9 Nebraska a 20-point blowout loss in the final week of the regular season, and then they reached the Big Ten tournament semifinals after a huge upset win over No. 8 Michigan State on Friday. That came in a stretch in which the Bruins won six of their last eight games before Selection Sunday, which included an overtime win against then-No. 10 Illinois. The bad early losses the team had seem to be well behind them.

UCF has struggled throughout the Big 12 slate. And UCLA appears to match up well with UConn, a team that has had some bad losses recently, too. UCLA making a trip to the second weekend of the tournament is absolutely possible.

Mick Cronin and UCLA will go up against No. 10 UCF in the first round of the tournament. (Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)

Aaron J. Thornton via Getty Images

No. 11 VCU

First matchup: No. 6 North Carolina

There’s little doubt that the Tar Heels are the better team here. The Rams beat Dayton in the A-10 title game to secure their second straight NCAA tournament appearance on Sunday. The Rams haven’t won a game in the tournament since 2016, however, and feel due after they ended the season winning 16 of 17 games.

But the key here is North Carolina, which is down star Caleb Wilson due to a thumb injury he suffered in practice earlier this month. The Tar Heels are beatable, though likely only if the Rams are perfect.

How far the Rams can actually go this spring remains to be seen, especially considering No. 3 Illinois would likely be waiting for them in the second round should they actually pull off the win. But this won’t be an easy 6-11 matchup by any means.

No. 12 Northern Iowa

First matchup: No. 5 St. John’s

To be honest, the Panthers are being included here largely because of the potential matchup they’d get next. If things go right, we could get a Northern Iowa-Kansas rematch in the second round. The Panthers, remember, knocked off then-No. 1 Kansas back in 2010 after a huge late Ali Farokhmanesh 3-pointer.

That UNI team was better than the current team. The Panthers went 23-12 and only made the tournament after winning the MVC tournament. And St. John’s is coming off a win over UConn in the Big East title game. The Red Storm have lost just twice since the turn of the calendar year.

An upset in the first round here is going to be tough. But the reward, should it work out, would be incredible.

Who has toughest March Madness path to Final Four? Ranking 1-seeds’ paths

A 68-team NCAA men’s basketball tournament bracket has finally been unveiled.

Following an eventful Selection Sunday, the path to a national championship has been set, with the country’s top teams learning the road they’ll have to traverse to make a Final Four and maybe, just maybe, cut down the nets on the first Monday of April and earn their one shining moment.

Not all roads to Indianapolis are created equally, though.

For some teams, the mystical forces of March gift them a relatively navigable path. For others, though, tougher opponents or matchups stand in their way of the biggest stage in the sport.

So where do things stand for the NCAA tournament’s four No. 1 seeds — Michigan, Duke, Arizona and Florida — and their title aspirations? Who will have to clear the highest hurdles just to make it to Naptown?

Here are the hardest roads to the Final Four:

Toughest roads to the Final Four

1. Duke

The Blue Devils earned the tournament’s No. 1 overall seed after a 32-2 record and ACC regular-season and tournament titles, but they didn’t get many other favors from the selection committee.

After an almost-certain first-round victory against college basketball legend Gerry McNamara and No. 16 seed Siena, coach Jon Scheyer’s team has a taxing path to Indianapolis. In the second round, it will get either No. 8 seed Ohio State, who has one of the best players in the country in guard Bruce Thornton, or No. 9 seed TCU, which is 9-2 since Feb. 2.

In the Sweet 16, the Blue Devils will likely get No. 4 seed Kansas and potential No. 1 overall NBA Draft pick Darryn Peterson or No. 5 seed St. John’s, which won the Big East regular-season and tournament championships, has won 19 of its past 20 games and has one of the best coaches in the sport’s history in Rick Pitino.

Then, they’d have an Elite Eight matchup likely against No. 2 seed UConn, which has won two of the past three national titles, or No. 3 seed Michigan State, with Jeremy Fears Jr. and noted March wizard Tom Izzo. Even with likely national player of the year Cameron Boozer, Duke had enough questions with injuries to starters Caleb Foster and Patrick Ngongba. Now, it’s got even more standing in the way of its national championship dreams.

2. Arizona

For all of their regular-season wins and overall success, the Wildcats have been among the biggest NCAA tournament underachievers under fifth-year head coach Tommy Lloyd, with no Elite Eight appearances despite being a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in three of the past four seasons. Even beyond that recent history, the path to their first Final Four in 25 years won’t be easy.

A stiff challenge awaits in the Sweet 16 against either No. 4 seed Arkansas — the SEC tournament champion that has one of the country’s best players in Darius Acuff Jr. and a long, athletic supporting cast — or No. 5 seed Wisconsin, which has won 15 of its past 20 and has one of the most explosive offenses in the sport.

After that, it would likely have to get through No. 2 seed Purdue, the Big Ten champion that has the nation’s most efficient offense, according to KenPom, and a number of key players from its 2024 national runner-up squad, led by record-setting guard Braden Smith.

3. Florida

The Gators enter the tournament as one of the country’s hottest teams, with 17 wins in their past 19 games after an underwhelming 9-5 start. They’ve got all the potential to make a second-consecutive Final Four, with Sunday’s bracket reveal confirming as much.

Either No. 8 seed Clemson or No. 9 seed Iowa could be a squirrely second-round opponent, but the Sweet 16 won’t be nearly as daunting for Todd Golden’s squad as it will for some of its fellow No. 1 seeds. No. 5 seed Vanderbilt beat Florida by 17 in the SEC tournament, but the Gators have shown they can beat the Commodores, with a 98-94 in Nashville back in January. Or they could take on No. 4 seed Nebraska, which is just 6-6 since a 20-0 start to the season. No. 2 seed Houston, a rematch of last year’s national title game, or No. 3 seed Illinois would be challenging in the Elite Eight, but Florida’s path to that point isn’t especially arduous.

4. Michigan

There’s no such thing as an easy road to the Final Four, but among the 1 seeds, the Wolverines have the most manageable set of tasks in front of them.

No. 8 seed Georgia or No. 9 seed Saint Louis could offer a fun second-round game, but neither squad has the horses to keep up with coach Dusty May’s squad. In the Sweet 16, they’d probably get a beat-up No. 5 seed in Texas Tech without All-American forward JT Toppin or a No. 4 seed in Alabama that has a frontcourt so thin that it went to court to try to add a 23-year-old G Leaguer to it, making it a group that Yaxel Lendeborg, Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr. should feast against.

Then, in the Elite Eight, their most likely opponents would be No. 2 seed Iowa State, which is 11-7 in its past 18 games and has underplayed its tournament seed in recent years, or No. 3 seed Virginia, which has only one win this season against a team currently in the top 25 on KenPom.

It’s fair to wonder whether Michigan can win a national title without injured guard L.J. Cason, but now that a bracket’s out, a trip to Indianapolis should be much more of an expectation than a hope.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: March Madness predictions: Who has toughest Final Four road?

March Madness 2026: Duke has the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA men’s tournament. It also has the toughest path to the title

Duke’s reward for grabbing the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA men’s tournament?

The Blue Devils now have the most difficult road to winning the championship.

That’s at least according to an analysis of KenPom ratings. Duke has UConn and Michigan State — two of the 11 KenPom-certified national championship contenders — before even reaching the Final Four. And Kansas is a rugged No. 4.

UConn ranks 28th in KenPom offense and 11th in defense. Michigan State’s profile is strong enough to be labeled a title contender by KenPom. Kansas, meanwhile, is one of just 11 teams in the nation with eight Quad 1 wins, with a defense-only rating that qualifies for the Sweet 16 KenPom tier.

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No other No. 1 seed faces that stacked of threats in their region on the road to Indianapolis. Duke is the best team in the country and has the hardest path to the championship — a rough combination.

Who has the second-toughest region as a No. 1? Michigan. The Midwest Region’s lower seeds are softer than the East’s.

Here’s the KenPom ratings for every tourney team for 2026:

Overall KenPom	School	Seed	Region	Offensive KenPom	Defensive KenPom
1	Duke	1	East	5	1
2	Michigan	1	Midwest	4	3
3	Arizona	1	West	7	2
4	Florida	1	South	8	5
5	Illinois	3	South	1	27
6	Houston	2	South	17	6
7	Iowa State	2	Midwest	23	4
8	Purdue	2	West	2	39
9	Michigan State	3	East	27	8
10	UConn	2	East	22	13
11	Gonzaga	3	West	30	11
12	Nebraska	4	South	54	7
13	Vanderbilt	5	South	10	28
14	Tennessee	6	Midwest	36	14
15	Alabama	4	Midwest	3	68
16	Arkansas	4	West	6	46
17	Louisville	6	East	19	26
18	Kansas	4	East	53	10
19	Virginia	3	Midwest	34	16
20	Texas Tech	5	Midwest	12	33
21	St. John’s	5	East	52	15
22	BYU	6	West	11	53
23	Saint Mary’s	7	South	41	20
24	Wisconsin	5	West	9	62
25	Iowa	9	South	31	30
26	Ohio State	8	East	16	57
27	Miami (FL)	7	West	32	32
28	Kentucky	7	Midwest	35	31
29	UCLA	7	East	24	44
30	North Carolina	6	South	33	37
31	Georgia	8	Midwest	15	82
32	Utah State	9	West	28	54
33	Villanova	8	West	42	35
34	NC State	11	West	20	86
35	Santa Clara	10	Midwest	21	81
36	Clemson	8	South	71	19
37	Texas	11	West	13	110
39	Saint Louis	9	Midwest	46	40
40	Texas A&M	10	South	48	38
42	SMU	11	Midwest	26	91
43	TCU	9	East	81	23
44	Miami (OH)	11	Midwest	40	64
47	VCU	11	South	45	63
51	Missouri	10	West	51	76
52	South Florida	11	East	60	52
54	UCF	10	East	39	101
55	Hofstra	13	Midwest	55	72
57	High Point	12	West	57	92
60	North Dakota State	14	East	62	71
64	Akron	12	Midwest	50	118
66	McNeese	12	South	91	45
70	Northern Iowa	12	East	153	25
76	Penn	14	South	66	87
78	Hawaii	13	West	68	88
80	Cal Baptist	13	East	70	95
82	Troy	13	South	88	66
95	Wright State	14	Midwest	83	97
102	Kennesaw State	14	West	112	75
118	Queens	15	West	105	120
125	Furman	15	East	118	127
130	UMBC	16	Midwest	120	133
138	Idaho	15	South	128	142
145	Lehigh	16	South	135	148
155	Siena	16	East	148	152
165	Tennessee State	15	Midwest	155	168
168	LIU	16	West	162	157
210	Howard	16	Midwest	198	220
285	Prairie View A&M	16	South	278	290

Bengals made some weird choices with Bryan Cook’s contract

When the Cincinnati Bengals made a splash in free agency with the signing of safety Bryan Cook to address a major need, a nice bonus was how the contract structure helped the team.

In short, reports had Cook’s contract with the Bengals at cap hits like this:

2026: $8 million
2027: $15.3 million
2028: $16.2 million

One problem: The Bengals did a very Bengals thing with the contract structure.

Rather than get creative like plenty of other teams, the Bengals come in higher in cap hit than expected.

And the result? Cap hits that look like this, per Over the Cap:

2026: $10.6 million
2027: $14.3 million
2028: $15.2 million

The Bengals pride themselves on spending money smartly, which to the brass in Cincinnati, includes keeping dead cap hits low, retaining maximum flexibility in future years and making sure players get paid what their contracts say.

Which all sounds great, except the priorities mean less cap space to improve the team right now. And when there’s a supposed all-in sense of urgency around Joe Burrow right now, the team not changing this specific behavior (or increasing how often they do it, even) is just a little tougher to believe.

This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Bengals made some weird choices with Bryan Cook’s contract

March Madness bracket: Georgia women’s basketball earns at-large bid

The Georgia women’s basketball team is going dancing. The Lady Bulldogs earned an at-large bid during the NCAA Women’s Tournament selection show on Sunday night.

Georgia finished the regular season and conference tournament with a 22-9 record.

The Lady Bulldogs earned a No. 7 seed in the Sacramento region.

[March Madness bracket: Here’s where the UGA men’s basketball team landed]

They’ll play their first game on Saturday, March 21, but don’t have an opponent yet.

The No. 7 Lady Bulldogs will face off with the winner of No. 10 seeds Virginia and Arizona State, who will play on Thursday, March 19.

The full schedule will be released later Sunday night.

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Michigan basketball vs. UMBC or Howard game time set for March Madness opener

In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Michigan will play the winner of the UMBC vs. Howard First Four game.

What time does Michigan play UMBC or Howard in March Madness?

The Wolverines’ first-round game on Thursday at KeyBank Arena in Buffalo will start at 7:10 p.m.

What channel is Michigan vs. UMBC or Howard game on?

The Michigan vs. UMBC or Howard game will be on CBS.

Michigan March Madness history

Michigan has a 68-31 record in 32 NCAA Tournaments, with eight Final Fours and one national championship (1989).

Michigan basketball schedule

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This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan vs UMBC or Howard, TV channel for 2026 NCAA tournament first round

Neymar’s path to the World Cup with Brazil narrows after subdued performance for Santos

SAO PAULO (AP) — Neymar’s troubled path to the upcoming World Cup narrowed further after his subdued performance for Santos in a 1-1 home draw against rival Corinthians in a Brazilian league match on Sunday.

It was Neymar’s last game before Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti announces his squad for two key friendlies on Monday.

Neymar is Brazil’s all-time top scorer with 79 goals.

Brazil’s matches against France and Croatia in the United States will, in turn, be the two last games before Ancelotti announces his final squad in May for the World Cup, which runs from June 11 to July 19.

The 34-year-old Neymar’s performance against Corinthians came after he missed a match that the Brazil coach attended.

Memphis Depay opened the scoring on Sunday for Corinthians in the 19th minute at the Vila Belmiro Stadium. Gabriel Barbosa equalized four minutes later.

Neymar’s best chance in Sunday’s game was a second-half header that narrowly missed. The Santos striker struggled to dribble and didn’t shoot on goal.

Two staffers of Brazil’s soccer confederation attended the match in Santos, the club said.

“I wish to go back to the national team and play in the World Cup, but that’s not up to me,” a disappointed Neymar told journalists after the match in Santos. “Whether I am there or not, I will always cheer for Brazil.”

Ancelotti has said he will only take players who are 100% fit to the tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada. He has also suggested that some players need no testing, which keeps Neymar with some hopes of making the final squad even if he is not picked for the next two friendlies.

Neymar suffered an ACL injury in October 2023 and went through another knee surgery in December. He has played less than 10 matches for Santos this year, but he has also shown glimpses of what he could still bring to Brazil.

In February, he broke into the top 10 of Santos club’s all-time leading scorers after scoring twice in a 2-1 win against Vasco da Gama in the Brazilian league.

Fans of Neymar fear that his decision to miss a match against Mirassol on Tuesday, in another Brazilian league game, might have taken him out of his fourth consecutive World Cup.

Local media reports said Ancelotti was not informed about the striker’s absence until a few hours before the game at the 19,000-seater José Maria de Campos Maia Stadium.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

UCLA Bruins earn No. 1 seed, to face California Baptist in round one

Could this be the year the UCLA Bruins get their first-ever NCAA championship in program history? There’s certainly a chance for the 31-1 Bruins team. UCLA didn’t earn the tournament’s No. 1 overall seed, with UConn earning the honors, but the Bruins did earn the No. 1 seed in the No. 2 regional in Sacramento.

UCLA will begin the tournament with a round one matchup against California Baptist. The first two rounds will be held at home for the Bruins at Pauley Pavilion, as UCLA looks to make a second-straight Final Four, but this time with a better ending.

UConn, the team who knocked out the Bruins last year, got the tournament’s No. 1 overall seed but the Huskies got placed in a challenging region, drawing Ohio State, Vanderbilt and Notre Dame in their region. UCLA will have Minnesota, Duke, Ole Miss and, of course, LSU.

THE BRUINS ARE BACK ON TOP 😤

UCLA returns to the women’s NCAA tourney as a No. 1 seed for the second straight year 💪 pic.twitter.com/Cigrp2D5al

— ESPN (@espn) March 16, 2026

The women’s tournament doesn’t see as many upsets as the men’s tournament does, anything less than a trip to the national title game will be a bit deflating for the senior-heavy Bruins.

Region 2 in Sacramento.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/72yZQegqMJ

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 16, 2026

Round One: No. 16 California Baptist

It would be an all-time shocker if the 23-10 Lancers upset this mighty UCLA squad. With all due respect to California Baptist, this game is to get the Bruins back into rhythm and ready for a deep run after a week off since the Big Ten tournament.

Round Two: No. 8 Oklahoma State/No. 9 Princeton

The 23-9 Cowgirls don’t have the most daunting resume but they have knocked off a pair of ranked teams in Texas Tech and Iowa State. Oklahoma State managed to go 12-6 in Big 12 play without having a player averaging 14 points per game.

Princeton is coming off of an Ivy League title and is 26-3 on the season. It’d be a stretch to say that the Tigers are battle-tested though, as they’re 0-1 against ranked teams this season, falling 84-68 to Maryland.

Sweet 16: No. 4 Minnesota/No. 5 Ole Miss

UCLA is familiar with Minnesota, with UCLA getting a 75-58 road win over the Golden Gophers during conference play. For the season, Minnesota is 22-8 and has knocked off both Ohio State and Iowa this season.

Ole Miss is 23-11, most recently falling 85-68 to Texas in the SEC semifinals. They’re led by senior Cotie McMahon, who’s put up 19.9 points and 5.3 rebounds this season.

Elite Eight: No. 2 LSU

It seems that every season Kim Mulkey and Cori Close must meet and put their contrasting styles on display. LSU is similar to last year’s LSU team, which UCLA beat 72-65 but things won’t be easy for the Bruins.

Kiki Rice and Lauren Betts have faced LSU in each of the last two NCAA tournaments, so it’s fitting that the schools could face one last time before Betts, Rice and Flau’Jae Johnson head to the WNBA.

This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: 33-1 UCLA gets No. 1 seed, to face No. 16 California Baptist

Michigan State women’s basketball earns No. 5 seed in NCAA Tournament

Michigan State women’s basketball coach Robyn Fralick has led the Spartans to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in her three seasons leading the program.

The Spartans (22-8), ranked No. 20 nationally, is a No. 5 seed and will face No. 12 Colorado State (27-7) in the first round on Friday at Norman, Oklahoma. The winner advances to face the winner of host No. 4 Oklahoma and No. 13 Idaho.

This tournament gives the Spartans an opportunity to erase the finish to the season and try to get back to how they started. Michigan State was on fire with an 18-2 record to open the season and

This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan State Spartans women earn a No. 5 seed in NCAA Tournament

March 2026