March 19, 2026, 12:50 p.m. ET
The High Point Panthers had spent 25 years in the Big South Conference without ever making it to the Men’s NCAA Basketball Tournament. Now they’ve got a bonafide Big Dance streak cooking.
High Point claimed the Big South’s regular season and tournament championships each of the last two seasons. That gave the Panthers their first taste of hardwood glory since making their only Division II NCAA Tournament appearances in 1996 and 1997. Was that the birth of a new low major powerhouse and perpetual Cinderella candidate?
That’s tough to say, especially in an era of player movement that threatens to slide overlooked gems to Power 5 conference teams to maximize their NIL value. But High Point can make a statement by upending the five seed Wisconsin Badgers Thursday. So, we should probably figure out where they’re from.
High Point University is located in High Point, North Carolina
Well, how’s that for a coincidence? The city of roughly 115,000 people is the ninth largest in the state. It’s located about 17 miles southwest of Greensboro.