{"id":661491,"date":"2026-03-16T18:16:22","date_gmt":"2026-03-16T18:16:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/661491\/"},"modified":"2026-03-16T18:16:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T18:16:22","slug":"march-madness-live-updates-alabama-star-aden-holloway-arrested-on-marijuana-charges-duke-earns-mens-overall-no-1-seed-as-brackets-are-set","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/661491\/","title":{"rendered":"March Madness live updates: Alabama star Aden Holloway arrested on marijuana charges; Duke earns men’s overall No. 1 seed as brackets are set"},"content":{"rendered":"

The men\u2019s and women\u2019s NCAA basketball tournament brackets<\/a> are now official, and the first-round schedule<\/a> is set.<\/p>\n

The men\u2019s tournament is led by Duke as the No. 1 overall seed<\/a> playing out of the East region, with Arizona, Michigan and Florida as the other top seeds. The SEC led all conferences with 10 bids in the tournament, followed by the Big Ten with nine and ACC and Big 12, each with eight bids.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

The big news Monday morning was the arrest of Alabama star Aden Holloway on marijuana charges<\/a>. The Tide could now be without one of their top players with the start of the men\u2019s NCAA tournament only days away.<\/p>\n

[Enter Yahoo Bracket Mayhem for shot at 50K<\/a> | Printable bracket<\/a>]<\/p>\n

The men\u2019s tournament action tips off with the First Four, which begins on Tuesday with UMBC vs. Howard and Texas vs. NC State, followed by by Prairie View A&M vs. Lehigh and Miami (OH) vs. SMU on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Unsurprisingly, UConn, UCLA, South Carolina and Texas secured the No. 1 seeds in the women\u2019s bracket<\/a>, with UConn sitting as massive -275 odds favorites<\/a> to win it all \u2014 the shortest pre-tournament odds of any team this decade.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

The First Four in the women\u2019s tournament tips off Wednesday, with showdowns between Nebraska and Richmond followed by Missouri State vs. Stephen F. Austin, continuing Thursday with Southern vs. Samford and Virginia vs. Arizona State.<\/p>\n

Follow along with the latest men’s and women’s NCAA basketball tournament news and updates leading up to the start of the first round.<\/p>\n

Live12 updatesMon, March 16, 2026 at 11:05 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, March 16, 2026 at 11:00 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

Bruce Pearl was live on set for CBS to witness it. And Sunday didn’t offer good news for the former Auburn coach, whose son, Steven Pearl, is now the head coach of the Tigers. Auburn missed the field as one of the first four teams out, a year after advancing to the Final Four as a No. 1 seed.<\/p>\n

Auburn started the season with hopes of competing again in the SEC with its eyes on a high NCAA seed as the preseason No. 20 team in the nation. It posted some high-profile early losses to then-No. 1 Houston, No. 7 Michigan and No. 6 Purdue in non-conference play.<\/p>\n

But the Tigers also posted some big wins to bolster their NCAA tournament case. They beat St. John’s, a 5 seed in November. They beat Arkansas, a No. 4 seed, by 22 points in conference play. And in their strongest argument to make the field, they defeated reigning champion and No. 1 seed Florida on the road in January.<\/p>\n

But it wasn’t enough to overcome a 17-16 record and 7-11 mark in SEC play. The advanced metrics that had Auburn ranked No. 38 in NET ratings<\/a> and 44th in WAB (Wins above bubble)<\/a> weren’t enough to push them into the field.<\/p>\n

Read more from the biggest winners and losers from Selection Sunday.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"ScottMon, March 16, 2026 at 10:30 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Scott Pianowski<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t a great season for the Big East, which is why St. John\u2019s merely earned a No. 5 nod despite ending the year on a 19-1 blitz. The Johnnies dominated Connecticut for 40 minutes in the Big East final, but it didn\u2019t push them higher on the seeding line.<\/p>\n

While St. John\u2019s will be challenged by Northern Iowa in Round 1, I expect the Johnnies will survive and likely take on Kansas on the weekend (although rebound-dominant Cal Baptist isn\u2019t an easy draw for Kansas in Round 1, either). The Jayhawks have been a Jekyll-Hyde team all year, with star freshman Darryn Peterson battling injuries and inconsistency. Kansas enters the tournament on a 4-5 slump, and has a metrics profile that\u2019s less impressive than St. John\u2019s. It\u2019s plausible St. John\u2019s would be favored come the weekend.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s star power on this St. John’s roster, with Big East Player of the Year Zuby Ejiofor and legendary head coach Rick Pitino. The Johnnies aren\u2019t a great shooting team, but they\u2019re relentless on the offensive boards. St. John\u2019s has a dangerous defensive profile, protecting the rim and turning its opponents over. I have this club winning at least two games \u2014 not a bold prediction, but at least a seeding upset \u2014 and then giving Duke a 40-minute problem in the Round of 16.<\/p>\n

Read more on the Cinderella teams worth considering<\/a> as you fill out your brackets<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mon, March 16, 2026 at 10:11 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, March 16, 2026 at 9:49 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

The Redhawks are in. And they’re not the last at-large team to make the field.<\/p>\n

Miami went 31-0 in the regular season, then put its NCAA tournament standing at risk with a first-round loss to UMass in the MAC tournament.<\/p>\n

The undefeated regular season was easily the best mark in college basketball this season. But a schedule that featured zero Quad 1 matchups and 26 combined against Quad 3 and Quad 4 teams put Miami’s at-large hopes in doubt. This team was not an analytics darling. It wasn’t certain until Sunday that the MAC would be a two-bid league.<\/p>\n

But Miami ultimately made the field, and it turns out that it wasn’t as big of a sweat as it could have been. Miami was among the last four teams to make the cut, but NCAA men’s basketball committee chairman Keith Gill told CBS that Miami made the field ahead of SMU, Texas and NC State, power conference programs that were also among the last four teams in.<\/p>\n

Miami will have to play a First Four game against SMU as an 11 seed to make the full tournament field. But it will do so a couple of hours from home in Dayton, Ohio on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Read more on the other winners from Selection Sunday.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"KateMon, March 16, 2026 at 9:32 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Kate Magdziuk<\/p>\n

Syracuse will be without starting point guard Dominique Darius in the women\u2019s NCAA tournament, CNY Central\u2019s Ashley Wenskoski reports.<\/p>\n

Syracuse holds the No. 9 seed in the Forth Worth region<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Darius is averaging 12.6 points per game over 30 games this season, leading the team with 3.5 assists per game.<\/p>\n

\"KariMon, March 16, 2026 at 9:21 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Kari Anderson<\/p>\n

Mon, March 16, 2026 at 8:53 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Alabama guard Aden Holloway was arrested Monday after authorities allegedly found over a pound of marijuana at a Tuscaloosa residence,<\/a> according to reports.<\/p>\n

Holloway, 21, was charged with first-degree possession of marijuana and failure to affix a tax stamp. He was taken to Tuscaloosa County jail and his bond was set at $5,000.<\/p>\n

Holloway\u2019s arrest comes just days ahead of Alabama\u2019s opening-round game.<\/p>\n

Mon, March 16, 2026 at 8:50 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Yahoo Sports Staff<\/p>\n

Duke\u2019s reward for grabbing the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA men\u2019s tournament<\/a>?<\/p>\n

The Blue Devils now have the most difficult road to winning the championship<\/a>.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s at least according to an analysis of KenPom ratings. Duke has UConn and Michigan State \u2014 two of the 11 KenPom-certified national championship contenders \u2014 before even reaching the Final Four. And Kansas is a rugged No. 4.<\/p>\n

UConn ranks 28th in KenPom offense and 11th in defense. Michigan State’s profile is strong enough to be labeled a title contender by KenPom. Kansas, meanwhile, is one of just 11 teams in the nation with eight Quad 1 wins, with a defense-only rating that qualifies for the Sweet 16 KenPom tier.<\/p>\n

Read more.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"JasonMon, March 16, 2026 at 8:26 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Jason Owens<\/p>\n

UConn is a juggernaut.<\/p>\n

Geno Auriemma’s Huskies are somehow better this season<\/a> after losing Paige Bueckers and will enter the NCAA tournament<\/a> at 34-0. They won the Big East tournament championship game over Villanova, 90-51. They beat Creighton in the semifinals, 100-51.<\/p>\n

They won five matchups against ranked opponents by an average of 20 points per game. Only then-No. 6 Michigan managed to stay within single digits of UConn in a 72-69 Huskies win. That was on Nov. 21.<\/p>\n

Since then, only Villanova on Feb. 18 has finished within 14 points of UConn. But that doesn’t make the Huskies a sure thing to win their 13th national championship.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s at least one team that could reasonably challenge a healthy UConn team in a single-elimination tournament and a handful of SEC teams seeking to join the conversation.<\/p>\n

Among them? UCLA. <\/p>\n

UCLA is UConn\u2019s clear No. 1 challenger. In any season which UConn wasn’t doing what it was doing, UCLA would be the game\u2019s unquestioned dominant force.<\/p>\n

The Bruins are 34-1, with their only loss coming against then-No. 4 Texas on Nov. 26. Since then, they\u2019re 25-0 against a considerably tougher schedule than UConn\u2019s featuring a grueling Big Ten slate.<\/p>\n

Where UConn faced five ranked opponents, UCLA faced 13. The Bruins beat 12 of them, including a 96-45 drubbing of No. 9 Iowa in the Big Ten championship game. UCLA has a 19-1 record against Quad 1 opponents vs. 9-0 for UConn.<\/p>\n

Find out which three other teams we think have a chance to upset the Huskies in this year\u2019s NCAA women\u2019s basketball tournament.<\/a><\/p>\n

Mon, March 16, 2026 at 8:19 AM PDT<\/p>\n

\"BenMon, March 16, 2026 at 7:44 AM PDT<\/p>\n

Ben Fawkes<\/p>\n

Selection Sunday is here and the 2026 NCAA tournament bracket<\/a> has been revealed. With the Super Bowl ending just a few weeks ago and the NBA heading into the playoff push, chances are most casual sports fans haven’t been watching too much college basketball.<\/p>\n

That means the NCAA tournament is the first time they’ll be tuning in to watch the vast majority of the 68 teams participating.<\/p>\n

One piece of advice?<\/p>\n

Vary your bracket picking strategy depending on the size of your pool.<\/p>\n

Most NCAA tournament pools are pretty straightforward: You pick a straight-up winner in every game and continue throughout the bracket until you\u2019ve picked a national champion.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re in a pool with hundreds of other people, though, you’ll likely need to go a bit contrarian with your picks because the vast majority of people are going to pick a lot of favorites.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re in a smaller pool, you\u2019ll have a better chance of winning with a much chalkier bracket. And while it\u2019s always exciting to pick upsets, remember that 14 of the past 18 national champions have been a No. 1 seed, including the Florida Gators last year.<\/p>\n

Be sure to use tools like Yahoo\u2019s public pick percentage tab<\/a> to see which teams the majority of people are picking to win each game.<\/p>\n

Read four more pieces of advice for filling out your March Madness brackets to set yourself up for a win.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The men\u2019s and women\u2019s NCAA basketball tournament brackets are now official, and the first-round schedule is set. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":661492,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3724],"tags":[34565,7,1400],"class_list":{"0":"post-661491","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-basketball","8":"tag-aden-holloway","9":"tag-basketball","10":"tag-ncaa-tournament"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116240227677376295","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/661491","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=661491"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/661491\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/661492"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=661491"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=661491"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=661491"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}