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2026 College Basketball Crown: Oklahoma Leads Eight-Team Battle

4/2/2026

Summary

Story summary

The 2026 College Basketball Crown tournament starts this week in Las Vegas with eight power-conference teams: Oklahoma, Colorado, Baylor, Minnesota, Stanford, West Virginia, Rutgers, and Creighton.
Teams will compete for a $500,000 NIL prize, with experts favoring Oklahoma after winning six of their last seven games.
Creighton is also a strong contender, driven by head coach Greg McDermott's retirement announcement.
First-round games begin on Wednesday, followed by semifinals on Saturday and the championship on Sunday.

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Story summary

The 2026 College Basketball Crown tournament starts this week in Las Vegas with eight power-conference teams: Oklahoma, Colorado, Baylor, Minnesota, Stanford, West Virginia, Rutgers, and Creighton.
Teams will compete for a $500,000 NIL prize, with experts favoring Oklahoma after winning six of their last seven games.
Creighton is also a strong contender, driven by head coach Greg McDermott's retirement announcement.
First-round games begin on Wednesday, followed by semifinals on Saturday and the championship on Sunday.