Missouri limped into the NCAA Tournament, but got lucky with a decent seed and an even better location. After finishing the season 20-12, they reached the Big Dance for the third time in head coach Dennis Gates' four years. So do they have what it takes to make a run? Here's everthing you need to know about the Tigers in March.
Missouri's 2026 NCAA Tournament:
Seed: No. 10
Region: West
Opponent: No. 7-seed Miami on Friday at 9:10 PM
West Region Bracket
1. Arizona
16. Long Island
8. Villanova
9. Utah State
5. Wisconsin
12. High Point
4. Arkansas
13. Hawaii
6. BYU
11. TBD
3. Gonzaga
14. Kennesaw State
7. Miami
10. Missouri
2. Purdue
15. Queens
Missouri can thank their lucky stars that they drew a St. Louis host city for their first games, making their matchup with Miami as close to a home atmosphere as they could get. Still, a few extra Mizzou fans in the crowd won't guarantee a win, and Miami is a very tough team who had a 10-game win streak at one point in the year.
If Missouri can skate past Miami, they'll likely be rewarded with a date with 2-seeded Purdue. The Boilermakers come in as one of the hottest teams in the country after winning the Big Ten Tournament, and would be an extremely tough out. The Tigers' path in the NCAA Tournament likely ends here, but hey, it's March.
Should Missouri continue to move on they'll likely have to defeat Arizona to reach the Final Four. Ranked No. 1 for much of the season, the Wildcats have Final Four written all over them, and if Missouri somehow plays all the way to a showdown with them, they'll need to find the same magic they used to defeat Florida in the regular season.
Ultimately, this feels like a one and done team, but as a 10-seed, that's still a strong showing. Anything less though will likely be viewed as a failure.