The 2026 March Madness tournament was a thriller as many upsets and close games occurred. It is a single-elimination (win or go home) tournament for men and women that consists of 68 teams. Teams from the West, East, South, and Midwest are ranked 1-16. In order to make the bracket, you had to have won your league championship or be ranked top 25 in the country due to your record. This year the men’s finals took place in Indianapolis, and the women’s took place in Phoenix.
Men’s March Madness Recap
Going into the men’s bracket, the favorites were Michigan, Duke, UConn, and Arizona. These teams show it as they were the powerhouses of the tournaments.
March Madness always has one or two teams that make it pretty far in the tournament that no one expects, which this year were High Point and Miami (OH). Upsets are famous in the history of March Madness, as in the first round there were a couple of them: 12th-ranked High Point took down 5th-ranked Wisconsin, 11th-ranked Texas defeated 6th-ranked BYU, and then 11th-ranked VCU defeated 6th-ranked North Carolina in a nail-biter.
One of the best games happened in the first round as Kentucky and Santa Clara had two big game-winning buzzer beaters that ultimately led to Kentucky winning. The tournament wasn’t a letdown, as UConn took down Duke with a last-minute turnover and a bucket to be the East champs. Out of the West you had Arizona, out of the South you had Illinois, and in the Midwest you had Michigan. This helped set up the final four matchup as UConn faced Illinois and Michigan faced Arizona. Both of these were good games, as both were pretty close. UConn and Michigan came out victorious and made it to the finals.
The finals had a big storyline, as both teams were trying to prove something. UConn was trying to win their 3rd title in 4 years, and Michigan was trying to prove that they could win with a team full of transfers. All the starters for Michigan transferred there this year, and they were trying to be the first to win the title with that. The game was back and forth, as Michigan was up by 4 at halftime. The Huskies started to fight back, though, as they cut the lead down to 4 late in the 2nd half. Michigan was able to stop them on offense and was fouled, leading them to get two points off free throws. UConn tried to answer back by hitting a three but missed, and Michigan was able to hang on to win the 2026 March Madness Championship. The Michigan Wolverines won their first championship in 37 years with a team of transfers.
Women’s March Madness Recap
The women’s tournament was chalk, meaning all the number 1 ranked teams were one/very predictable, but also exciting with some nail-biting finishes.
The favorites for the tournament were Texas, UCLA, South Carolina, and undefeated UConn. These teams were the powerhouses as they made history as it was the first tournament where all 1-ranked teams made it to the final four.
In the Final Four, South Carolina upset the undefeated UConn team in dominant fashion, and UCLA crushed Texas to move on. The final was set: South Carolina vs. UCLA. South Carolina was looking for their 3rd title in 5 years, and UCLA was looking for their first title. UCLA dominated in all quarters, getting the win thanks to Gabrialla Jaquez, who scored 21 points. The UCLA Bruins won their first title with dominance throughout the whole tournament. Due to their performance, most of the players on the Bruins were selected in the first round of the WNBA draft, representing the legacy of the 2026 UCLA Bruins Women’s Basketball Team.
Both the men’s and women’s tournaments were exciting, with many storylines that helped develop the game of basketball.
