# 2021 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament qualifying teams

This is a list of qualifying teams for the 2021 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. A total of 68 teams participated in the tournament. 31 of the teams earned automatic bids by winning their conference tournaments; normally, this would be 32 teams, but the Ivy League cancelled play for this season. The remaining 37 (normally 36) teams were granted at-large bids, which were extended by the NCAA Selection Committee. All teams were seeded 1 to 16 within their regions, while the Selection Committee seeded the entire field from 1 to 68.

## Automatic bids

Seeds listed were seeds within the conference tournaments. Conference championship runners-up in bold face were given at-large berths.
Automatic bids :
| Qualifying school | Record (Conf.) | Seed | Last app. | Tournament | Runner-up | Record (Conf.) | Seed |
| Liberty | 23–5 (11–2) | 1 | 2019 | Atlantic Sun | North Alabama | 13–11 (7–8) | 5 |
| Morehead State | 23–7 (17–3) | 2 | 2011 | Ohio Valley | Belmont | 26–4 (18–2) | 1 |
| Winthrop | 23–1 (17–1) | 1 | 2017 | Big South | Campbell | 17–10 (11–6) | 3 |
| Loyola | 24–4 (16–2) | 1 | 2018 | Missouri Valley | Drake | 25–4 (15–3) | 2 |
| UNC Greensboro | 21–8 (13–5) | 1 | 2018 | Southern | Mercer | 18–11 (8–9) | 7 |
| Appalachian State | 17–11 (7–8) | E4 | 2000 | Sun Belt | Georgia State | 16–6 (8–4) | E1 |
| Cleveland State | 19–7 (16–4) | 1 | 2009 | Horizon | Oakland | 12–8 (10–10) | 3 |
| Drexel | 12–7 (4–5) | 6 | 1996 | CAA | Elon | 10–9 (4–7) | 8 |
| Mount St. Mary's | 12–10 (9–7) | 4 | 2017 | Northeast | Bryant | 15–6 (10–4) | 2 |
| Gonzaga | 26–0 (15–0) | 1 | 2019 | WCC | BYU | 20–6 (10–3) | 2 |
| Oral Roberts | 16–10 (10–5) | 4 | 2008 | Summit | North Dakota State | 15–2 (11–5) | 3 |
| Hartford | 15–8 (8–6) | 4 | Never | America East | UMass Lowell | 11–12 (7–8) | 6 |
| Norfolk State | 16–7 (8–4) | N2 | 2012 | MEAC | Morgan State | 14–8 (7–5) | N3 |
| Iona | 10–5 (6–3) | 9 | 2019 | MAAC | Fairfield | 9–16 (7–11) | 7 |
| San Diego State | 21–4 (14–3) | 1 | 2018 | Mountain West | Utah State | 19–7 (15–4) | 2 |
| Texas Southern | 13–8 (10–3) | 3 | 2018 | SWAC | Prairie View A&M | 15–4 (13–0) | 1 |
| Texas | 18–7 (11–6) | 3 | 2018 | Big 12 | Oklahoma State | 20–7 (11–7) | 5 |
| Georgetown | 11–12 (7–9) | 8 | 2015 | Big East | Creighton | 19–7 (14–6) | 2 |
| Ohio | 16–7 (9–5) | 5 | 2012 | MAC | Buffalo | 16–7 (12–5) | 2 |
| Eastern Washington | 13–7 (12–3) | 2 | 2015 | Big Sky | Montana State | 11–9 (8–6) | 5 |
| Georgia Tech | 17–8 (11–6) | 4 | 2010 | ACC | Florida State | 16–6 (11–4) | 2 |
| North Texas | 15–9 (9–5) | W3 | 2010 | Conference USA | Western Kentucky | 20–6 (11–3) | E1 |
| Abilene Christian | 21–4 (13–2) | 2 | 2019 | Southland | Nicholls | 17–6 (14–2) | 1 |
| Grand Canyon | 17–6 (9–3) | 1 | Never | WAC | New Mexico State | 12–8 (7–6) | 3 |
| Oregon State | 17–12 (10-10) | 5 | 2016 | Pac-12 | Colorado | 22–8 (14–6) | 3 |
| UC Santa Barbara | 22–4 (13–3) | 1 | 2011 | Big West | UC Irvine | 18–9 (10–4) | 2 |
| Colgate | 13–1 (11–1) | 2 | 2019 | Patriot | Loyola | 6–10 (4–10) | 9 |
| Alabama | 23–6 (16–2) | 1 | 2018 | SEC | LSU | 18–8 (11–6) | 3 |
| St. Bonaventure | 15–4 (11–4) | 1 | 2018 | Atlantic 10 | VCU | 19–6 (10–4) | 2 |
| Houston | 23–3 (14–3) | 2 | 2019 | American | Cincinnati | 12–10 (8–6) | 5 |
| Illinois | 22–6 (16–4) | 2 | 2013 | Big Ten | Ohio State | 21–8 (12–8) | 5 |

## At-large bids

| School | Conference | Appearance | Last bid |
| Arkansas | SEC | 33rd | 2018 |
| Baylor | Big 12 | 13th | 2019 |
| BYU | WCC | 30th | 2015 |
| Clemson | ACC | 12th | 2018 |
| Colorado | Pac-12 | 15th | 2016 |
| Creighton | Big East | 22nd | 2018 |
| Drake | Missouri Valley | 5th | 2008 |
| Florida | SEC | 21st | 2019 |
| Florida State | ACC | 18th | 2019 |
| Iowa | Big Ten | 27th | 2019 |
| Kansas | Big 12 | 49th | 2019 |
| LSU | SEC | 23rd | 2019 |
| Maryland | Big Ten | 28th | 2019 |
| Michigan | Big Ten | 27th | 2019 |
| Michigan State | Big Ten | 34th | 2019 |
| Missouri | SEC | 28th | 2018 |
| North Carolina | ACC | 51st | 2019 |
| Ohio State | Big Ten | 30th | 2019 |
| Oklahoma | Big 12 | 33rd | 2019 |
| Oklahoma State | Big 12 | 29th | 2017 |
| Oregon | Pac-12 | 17th | 2019 |
| Purdue | Big Ten | 31st | 2019 |
| Rutgers | Big Ten | 7th | 1991 |
| Syracuse | ACC | 41st | 2019 |
| Tennessee | SEC | 23rd | 2019 |
| Texas Tech | Big 12 | 17th | 2019 |
| UCLA | Pac-12 | 48th | 2018 |
| UConn | Big East | 34th | 2016 |
| USC | Pac-12 | 18th | 2017 |
| Utah State | Mountain West | 22nd | 2019 |
| VCU | Atlantic 10 | 18th | 2019 |
| Villanova | Big East | 40th | 2019 |
| Virginia | ACC | 24th | 2019 |
| Virginia Tech | ACC | 12th | 2019 |
| West Virginia | Big 12 | 30th | 2018 |
| Wichita State | American | 16th | 2018 |
| Wisconsin | Big Ten | 25th | 2019 |

## Listed by region and seeding

The tournament seeds and regions were determined through the NCAA basketball tournament selection process.
In contrast to previous years, the S-Curve used to establish overall seeds will also be used as primary determinant of the tournament bracket; this was made possible by the relatively condensed locations of this year's tournament making geographic concerns irrelevant. However, rules that can modify pairings to avoid early rematches and to distribute top conference representatives to different regions will remain in effect.
West Regional :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Overall Seed | Berth type |
| 1 | Gonzaga | West Coast | 26–0 | 1 | Automatic |
| 2 | Iowa | Big Ten | 21–8 | 7 | At-Large |
| 3 | Kansas | Big 12 | 20–8 | 12 | At-Large |
| 4 | Virginia | ACC | 18–6 | 16 | At-Large |
| 5 | Creighton | Big East | 20–8 | 17 | At-Large |
| 6 | USC | Pac-12 | 22–7 | 21 | At-Large |
| 7 | Oregon | Pac-12 | 20–6 | 25 | At-Large |
| 8 | Oklahoma | Big 12 | 15–10 | 32 | At-Large |
| 9 | Missouri | SEC | 16–9 | 33 | At-Large |
| 10 | VCU | Atlantic 10 | 19–7 | 38 | At-Large |
| 11* | Wichita State | American | 16–5 | 45 | At-Large |
| 11* | Drake | Missouri Valley | 25–4 | 48 | At-Large |
| 12 | UC Santa Barbara | Big West | 22–4 | 50 | Automatic |
| 13 | Ohio | MAC | 16–7 | 51 | Automatic |
| 14 | Eastern Washington | Big Sky | 16–7 | 58 | Automatic |
| 15 | Grand Canyon | WAC | 17–6 | 59 | Automatic |
| 16* | Norfolk State | MEAC | 16–7 | 67 | Automatic |
| 16* | Appalachian State | Sun Belt | 17–11 | 68 | Automatic |
East Regional :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Overall Seed | Berth type |
| 1 | Michigan | Big Ten | 20–4 | 4 | At-Large |
| 2 | Alabama | SEC | 24–6 | 5 | Automatic |
| 3 | Texas | Big 12 | 19–7 | 11 | Automatic |
| 4 | Florida State | ACC | 16–6 | 13 | At-Large |
| 5 | Colorado | Pac-12 | 22–8 | 20 | At-Large |
| 6 | BYU | West Coast | 20–6 | 23 | At-Large |
| 7 | UConn | Big East | 15–7 | 26 | At-Large |
| 8 | LSU | SEC | 18–9 | 29 | At-Large |
| 9 | St. Bonaventure | Atlantic 10 | 16–4 | 39 | Automatic |
| 10 | Maryland | Big Ten | 16–13 | 36 | At-Large |
| 11* | Michigan State | Big Ten | 15–12 | 43 | At-Large |
| 11* | UCLA | Pac-12 | 17–9 | 44 | At-Large |
| 12 | Georgetown | Big East | 13–12 | 47 | Automatic |
| 13 | UNC Greensboro | Southern | 21–8 | 54 | Automatic |
| 14 | Abilene Christian | Southland | 23–4 | 55 | Automatic |
| 15 | Iona | MAAC | 12–5 | 62 | Automatic |
| 16* | Mount St. Mary's | Northeast | 12–10 | 65 | Automatic |
| 16* | Texas Southern | SWAC | 16–8 | 66 | Automatic |
South Regional :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Overall Seed | Berth type |
| 1 | Baylor | Big 12 | 22–2 | 2 | At-Large |
| 2 | Ohio State | Big Ten | 21–9 | 6 | At-Large |
| 3 | Arkansas | SEC | 22–6 | 9 | At-Large |
| 4 | Purdue | Big Ten | 18–9 | 14 | At-Large |
| 5 | Villanova | Big East | 16–6 | 18 | At-Large |
| 6 | Texas Tech | Big 12 | 17–10 | 22 | At-Large |
| 7 | Florida | SEC | 14–9 | 28 | At-Large |
| 8 | North Carolina | ACC | 18–10 | 31 | At-Large |
| 9 | Wisconsin | Big Ten | 17–12 | 35 | At-Large |
| 10 | Virginia Tech | ACC | 15–6 | 37 | At-Large |
| 11 | Utah State | Mountain West | 20–8 | 42 | At-Large |
| 12 | Winthrop | Big South | 23–1 | 49 | Automatic |
| 13 | North Texas | C-USA | 17–9 | 52 | Automatic |
| 14 | Colgate | Patriot | 14–1 | 57 | Automatic |
| 15 | Oral Roberts | Summit | 16–10 | 61 | Automatic |
| 16 | Hartford | America East | 15–8 | 64 | Automatic |
Midwest Regional :
| Seed | School | Conference | Record | Overall Seed | Berth type |
| 1 | Illinois | Big Ten | 23–6 | 3 | Automatic |
| 2 | Houston | American | 24–3 | 8 | Automatic |
| 3 | West Virginia | Big 12 | 18–9 | 10 | At-Large |
| 4 | Oklahoma State | Big 12 | 20–8 | 15 | At-Large |
| 5 | Tennessee | SEC | 18–8 | 19 | At-Large |
| 6 | San Diego State | Mountain West | 23–4 | 24 | Automatic |
| 7 | Clemson | ACC | 16–7 | 27 | At-Large |
| 8 | Loyola Chicago | Missouri Valley | 24–4 | 30 | Automatic |
| 9 | Georgia Tech | ACC | 17–8 | 34 | Automatic |
| 10 | Rutgers | Big Ten | 15–11 | 40 | At-Large |
| 11 | Syracuse | ACC | 16–9 | 41 | At-Large |
| 12 | Oregon State | Pac-12 | 17–12 | 46 | Automatic |
| 13 | Liberty | Atlantic Sun | 23–5 | 53 | Automatic |
| 14 | Morehead State | Ohio Valley | 23–7 | 56 | Automatic |
| 15 | Cleveland State | Horizon | 19–7 | 60 | Automatic |
| 16 | Drexel | Colonial | 12–7 | 63 | Automatic |
*See First Four

## Conferences with multiple bids

| Bids | Conference | Schools |
| 9 | Big Ten | Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Rutgers |
| 7 | ACC | Georgia Tech, Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech |
| 7 | Big 12 | Texas, Baylor, Kansas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, West Virginia |
| 6 | SEC | Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, LSU, Missouri, Tennessee |
| 5 | Pac-12 | Oregon State, Colorado, Oregon, UCLA, USC |
| 4 | Big East | Georgetown, Creighton, UConn, Villanova |
| 2 | American | Houston, Wichita State |
| 2 | Atlantic 10 | St. Bonaventure, VCU |
| 2 | Missouri Valley | Loyola, Drake |
| 2 | Mountain West | San Diego State, Utah State |
| 2 | WCC | Gonzaga, BYU |

## Bids by state

| Bids | State | School(s) |
| 1 | Alabama | Alabama |
| 1 | Arizona | Grand Canyon |
| 1 | Arkansas | Arkansas |
| 4 | California | San Diego State, UC Santa Barbara, UCLA, USC |
| 2 | Connecticut | Hartford, UConn |
| 1 | Colorado | Colorado |
| 2 | Florida | Florida, Florida State |
| 1 | Georgia | Georgia Tech |
| 1 | Indiana | Purdue |
| 2 | Illinois | Illinois, Loyola |
| 2 | Iowa | Drake, Iowa |
| 1 | Louisiana | LSU |
| 2 | Kansas | Kansas, Wichita State |
| 1 | Kentucky | Morehead State |
| 2 | Maryland | Maryland, Mount St. Mary's |
| 2 | Michigan | Michigan, Michigan State |
| 1 | Missouri | Missouri |
| 1 | Nebraska | Creighton |
| 1 | New Jersey | Rutgers |
| 4 | New York | Colgate, Iona, St. Bonaventure, Syracuse |
| 3 | North Carolina | Appalachian State, North Carolina, UNC Greensboro |
| 3 | Ohio | Cleveland State, Ohio, Ohio State |
| 3 | Oklahoma | Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oral Roberts |
| 2 | Oregon | Oregon, Oregon State |
| 2 | Pennsylvania | Drexel, Villanova |
| 2 | South Carolina | Clemson, Winthrop |
| 1 | Tennessee | Tennessee |
| 7 | Texas | Abilene Christian, Baylor, Houston, North Texas, Texas, Texas Southern, Texas Tech |
| 2 | Utah | BYU, Utah State |
| 5 | Virginia | Liberty, Norfolk State, VCU, Virginia, Virginia Tech |
| 2 | Washington | Eastern Washington, Gonzaga |
| 1 | West Virginia | West Virginia |
| 1 | Wisconsin | Wisconsin |
| 1 | Washington, D.C. | Georgetown |