NCHSAA releases finalized 2026 basketball state playoff brackets

On Saturday, the N.C. High School Athletic Association releasred the finalized playoff brackets for the 2026 boys and girls basketball state championships.

After the first batch of preliminary brackets had several errors, the NCHSAA quickly released a second draft of the preliminary brackets. The Association then released two more revisions to the brackets. Schools then had until 1:00 p.m. to submit questions.

The first round of the playoffs will be on Tuesday, February 24. The first four rounds will be played over a span of just six days.

With the release of the final brackets, the NCHSAA announced that the western regional finals will be held at Shuford Arena on the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory. The eastern regional finals will be held at Minges Coliseum on the campus of East Carolina University in Greenville.

The state championship games will return to Lawrence-Joel Memorial Coliseum on the campus of Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem.

To make the brackets, the NCHSAA staff convened in Greensboro and completed the seeding process before the bulk of their work concerning the individual wrestling playoffs.

It is the first time that the association has released playoff brackets for eight classifications in basketball.

Stay tuned to HighSchoolOT for full coverage of the basketball playoffs.

Here are some helpful resources to follow the NCHSAA basketball state playoffs:

Playoff Dates

• Saturday, Feb. 21 — Official brackets released by NCHSAA
• Tuesday, Feb. 24 — First Round at higher seed
• Thursday, Feb. 26 — Second Round at higher seed
• Saturday, Feb. 28 — Third Round at higher seed
• Monday, Mar. 2 — Fourth Round at higher seed
• March 4-7 — Regional Finals at neutral sites
• March 11-14 — State championships at neutral sites