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2026 NEC Men’s Basketball Tournament Basics
Format
Traditional bracket with reseeding. Note that the conference is solely going by the “NEC” initialism now.
Site
Higher seeds host on campus
Participants
New Haven (14-17, 9-9, 5th) is not participating as the Chargers are in their first reclassification year, so only one team missed the field of eight on record. That was Saint Francis (7-24, 5-13, 10th) did not qualify in the Red Flash’s final season as a D1 member.
Stonehill is finally eligible after completing their reclassification period. Le Moyne and Mercyhurst will participate but are ineligible for the automatic bid as they still working on theirs. The Dolphins will be eligible in 2027, Mercyhurst in 2028, with the Chargers joining them in 2029.
As for how these teams impact the auto bid, if one wins the championship, a losing eligible finalist will qualify (as Fairleigh Dickinson did after losing to Merrimack in 2023). But if both Le Moyne and Mercyhurst reach the final, the NEC went full Sickos mode. In the unlikely event there’s a Dolphin-Laker final, there will be a bonus game for the auto bid, featuring the two losing eligible semifinalists.
Schedule
Downloadable PDF Bracket
Quarterfinals (Wed. 3/4)
NEC Front Row will stream all four games.
Gm. 1: (8) Chicago State (7-24, 5-13) at (1) LIU (21-10, 15-3), 7
The Sharks swept: 74-55 (away) on 1/4 and 73-56 (home) on 2/26.
Gm. 2: (7) Wagner (13-16, 8-10) at (2) Central Connecticut State (18-11, 12-6), 7
The Blue Devils swept: 62-55 (away) on 1/29 and 84-67 (home) on 2/7.
Gm. 3: (6) Fairleigh Dickinson (11-20, 8-10) at (3) Mercyhurst (15-16, 10-8), 7
The Knights swept: 74-67 (away) on 1/2 and 55-52 (home) on 2/7.
Gm. 4: (5) Stonehill (11-20, 8-10) at (4) Le Moyne (15-16, 10-8), 7
The Skyhawks swept: 65-54 (away) on 1/31 and 77-68 (home) on 2/21.
Semifinals (Sat. 3/7)
ESPN+ ($) will stream both games.
Gm. 5: (4) at (1), 12
Gm. 6: (3) at (2), 2
Championship (Tues. 3/10)
Gm. 7: (2) at (1), 7 (ESPN2)
Mayhem Potential
Data originally posted by Bob Vetrone Jr. on Twitterin 2020 with my own additions for the seasons beyond.
- 1 seed (6): 2011, 2012, 2017, 2020, 2022, 2023
- 2 seed (3): 2015, 2016, 2019
- 4 seed (3): 2014, 2018, 2021
- 3 seed (2): 2013, 2025
- 6 seed (1): 2024
With the No. 1 and 2 seeds winning nine of the last 15 titles, mayhem potential is relatively low in the NEC. However, the winner of the 3/6 quarterfinal has won each of the last two titles.
NCAA Seeding Record In The 68-Team Era
Years with an NCAA win are in bold.
- 15 seed (1): 2011
- 16 seed (12): 2012, 2013 (First Four), 2014 (First Four), 2015 (First Four), 2016 (First Four), 2017 (First Four), 2018 (First Four), 2019 (First Four), 2021 (First Four), 2022 (First Four), 2023 (First Four), 2024 (First Four), 2025 (First Four)
The NEC champion has played in the First Four 12 times since the field expanded to 68 teams. In the 10 editions of the NCAA Tournament in which there was a single opening round game, the NEC only participated twice—wins by Monmouth in 2006 and Mount St. Mary’s in 2008. Of course, this doesn’t necessarily mean it will be one-and-done or even two-and-done for the conference rep, as FDU became the second 16 to defeat a No. 1 seed after losing in the NEC final and winning in Dayton.
LIU is the only conference member in the NET Top 200—barely, as they’re 193rd. There is little to no chance of the NEC champ avoiding the 16 line and a very slim chance they don’t play in Dayton again.
Last NCAA Tournament Appearances
Saint Francis: 2025 (16 seed, First Four)
Wagner: 2024 (16 seed, 1st Round)
Fairleigh Dickinson: 2023 (16 seed, 2nd Round)
LIU: 2018 (16 seed, First Four)
Central Connecticut State: 2007 (16 seed, 1st Round)
Chicago State, Le Moyne, Mercyhurst, New Haven, and Stonehill have never qualified for a D1 Tournament, and only the Cougars and Skyhawks are eligible to make it this time around.
Spare a thought for former NEC member St. Francis Brooklyn. The Terriers were one of the four original Division I members that never qualified, until the school dropped athletics after the 2022-23 academic year.