March Madness kicks off with First Four in Dayton

Miami (Ohio) and Texas-NC State matchup highlight opening round action

Mar. 17, 2026 at 3:51pm

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The 2026 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament tips off with the First Four in Dayton, Ohio. The field includes a Cinderella story in Miami (Ohio), making their first tournament appearance since 2007, as well as a matchup of former embattled coaches Sean Miller of Texas and Will Wade of NC State.

Why it matters

The First Four games in Dayton provide an exciting start to March Madness, with the opportunity for lesser-known programs like Miami (Ohio) to make their mark on the national stage. The Miller-Wade coaching matchup also adds intrigue, as both were previously involved in the 2017-19 FBI investigation into NCAA recruiting violations.

The details

Miami (Ohio), coming off an impressive 31-1 regular season, faces fellow 11-seed SMU in the opening round. Despite their stellar record, the RedHawks were not assured of an NCAA Tournament bid due to their weak schedule ranking. The winner will advance to face 6-seed Tennessee. In the other First Four game, Texas and NC State, both 11-seeds, will battle, with the victor taking on 6-seed BYU. Miller and Wade, the respective head coaches, were both previously embroiled in the NCAA corruption scandal but have since moved on to new jobs.

  • The First Four tips off on Tuesday, March 17, 2026.
  • Miami (Ohio) and SMU play on Wednesday, March 18, 2026.
  • Texas and NC State play on Tuesday, March 17, 2026.

The players

Travis Steele

Head coach of the Miami (Ohio) RedHawks.

Eian Elmer

Forward for the Miami (Ohio) RedHawks.

Sean Miller

Head coach of the Texas Longhorns, previously involved in the 2017-19 NCAA corruption scandal.

Will Wade

Head coach of the NC State Wolfpack, previously involved in the 2017-19 NCAA corruption scandal.

Dailyn Swain

Guard for the Texas Longhorns, a transfer from Xavier University.

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What they’re saying

“It's going to be a great environment. Hopefully the RedHawk nation will be showing up there on Wednesday night to support us. I'm sure they will (and) it will be a home game for us.”

— Travis Steele, Head coach, Miami (Ohio) RedHawks

“I was very confident. I think it's hard to leave a team that's 31-0 in a regular season out. It just wouldn't look right for the sport, diminishing something like that, something that's very rarely done.”

— Eian Elmer, Forward, Miami (Ohio) RedHawks

“We didn't finish the season as strongly as we would like. We put ourselves in this position. We're excited to be in the tournament. We're excited to be in Dayton. It's a great basketball city, great basketball fans, great basketball arena, everything.”

— Will Wade, Head coach, NC State Wolfpack

“My first few days at Texas, I kind of joked with (teammates) about how we beat them. I never let them forget. It's definitely a funny feeling, but like I said, I think it'll be a better result for the Longhorns this time.”

— Dailyn Swain, Guard, Texas Longhorns

What’s next

The winner of the Miami (Ohio)-SMU game will face 6-seed Tennessee in the first round, while the winner of the Texas-NC State matchup will take on 6-seed BYU.

The takeaway

The First Four in Dayton provides an exciting start to March Madness, with the opportunity for Cinderella stories like Miami (Ohio) to make their mark, as well as intriguing coaching matchups like Sean Miller vs. Will Wade that add extra intrigue to the opening round action.