March Madness automatic bids 2024: Who has clinched spot in men's NCAA Tournament?

Story by

Story by
March Madness automatic bids 2024: Who has clinched spot in men's NCAA Tournament?

Jordan Mendoza and Ellen J. Horrow, USA TODAY · USA TODAY Sports

Sun, Mar 17, 2024 ·

11 min read

About Our Ads

Who has punched a ticket to the men's NCAA tournament?

Over the next week, bubble teams will try to make their final cases to the tournament selection committee, but 32 conference tournament champions won't have to worry about hearing their names called on Selection Sunday. From March 9 up until hours before the bracket is revealed on March 17, teams across the country will battle to secure an automatic bid to the 68-team tournament by winning their conference tournaments. To read more about how Selection Sunday unfolds and where teams land in the brackets, follow along here .

Here are the teams who have clinched a spot in the 2024 edition of March Madness with Selection Sunday one day away, and the last time they made an appearance in the tournament:

Big Ten: Illinois

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Illinois is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth-straight season after it won the Big Ten tournament championship against Wisconsin. It is the first conference tournament title for the Fighting Illini since 2021, and it will be their 33rd appearance in the big dance.

American Athletic Conference: UAB

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2015.

Alabama-Birmingham steals an NCAA Tournament spot after it won the American Athletic Conference tournament final over Temple in dominant fashion. The Blazers defeated No. 1 seed South Florida in the semifinals and won the conference tournament in their first season in it.

SEC: Auburn

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Auburn has clinched its spot in the NCAA Tournament after winning the SEC tournament championship, beating Florida in the final. The Tigers won their first conference tournament since 2019 and will be in March Madness for the third-straight season.

Ivy League: Yale

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2022.

Yale will return to the NCAA Tournament after a one-year hiatus as it defeated Brown in the Ivy League tournament final on a last-second shot . The Bulldogs will be dancing for the third time in James Jones' tenure.

Atlantic 10 Conference: Duquesne

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:1977.

The celebration for the Dukes almost began a little bit early, but it was a long time coming: Celebratory streamers fired off just a bit early during the Duquesne-VCU Atlantic 10 championship game. The Dukes outlasted the Rams 57-51, securing the A10 and putting on their dancing shoes for the first time since 1977. This will be the Dukes' sixth appearance in the tournament.

WAC: Grand Canyon

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023

Bryce Drew's team captured the WAC title for the third time in four seasons with an 89-74 win over UT Arlington.

SWAC: Grambling

First appearance in NCAA Tournament.

Grambling joins Stetson as this year's second NCAA Tournament newcomer. The Tigers took down three-time defending conference champ Texas Southern 75-66 in the SWAC title game to punch their March Madness ticket.

Big West: Long Beach State

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2012.

Long Beach State announced it is parting ways with longtime coach Dan Monson — but his run isn't over yet. The Beach defeated UC Davis 74-70 in the Big West tournament final to return to March Madness for the first time in a dozen years.

Pac-12: Oregon

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2021.

The Ducks removed themselves from the NCAA Tournament bubble by taking down Colorado, 75-68, in the last conference title game before the Pac-12 disintegrates. Oregon last won the conference tournament in 2019.

Conference USA: Western Kentucky

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2013

The Hilltoppers took down UTEP in the conference tournament final, 78-71, to punch their first ticket to March Madness as members of Conference USA, which they joined in 2014.

ACC: NC State

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

NC State is no stranger to the NCAA Tournament, but it wasn't expected to be in this year's edition. That was until the Wolfpack won five games in five days — taking down Duke, Virginia in OT and North Carolina in succession — to capture the ACC tournament title for the first time since 1987.

MAAC: Saint Peter's

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2022.

Saint Peter's is strutting its way back into the NCAA Tournament after defeating Fairfield 68-63 in the MAAC tournament championship game. The Peacocks will be going to their second NCAA Tournament in three seasons and first since its Cinderella run in 2022 when it made it to the Sweet 16 as a No. 15 seed.

MAC: Akron

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2022.

Akron is going dancing once again after narrowly defeating Kent State in the MAC tournament title game 62-61. It's the second appearance for the Zips in three years, and they'll get a chance to go for their first NCAA Tournament win in team history.

Big East: Connecticut

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

The defending national champions will officially get to defend their crown as Connecticut defeated Marquette 73-57 in the Big East tournament final. It's the Huskies first Big East title since 2011 and first since it returned to the conference in 2020 after being in the American Athletic Conference.

Mountain West: New Mexico

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2014.

New Mexico has gone from bubble team to NCAA Tournament lock after knocking off San Diego State in the Mountain West tournament final 68-61. The Lobos became the first team in conference tournament history to go from playing in the first round to winning the tournament.

Big 12: Iowa State

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Iowa State has secured its spot in the NCAA Tournament after dominating Houston in the Big 12 tournament final 66-41. It's the first Big 12 tournament title since 2019 and caps off a stellar season for the Cyclones with a 27-7 record and should be a No. 2 seed in March Madness.

MEAC: Howard

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Howard will be making its second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance after it took down Delaware State in the MEAC championship game. Despite finishing the non-conference schedule 6-11, the Bison got hot at the end of the season, winning seven of their last eight games to clinch a spot in the big dance.

American East: Vermont

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Vermont is headed back to the NCAA Tournament once against after defeating UMass Lowell in the American East conference title game 66-61. Vermont last won three consecutive American East championships in 2003-05. It's the third consecutive appearance for the Catamounts and seventh conference title since John Becker took over in 2011-12.

Big Sky Conference: Montana State

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Montana State is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season after defeating rival Montana in the final of the Big Sky Conference tournament. This is the first appearance for the Bobcats under first-year head coach Matt Logie. The past two times the Bobcats were in the NCAA Tournament, they were a No. 14 seed.

Patriot League: Colgate

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Make it four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for Colgate after it won the Patriot League tournament for the fourth year in a row, defeating Lehigh in the final. Since 2019, Colgate has been the Patriot League's representative in March Madness, but the Raiders will attempt to win their first tournament game this season.

Southland Conference: McNeese

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2002.

McNeese is headed to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in more than 20 years after defeating Nicholls in the Southland Conference tournament championship game. In former LSU coach Will Wade's first season, the Cowboys went 30-3, joining James Madison as the only teams so far to head into March Madness with at least 30 wins. This will be the third time McNeese is dancing in team history.

Summit League: South Dakota State

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2022.

South Dakota State will make its second NCAA Tournament in three seasons after it defeated Denver in the Summit League tournament title game. The Jackrabbits have now made the NCAA Tournament seven times since 2012, but they will be looking for their first ever March Madness win as they have an 0-6 record in the big dance.

West Coast Conference: Saint Mary's

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

Saint Mary's will be making its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance after defeating Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference championship game for its first conference tournament title since 2019. The Gaels have won a first-round game in four of their last five March Madness appearances.

Horizon League: Oakland

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2011.

Oakland will be dancing for the first time in more than a decade after it won the Horizon League by beating Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the conference tournament final. The Golden Grizzlies are led by the current longest-tenured Div. I men's basketball coach in Greg Kampe, who is in his 40th season after starting the job in 1984. He's now taken Oakland to four NCAA Tournaments.

Coastal Athletic Association: College of Charleston

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

College of Charleston will make its second straight NCAA Tournament appearance after defeating Stony Brook in the CAA tournament final. The Cougars enter March Madness on a 12-game winning streak. Last season, Charleston lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to eventual national runner-up San Diego State.

Northeast Conference: Wagner

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2003.

Wagner will make its first NCAA Tournament appearance in more than 20 years after defeating Merrimack in the Northeast Conference tournament final. The Seahawks entered the conference tournament with a losing record but took out the Northeast Conference's best teams, beating the No. 3, 1 and 2 seeds to clinch a spot in March Madness.

Southern Conference: Samford

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2000.

The Bulldogs are back in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the beginning of the century. The No. 1 seed in the Southern Conference Tournament defeated East Tennessee State for its first conference tournament title in the SoCon since joining in 2008. The 29 wins Samford has achieved this season is the most in school history.

Sun Belt Conference: James Madison

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2013.

The Dukes are NCAA Tournament-bound after defeating Arkansas State in the Sun Belt conference tournament title game to cap off a stellar season. James Madison started the season 14-0 and with a record of 31-3, it currently will enter the tournament with the most wins of any team in Division I this season.

Atlantic Sun Conference: Stetson

First appearance in NCAA Tournament.

Stetson is going dancing for the first time in school history. The Hatters defeated Austin Peay 94-91 on Sunday in the final of Atlantic Sun Tournament to claim the automatic bid. Jalen Blackmon scored a career-high 43 points for the Hatters, the second seed in the A-Sun tournament. Stetson, located between Orlando and Daytona Beach, Florida, improved to 22-12 and will have a chance to make history again with a win in the NCAA Tournament.

Missouri Valley Conference: Drake

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2023.

The Bulldogs are back in the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season and seventh overall after an 84-80 win over Indiana State on Sunday. Tucker DeVries , son of head coach Darian DeVries, scored 27 points to lead Drake, the second seed in the MVC tournament. The Bulldogs earned their 28th victory of the season to match the school record for wins. Drake, located in Des Moines, Iowa, was a No. 12 seed in the 2023 NCAA Tournament and fell to the Miami Hurricanes in the first round.

Big South Conference: Longwood

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2022.

The Lancers made their first NCAA Tournament appearance two seasons ago, though it ended in the first round with an 88-56 loss to Tennessee. Longwood, located it Farmwood, Virginia, earned this second berth in three years by beating UNC Asheville 85-59. In three consecutive days, the Lancers beat the Nos. 4, 1 and 2 seeds in the conference tournament.

Ohio Valley Conference: Morehead State

Last appearance in NCAA Tournament:2021.

Morehead State became the first team to secure a spot in the NCAA Tournament after defeating Little Rock in the Ohio Valley Conference title game 69-55. The Eagles have secured the conference's automatic selection for the second time in four years. This will be their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance overall.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Automatic bids for NCAA Tournament: Who clinched spots in men's field

Mobilize your Website

View Site in Mobile | Classic

Share by: