- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,149,665
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images attach
The 2026 SoCon Men’s Tournament bracket in logo form. | Chris Dobbertean using logos from SportsLogos.net
2026 Southern Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament Basics
You must be registered for see images attach
Format
Traditional bracket with the top two seeds playing in the first quarterfinal doubleheader against the two winners of the first-round doubleheader.
Site
The SoCon’s teams will again gather in Asheville, N.C., at Harrah’s Cherokee Center, which seats a little more than 7,600. The arena, which hosted the relocated 2020 Maui Invitational, is in its second stint as home to the SoCon Tournament. The first spanned from 1984 to 1995, while the second began in 2012.
Participants
All 10 SoCon teams will participate. That number gets turned up to 11 in 2027, as Tennessee Tech is moving over from the OVC.
Schedule
Downloadable PDF Bracket
TV/Streaming Info
ESPN+ ($) will stream air all games before the semifinals.
First Round (Fri. 3/6)
Nexstar-owned stations in the SoCon footprint will air both games.
Gm. 1: (9) The Citadel (10-21, 7-11) vs. (8) Chattanooga (13-18, 7-11), 5
Road split: Bulldogs 78-71 on 2/7 and Mocs 93-72 on 2/21.
Gm. 2: (10) VMI (6-25, 1-17) vs. (7) UNCG (13-18, 9-9), 7:30*
The Spartans swept: 85-78 (away) on 1/21 and 92-71 (home) on 2/11.
Quarterfinals (Sat. 3/7)
SC ETV affiliates will air all four games.
Gm. 3: Gm. 1 winner vs. (1) ETSU (21-10, 13-5), 12
Gm. 4: Gm. 2 winner vs. (2) Wofford (19-12, 11-7), 2:30*
Gm. 5: (6) Furman (19-12, 10-8) vs. (3) Samford (18-13, 11-7), 6
The Paladins swept: 77-73 (away) on 1/14 and 78-73 (home) on 1/29.
Gm. 6: (5) Western Carolina (14-15, 10-8) vs. (4) Mercer (19-12, 11-7), 8:30*
Home split: Bears 88-76 on 1/21 and Catamounts 78-74 on 2/25.
Semifinals (Sun. 3/8)
ESPNU will air both games.
Gm. 7: Gm. 3 winner vs. Gm 6 winner, 4
Gm. 8: Gm. 4 winner vs. Gm. 5 winner, 6:30*
Championship (Mon. 3/9)
Gm. 9: Semifinal winners, 7 (ESPN)
Mayhem Potential
Data originally posted by Bob Vetrone Jr. on Twitterin 2020 with my own additions for the seasons beyond.
The Southern Conference Tournament is a rarity among mid-major tourneys played at neutral sites in that the No. 1 seed has dominated recent editions. Up until Wofford’s surprise win as the No. 6 seed in 2025, the top seed had won seven straight titles and eight in the prior nine seasons.
- 1 seed (11): 2012 (South), 2013 (South), 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
- 2 seed (1): 2011 (South)
- 3 seed (2): 2014, 2017
- 6 seed (1): 2025
NCAA Seeding Record In The 68-Team Era
Years with an NCAA win are in bold.
- 7 seed (1): 2019
- 12 seed (2): 2015, 2016
- 13 seed (7): 2012, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
- 14 seed (2): 2011, 2013
- 15 seed (2): 2014, 2025
Wofford is responsible for both the SoCon’s highest and lowest seedings since the field expanded to 68, while Furman took advantage of its first NCAA trip since 1980 by scoring a 13-over-4 upset of Virginia in 2023.
This year’s champion will likely find itself on seed line 14 or 15. Top-seeded ETSU is the only SoCon team in the NET Top 150 right now, with just Mercer and Furman in the top 200. The bottom 3 teams are all ranked 300th or worse.
Last NCAA Tournament Appearances
Wofford: 2025 (15 seed, 1st Round)
Samford: 2024 (13 seed, 1st Round)
Furman: 2023 (13 seed, 2nd Round)
Chattanooga: 2022 (13 seed, 1st Round)
UNCG: 2021 (13 seed, 1st Round)
ETSU: 2017 (13 seed, 1st Round)—2020 SoCon Tournament Champions
Mercer: 2014 (14 seed, Round of 32, ASUN member)
Western Carolina: 1996 (16 seed, 1st Round)
VMI: 1977 (Sweet 16)
The Citadel remains the lone SoCon member—and one of the three remaining original Division I schools—that has never reached the field. At least the Bulldogs won seven conference games this season, good enough to tie Chattanooga for ninth place. Last year, they went winless in conference play.
Continue reading...
