NIT 2026 Men's Bracket, Times, Dates, Live Streaming and TV Schedule

The 2026 NIT field is full of mid-major programs looking to replicate the success Chattanooga had in the tournament a year ago.

Auburn, Wake Forest, California and Oklahoma State are the four power-conference representatives in the 32-team bracket.

A handful of the top contenders from the mid-major ranks were No. 1 seeds in their respective conference tournaments and lost. Liberty, Utah Valley, Navy, Yale and UNC Wilmington are among the programs in that category.

2026 NIT Bracket

Auburn, New Mexico, Wake Forest and Tulsa earned the No. 1 seeds in their respective regions.

Auburn, who was on the bubble for the last few weeks, is the only power-conference team in its portion of the bracket.

New Mexico's bracket is loaded with itself and Colorado State from the Mountain West, as well as WAC regular-season champion Utah Valley and Missouri Valley tournament runner-up UIC.

Wake Forest has a tough matchup out of the gates with Navy, the Patriot League regular-season champion.

Navy was one of the better mid-major programs all season, but its dream of an NCAA tournament berth was cut short by Boston University in the Patriot League tournament.

The Yale-UNC Wilmington first-round matchup pits two other mid-majors that had incredible seasons against each other. That would be the opening-round game worth tuning into.

Oklahoma State is the No. 2 seed in Tulsa's region. The Golden Hurricane and Cowboys could meet in an all-Oklahoma regional final.

The first three rounds of the tournament will be played at campus sites. The NIT semifinals take place on April 2 at Hinkle Fieldhouse, while the championship game will be on April 5 on the home floor of Butler University.