After leaving three teams out of the field in March, the 2026 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament is expanding to 18 teams, the league announced Thursday afternoon on the Big Ten Network.
The 2025 conference tournament was the first time teams were left out of the event.
The women’s tournament will remain at 15 teams.
The 29th Big Ten Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament will be played March 10-15, 2026, at the United Center in Chicago, marking the first Big Ten Tournament to feature an 18-team field.
The tournament will open on Tuesday, March 10 with a pair of games featuring the number 15-18 seeds. Wednesday’s schedule will include four contests, as Tuesday’s winners will join seeds 9-14 in second round action.
Seeds 5-8 will begin tournament play on Thursday, with the top four seeds slated to open their postseasons in Friday’s quarterfinal round. The semifinal contests are scheduled for Saturday, with a champion crowned following Sunday’s title game. CBS Sports will broadcast the semifinals and championship game on CBS for the 29th consecutive year, with those games also streaming live on Paramount+.
The league also announced the full 2025-26 men’s basketball schedule. It is as follows:
2025-26 Big Ten Conference Men’s Basketball Schedule
| Tuesday, Dec. 2 | Iowa at Michigan State |
| Purdue at Rutgers | |
| USC at Oregon | |
| Wednesday, Dec. 3 | Indiana at Minnesota |
| UCLA at Washington | |
| Northwestern at Wisconsin | |
| Saturday, Dec. 6 | Maryland at Iowa |
| Ohio State at Northwestern | |
| Rutgers at Michigan | |
| Oregon at UCLA | |
| Washington at USC | |
| Tuesday, Dec. 9 | Penn State at Indiana |
| Illinois at Ohio State | |
| Wednesday. Dec. 10 | Wisconsin at Nebraska |
| Minnesota at Purdue | |
| Saturday, Dec. 13 | Nebraska at Illinois |
| Michigan at Maryland | |
| Michigan State at Penn State | |
| Friday, Jan. 2 | Oregon at Maryland |
| USC at Michigan | |
| Michigan State at Nebraska | |
| Ohio State at Rutgers | |
| Saturday, Jan. 3 | UCLA at Iowa |
| Minnesota at Northwestern | |
| Illinois at Penn State | |
| Purdue at Wisconsin | |
| Sunday, Jan. 4 | Washington at Indiana |
| Monday, Jan. 5 | USC at Michigan State |
| Nebraska at Ohio State | |
| Oregon at Rutgers | |
| Tuesday, Jan. 6 | Iowa at Minnesota |
| Michigan at Penn State | |
| UCLA at Wisconsin | |
| Wednesday, Jan. 7 | Indiana at Maryland |
| Washington at Purdue | |
| Thursday, Jan. 8 | Rutgers at Illinois |
| Northwestern at Michigan State | |
| Ohio State at Oregon | |
| Friday, Jan. 9 | USC at Minnesota |
| Saturday, Jan. 10 | Nebraska at Indiana |
| Wisconsin at Michigan | |
| Penn State at Purdue | |
| Maryland at UCLA | |
| Sunday, Jan. 11 | Illinois at Iowa |
| Northwestern at Rutgers | |
| Ohio State at Washington | |
| Tuesday, Jan. 13 | Indiana at Michigan State |
| Wisconsin at Minnesota | |
| Oregon at Nebraska | |
| Maryland at USC | |
| Wednesday, Jan. 14 | Illinois at Northwestern |
| UCLA at Penn State | |
| Iowa at Purdue | |
| Michigan at Washington | |
| Saturday, Jan. 17 | Minnesota at Illinois |
| Iowa at Indiana | |
| Nebraska at Northwestern | |
| UCLA at Ohio State | |
| Michigan at Oregon | |
| Purdue at USC | |
| Michigan State at Washington | |
| Rutgers at Wisconsin | |
| Sunday, Jan. 18 | Penn State at Maryland |
| Tuesday, Jan. 20 | Rutgers at Iowa |
| Indiana at Michigan | |
| Minnesota at Ohio State | |
| Michigan State at Oregon | |
| Purdue at UCLA | |
| Wednesday, Jan. 21 | Maryland at Illinois |
| Washington at Nebraska | |
| Northwestern at USC | |
| Thursday, Jan. 22 | Wisconsin at Penn State |
| Friday, Jan. 23 | Ohio State at Michigan |
| Indiana at Rutgers | |
| Saturday, Jan. 24 | Maryland at Michigan State |
| Nebraska at Minnesota | |
| Illinois at Purdue | |
| Northwestern at UCLA | |
| Sunday, Jan. 25 | Oregon at Washington |
| USC at Wisconsin | |
| Monday, Jan. 26 | Penn State at Ohio State |
| Tuesday, Jan. 27 | Purdue at Indiana |
| Nebraska at Michigan | |
| Michigan State at Rutgers | |
| Wednesday, Jan. 28 | USC at Iowa |
| UCLA at Oregon | |
| Minnesota at Wisconsin | |
| Thursday, Jan. 29 | Washington at Illinois |
| Penn State at Northwestern | |
| Friday, Jan. 30 | Michigan at Michigan State |
| Saturday, Jan. 31 | Washington at Northwestern |
| Indiana at UCLA | |
| Rutgers at USC | |
| Ohio State at Wisconsin | |
| Sunday, Feb. 1 | Purdue at Maryland |
| Illinois at Nebraska | |
| Iowa at Oregon | |
| Minnesota at Penn State | |
| Tuesday, Feb. 3 | Rutgers at UCLA |
| Indiana at USC | |
| Wednesday, Feb. 4 | Northwestern at Illinois |
| Michigan State at Minnesota | |
| Iowa at Washington | |
| Thursday, Feb. 5 | Ohio State at Maryland |
| Penn State at Michigan | |
| Saturday, Feb. 7 | Wisconsin at Indiana |
| Illinois at Michigan State | |
| Oregon at Purdue | |
| Nebraska at Rutgers | |
| Washington at UCLA | |
| Sunday, Feb. 8 | Northwestern at Iowa |
| Maryland at Minnesota | |
| Michigan at Ohio State | |
| USC at Penn State | |
| Monday, Feb. 9 | Oregon at Indiana |
| Tuesday, Feb. 10 | Wisconsin at Illinois |
| Purdue at Nebraska | |
| Wednesday, Feb. 11 | Iowa at Maryland |
| Michigan at Northwestern | |
| USC at Ohio State | |
| Penn State at Washington | |
| Friday, Feb. 13 | Michigan State at Wisconsin |
| Saturday, Feb. 14 | Purdue at Iowa |
| UCLA at Michigan | |
| Northwestern at Nebraska | |
| Penn State at Oregon | |
| Minnesota at Washington | |
| Sunday, Feb. 15 | Indiana at Illinois |
| Maryland at Rutgers | |
| Tuesday, Feb. 17 | Nebraska at Iowa |
| UCLA at Michigan State | |
| Wisconsin at Ohio State | |
| Minnesota at Oregon | |
| Michigan at Purdue | |
| Wednesday, Feb. 18 | Maryland at Northwestern |
| Rutgers at Penn State | |
| Illinois at USC | |
| Friday, Feb. 20 | Indiana at Purdue |
| Saturday, Feb. 21 | Washington at Maryland |
| Rutgers at Minnesota | |
| Penn State at Nebraska | |
| Illinois at UCLA | |
| Oregon at USC | |
| Sunday, Feb. 22 | Ohio State at Michigan State |
| Iowa at Wisconsin | |
| Tuesday, Feb. 24 | Northwestern at Indiana |
| Minnesota at Michigan | |
| Washington at Rutgers | |
| USC at UCLA | |
| Wednesday, Feb. 25 | Ohio State at Iowa |
| Maryland at Nebraska | |
| Wisconsin at Oregon | |
| Thursday, Feb. 26 | Michigan State at Purdue |
| Friday, Feb. 27 | Michigan at Illinois |
| Saturday, Feb. 28 | UCLA at Minnesota |
| Orgon at Northwestern | |
| Iowa at Penn State | |
| Nebraska at USC | |
| Wisconsin at Washington | |
| Sunday, March 1 | Michigan State at Indiana |
| Rutgers at Maryland | |
| Purdue at Ohio State | |
| Tuesday, March 3 | Oregon at Illinois |
| Nebraska at UCLA | |
| Wednesday, March 4 | Minnesota at Indiana |
| Purdue at Northwestern | |
| Ohio State at Penn State | |
| USC at Washington | |
| Maryland at Wisconsin | |
| Thursday, March 5 | Michigan at Iowa |
| Rutgers at Michigan State | |
| Saturday, March 7 | Northwestern at Minnesota |
| Indiana at Ohio State | |
| Washington at Oregon | |
| Wisconsin at Purdue | |
| UCLA at USC | |
| Sunday, March 8 | Illinois at Maryland |
| Michigan State at Michigan | |
| Iowa at Nebraska | |
| Penn State at Rutgers |
