Everything you need to know and how to watch Saturday's Elite Eight action in the 2026 NCAA Tournament
By Cameron Salerno Mar 27, 2026 at 3:46 pm ET • 3 min read 
Imagn Images The first two spots in the 2026 Final Four will be up for grabs on Saturday, with regional finals taking place in the West and South. Three of the four teams (Illinois, Iowa and Arizona) are all seeking a long-awaited return to the Final Four, while Purdue can make it two trips in three seasons with an upset win over the Wildcats.
No. 9 seed Iowa has been on one of the most unlikely runs among all teams in the NCAA Tournament under first-year coach Ben McCollum. The Hawkeyes face No. 3 seed Illinois (6:09 p.m., TBS, March Madness Live) in the first game of the day.
Iowa hasn't been to the Final Four since 1980, while Illinois could punch its ticket to the final weekend of the college basketball season for the first time since 2005.
Purdue survives upset bid from Texas after star Trey Kaufman-Renn's game-winning tip-in with 0.7 seconds left Cameron Salerno
In San Jose, the second ticket to the Final Four will be on the line when No. 1 seed Arizona faces No. 2 seed Purdue (8:49 p.m., TBS, March Madness Live). The Wildcats haven't been to the Final Four since 2001, while Purdue reached the national title game in 2024 before losing to UConn.
Let's get into some of the big storylines to know for Saturday's Elite Eight action.
Can Purdue match Arizona's physicality?
Arizona's only real weakness is a lack of 3-point shooting. Still, the Wildcats have found ways to advance in the NCAA Tournament -- and win throughout the regular season -- because of their size and physicality down low. Arizona, as a team, scored more points in the paint (58) than Houston did total points (55) during its loss to Illinois in the Sweet 16.
Purdue will have a tall task -- literally and figuratively -- going up against Arizona's stout frontcourt of Koa Peat, Ivan Kharchenkov and Motiejus Krivas. Purdue, as a team, has the highest adjusted offensive efficiency rating in college basketball, according to KenPom.
The Boilermakers also force turnovers and create second chances on the glass. Purdue is also a better 3-point shooting team than Arizona. Still, this game will come down to which team is the more physical. On paper, Arizona appears to have the advantage.
Ben McCollum's impressive resume in elimination games
McCollum has only coached at the Division I level for two seasons, but he's already left his mark. Still, to get a better picture of how good McCollum has been in a win-or-go-home scenario, you have to go back to his time as the coach at Northwest Missouri State. At the Division II level, McCollum went 32-7 in the tournament and won four national titles with the program before becoming the coach at Drake last season.
He helped reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1999 and now has the Hawkeyes just one win away from playing in the Final Four. McCollum is 4-1 at the Division I level in the NCAA Tournament, with three wins (and counting this season) and one win at Drake. Simply put: McCollum is a winner, and he's proven to be one of the best coaches at the college level when it counts.
Andrej Stojaković will be Illinois' X-Factor
Illinois has a very deep roster. It's just one of the reasons why the program is on the doorstep of its first Final Four appearance in 21 years. The Fighting Illini are also the tallest team in Division I, per KenPom. Still, one of the secrets to Illinois' hot stretch is Stojaković coming off the bench. He started 21 games this season for Illinois but has been coming off the bench lately, and it's clearly worked.
The son of former NBA All-Star Peja Stojaković plays a different style of basketball than his father, who was one of the best sharpshooters in the association. Stojaković attempts only 2.6 3-pointers per game, which is a career low, but he is still averaging 13.5 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Stojaković scored 21 points off the bench against VCU in the second round and contributed 13 in 28 minutes against Houston. His new role makes Illinois even more dangerous.
Saturday's NCAA Tournament schedule
Games played at Toyota Center (Houston) and SAP Center (San Jose)
Time (ET)GameTV / Stream6:09 p.m.(9) Iowa vs. (3) Illinois || Houston Kevin Harlan / Robbie Hummel, Stan Van Gundy // Lauren ShehadiTBS (watch live)8:49 p.m. (2) Purdue vs. (1) Arizona || San Jose Brian Anderson / Jim Jackson // Allie LaForceTBS (watch live) Join the Conversation comments
