The 64-team first-round field of March Madness will be decided Tuesday night with the conclusion of the First Four.
The evening started with No. 16 seeds Prairie View A&M and Lehigh vying for the chance to take on the defending NCAA tournament champion Florida Gators. Prairie View A&M pulled away in the second half thanks to Dontae Horne’s 25 points, 7 rebounds and 4 steals to earn the Panthers their first-ever NCAA tourney win.
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Closing out the First Four on Wednesday night: Miami (OH) Redhawks takes on the SMU Mustangs. The winner will face No. 6 Tennessee in the first round. The Redhawks will certainly draw plenty of eyes after securing an at-large bid to the tournament following a 31-1 campaign and first-place finish (18-0 record) in the MAC. But still, they remain largely unproven with just a single top-100 victory back in January thanks to a soft schedule.
Yahoo Fantasy Bracket Mayhem: Make your picks for $50K in total prizes
Lehigh (-3.5) and SMU (-7.5) were favored to advance to the first round at BetMGM. In case you’re wondering, yes, we did have AI pick every game in the men’s tournament, and Claude is giving the edge to Lehigh and Miami (Ohio).
The Howard Bison and Texas Longhorns each secured their bids to the first round on Tuesday.
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Miami (OH) vs. SMU start time: 9:15 p.m. ET
TV channel/live stream: TruTV
Follow along with Yahoo Sports as the First Four continues Wednesday night with Prairie View A&M vs. Lehigh and Miami (OH) vs. SMU.
Live32 updatesWed, March 18, 2026 at 5:59 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 7:19 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
We are back for the second half of the last First Four game. The 64-team bracket will officially be set after the next 20 minutes of gametime.
Be sure to fill out your Yahoo bracket tonight or in the morning before the game locks!
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Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:59 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The RedHawks went on another run to end the half and go into the locker room up 9. Eian Elmer has 14 points for Miami; Luke Skaljack and Brant Byers have 12 each. The three of them have 38 of Miami’s 43 first-half points.
The RedHawks shot a whopping 25 three-pointers in the first half.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:54 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Mustangs have found some fight as the game nears halftime. Jaden Toombs and Samet Yigitoglu have them back within 2 with less than 2 minutes to go.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:49 PM PDT
Jeff Eisenberg
If Miami would finish in the lower half of the Big East, as Bruce Pearl famously opined last month, where would SMU finish? Impressive first half so far from the RedHawks!
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:47 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The RedHawks are cooking now and just took a 10-point lead with just under 6 minutes left in the half.
Eian Elmer and Luke Skaljack have 26 of Miami’s 31 points so far.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:41 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Peter Suder and Eian Elmer just delivered a chaotic highlight on a fastbreak to give Miami a 7-point lead.
Suder was nearly out of bounds before delivering a high bounce pass to Elmer, who one-handed a finish at the rim.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:40 PM PDT
Ben Fawkes
There was heavy betting action from both respected bettors and the public on Miami (Ohio) heading into this game. “We opened Miami (Ohio) +8.5 and took a heap of Miami money,” Seamus Magee, BetMGM college basketball trader, told Yahoo Sports this week.
Bettors also loaded up on the RedHawks money line at BetMGM, as over 80% of the ML wagers were on Miami (Ohio) to beat SMU.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:33 PM PDT
Jeff Eisenberg
Tonight’s First Four matchup is a virtual home game for Miami, with Dayton less than an hour drive from its campus in Oxford, Ohio. You can hear the advantage in crowd support the RedHawks enjoy with every made basket or whistle.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:32 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Mustangs have missed 7 straight shots as the game ticks down to the 10-minute mark. Fortunately for them, the RedHawks are struggling as well.
Both teams are hovering around 30% from the field.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:25 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Miami and SMU have traded leads in the early going. The RedHawks’ Luke Skaljac has started off hot with a couple buckets as Miami tries to justify its tourney inclusion and advance to the Round of 64.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 6:17 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
We are back in action in Dayton with Miami and SMU and the Mustangs are on the board first!
Despite the RedHawks’ undefeated regular season, SMU came into this one a 7.5-point favorite. The over/under was set at 162.5.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 5:42 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Dontae Horne and Cory Wells were just too much for Lehigh. Horne had 25 points, 7 rebounds and 4 steals. Wells added 19 points and 11 boards.
It’s the first-ever win in the NCAA tournament for Prairie View A&M. The Panthers are on to the Round of 64 to face Florida in the South region first round.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 5:27 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
It’s still a double-digit lead for PV A&M as the game creeps inside of the 4-minute mark. Dontae Horne is on fire and has 23 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals for the Panthers.
They’re up 57-46.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 5:17 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Panthers are on a heater now. They’re on an 8-0 run and just took a 51-41 lead with just over 8 minutes to go.
Dontae Horne has 19 and Cory Wells has 17 for PV A&M.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 5:09 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 5:00 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
With just over 15 minutes left in the game, PV A&M has taken a 4-point lead thanks to Cory Wells and his 15 points and 7 rebounds. The Panthers are looking a little more aggressive attacking the basket in the second half.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 4:49 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
PV A&M scored right out of the break and we’re tied at 29 as action resumes.
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 4:39 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
Wed, March 18, 2026 at 4:26 PM PDT
Yahoo Sports Staff
The Mountain Hawks have a small lead as we head into the break. Hank Alvey has 10 points and 9 rebounds to lead the way for Lehigh. PV A&M’s Dontae Horne and Cory Wells have 9 each for the Panthers.