2026 Horizon League men's basketball tournament
| 2026 Horizon League men's basketball tournament | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Division I |
| Season | 2025–26 |
| Teams | 11 |
| Site | Campus sites (first two rounds) Corteva Coliseum Indianapolis, Indiana (final three rounds) |
| Television | ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN+ |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wright State | 12 | – | 4 | .750 | 17 | – | 10 | .630 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Oakland | 10 | – | 6 | .625 | 14 | – | 13 | .519 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Robert Morris | 10 | – | 7 | .588 | 18 | – | 10 | .643 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Green Bay | 10 | – | 7 | .588 | 15 | – | 13 | .536 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue Fort Wayne | 9 | – | 7 | .563 | 15 | – | 12 | .556 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Detroit Mercy | 9 | – | 7 | .563 | 12 | – | 13 | .480 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Kentucky | 8 | – | 8 | .500 | 16 | – | 11 | .593 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Milwaukee | 7 | – | 10 | .412 | 11 | – | 17 | .393 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youngstown State | 6 | – | 10 | .375 | 13 | – | 14 | .481 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cleveland State | 6 | – | 10 | .375 | 10 | – | 17 | .370 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| IU Indy | 3 | – | 14 | .176 | 7 | – | 21 | .250 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † 2026 Horizon League tournament winner As of February 15, 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2026 Horizon League Men's Basketball Tournament will be the final event of the 2025–26 men's basketball season for the Horizon League. It will be held from March 2–10, 2026; play-in and first round games will be played at the home courts of the better seeds, with all remaining games held at Corteva Coliseum in Indianapolis, Indiana.[1] The winner will receive the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. The tournament is sponsored by Barbasol for the fourth consecutive year.[2]
The tournament will adopt a new format in 2026; instead of a traditional eleven-team single elimination bracket, the new format includes reseeding after each round. The event starts on campus sites with a play-in round for the bottom two teams (by conference record), followed by a ten-team first round. The five remaining teams then advance to the final three rounds held at Corteva Coliseum. The bottom two teams by seeding play in the second round, while the other three teams are forwarded into the semifinals, with those winners advancing to the final.[3]
Seeds
All of the teams in the league will participate in the tournament, with the bottom two teams starting in the play-in round. The bracket is reset after each round so that the highest remaining seed always plays the lowest.
| Seed | School | League Record |
Tiebreaker |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | − | ||
| 2 | − | ||
| 3 | − | ||
| 4 | − | ||
| 5 | − | ||
| 6 | − | ||
| 7 | − | ||
| 8 | − | ||
| 9 | − | ||
| 10 | − | ||
| 11 | − |
Schedule
| Game | Time | Matchup | Score | Attendance | Television |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Play-In Round – Monday, March 2 Campus Site | |||||
| 1 | 7:00 pm | No. 11 at No. 10 | – | ESPN+ | |
| First Round – Wednesday, March 4 Campus Sites | |||||
| 2 | 7:00 pm | Play-In Round Winner at No. 1 | – | ESPN+ | |
| 3 | 7:00 pm | No. 9 at No. 2 | – | ||
| 4 | 7:00 pm | No. 8 at No. 3 | – | ||
| 5 | 7:00 pm | No. 7 at No. 4 | – | ||
| 6 | 7:00 pm | No. 6 at No. 5 | – | ||
| Second Round – Sunday, March 8 Indianapolis, IN (Corteva Coliseum) | |||||
| 7 | 3:30 pm | Fourth-Best First Round Winner vs. Fifth-Best First Round Winner | – | ESPN+ | |
| Semifinals – Monday, March 9 Indianapolis, IN (Corteva Coliseum) | |||||
| 8 | 7:00 pm | Best First Round Winner vs. Second Round Winner | – | ESPNU | |
| 9 | 9:30 pm | Second-Best First Round Winner vs. Third-Best First Round Winner | – | ESPN2 | |
| Final – Tuesday, March 10 Indianapolis, IN (Corteva Coliseum) | |||||
| 10 | 7:00 pm | Semifinal Round Game 1 Winner vs. Semifinal Round Game 2 Winner | – | ESPN | |
| Play-In and First Round game times are local standard time; Second Round, Semifinal and Final game times are Eastern Daylight Time. Rankings denote tournament seed | |||||
Bracket
| Play-In Round March 2 Campus Site ESPN+ | First Round March 4 Campus Sites ESPN+ | Second Round March 8 Indianapolis, IN ESPN+ | Semifinals March 9 Indianapolis, IN ESPNU/ESPN2 | Final March 10 Indianapolis, IN ESPN | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Game summaries
Play-In Round
First Round
ESPN+
|
March 4
7:00 p.m. |
| No. 2 vs. No. 9 | ||
| Game 2 |
ESPN+
|
March 4
7:00 p.m. |
| No. 3 vs. No. 8 | ||
| Game 3 |
ESPN+
|
March 4
7:00 p.m. |
| No. 4 vs. No. 7 | ||
| Game 4 |
ESPN+
|
March 4
7:00 p.m. |
| No. 5 vs. No. 6 | ||
| Game 5 |
Second Round
| Fourth-Best First Round Winner vs. Fifth-Best First Round Winner | ||
| Game 1 |
Semifinal Round
| First-Best First Round Winner vs. Second Round Game 1 Winner | ||
| Game 1 |
March 9
9:30 p.m. |
| Second-Best First Round Winner vs. Third-Best First Round Winner | ||
| Game 2 |
Corteva Coliseum
Indianapolis, IN |
Final Round
| Semifinal Round Game 1 Winner vs. Semifinal Round Game 2 Winner | ||
| Championship |
References
- ^ "2026 Barbasol Horizon League Men's & Women's Basketball Championships". Horizon League. Retrieved October 7, 2025.
- ^ "Barbasol Extends Title Partnership Agreement with Horizon League". Horizon League. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
- ^ Gentile, Drew (September 26, 2025). "Horizon League details reasons for changes to postseason tournament". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved October 7, 2025.