WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Big Ten Tournament champion Purdue men’s basketball team will play in the NCAA Tournament for the 11th straight time, taking on No. 15 seed Queens on Friday in the first round in St. Louis.
Seventh-seeded Miami (FL) will face No. 10 seed Missouri in the other game on Friday.
The Boilermakers enter the 2026 NCAA Tournament as the No. 2 seed in the West Region. Purdue has been a top-four seed in their last nine NCAA Tournament appearances, marking the longest active streak in the nation and the fourth longest in history (19 – Kansas, 2001-19; 12 – Duke, 2008-19; 11 – North Carolina, 1989-99).
No. 18 Purdue downed No. 3 Michigan, the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region, 80-72 to claim its fourth Big Ten Tournament title. Braden Smith was named the Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player after finishing with a 14-point, 11-assist double-double and pulled within one assist of Bobby Hurley’s NCAA all-time record of 1,076 career assists.
The Boilermakers enter the tournament with a 27-8 record and 17 wins against Quad 1 and 2 teams.
In its first year eligible to make the NCAA Tournament after transitioning from Division II, outlasted Central Arkansas 98-93 in overtime to claim their first ASUN Tournament Championship. The Royals are 21-13 on the year, including a 13-5 mark in conference action to finish third in the ASUN. Queens features the 19th-ranked scoring offense at 84.9 points per game and are 17th nationally with an effective field goal percentage of 56.7%. Boasting a balanced attack, the Royals are one of two teams in the country to have six players average double figures this season (Miami (OH)).