JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — The High Point University men's and women's basketball teams have locked in the No. 1 seeds in the 2026 Air Force Reserve Big South Conference Championships. This is the fourth time (2013-14, 2023-24 & 2024-25) that both the men's and women's teams have won the regular season titles and enter the tournament as the No. 1 seeds.
 
Johnson City, Tennessee will be the host city for the Championships for the second year in a row, scheduled for Wednesday-Sunday, March 4-8 at 6,500-seat Freedom Hall Civic Center, bringing the tournaments to the "Mountain South". The facility marks the league's seventh overall neutral site for its marquee basketball events in the conference's 41-year history.
 
2026 AIR FORCE RESERVE BIG SOUTH CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Tickets | Championship Central | Men's Bracket | Women's Bracket | Fan Guide
 
The Road to the Championship
The HPU men secured the No. 1 seed –- its third consecutive No. 1 seed in the Big South Tournament and the first league member with back-to-back-to-back top seeds since Winthrop from 2005-2007. The HPU women secured the No. 1 seed –- its fourth No. 1 seed in the Big South Tournament in six years, and the first league member with back-to-back-to-back top seeds since Liberty from 2011-2013.  Both teams will wait to play the winner of the 8/9 seed games, which are held on Wednesday. The women will play in their first game on Thursday at 11:30 a.m., while the men will play Friday at 12:00 p.m. The Big South standings are as follows:
 
MEN'S BASKETBALL
1 – High Point (15-1)
2 – Winthrop (13-3)
3 – Radford (9-7)
4 – UNC Asheville (8-8) – tiebreaker over LWU (swept series 2-0)
5 – Longwood (8-8)
6 – Presbyterian (7-9)
7 – Charleston Southern (6-10)
8 – USC Upstate (5-11)
9 – Gardner-Webb (1-15)

 
First Round – Wednesday, March 4 – ESPN+
Game 1: (8) USC Upstate vs. (9) Gardner-Webb, 7:30pm
 
Quarterfinals – Friday, March 6 – ESPN+
Game 2: (1) High Point vs. 8/9 winner, 12:00pm
Game 3: (2) Winthrop vs (7) Charleston Southern, 2:30pm
Game 4: (4) UNC Asheville vs. (5) Longwood, 6:00pm
Game 5: (3) Radford vs. (6) Presbyterian, 8:30pm
 
Semifinals - Saturday, March 7 – ESPN+
Game 6:  Semifinals – HPU-8/9 Winner vs. AVL-LWU Winner, 12:00pm
Game 7:  Semifinals – WU-CSU Winner vs. RAD-PC Winner, 2:30pm
 
Championship - Sunday, March 8 – ESPN2
Game 8:  Championship – Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 12:00pm


 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
1 – High Point (13-3)
2 – Radford (12-4)
3 – Longwood (11-5)
4 – Gardner-Webb (9-7)
5 – Winthrop (7-9) – gets tiebreaker over AVL due to 1-1 vs. Longwood (AVL 0-2)
6 – UNC Asheville (7-9)
7 – Charleston Southern (6-10) – gets tiebreaker over UPST due to 2-0 head-to-head
8 – USC Upstate (6-10)
9 – Presbyterian (1-15)
 
First Round – Wednesday, March 4 – ESPN+
Game 1: (8) USC Upstate vs. (9) Presbyterian, 5:00pm
 
Quarterfinals – Thursday, March 5 – ESPN+ 
Game 2: (1) High Point vs. 8/9 winner, 11:30am (Education Day presented by Food City)
Game 3: (4) Gardner-Webb vs. (5) Winthrop, 2:00pm
Game 4: (2) Radford vs. (7) Charleston Southern, 6:00pm
Game 5: (3) Longwood vs. (6) UNC Asheville, 8:30pm
 
Semifinals - Saturday, March 7 – ESPN+
Game 6:  Semifinals – Game 2 winner vs. Game 3 winner, 6:00pm
Game 7:  Semifinals – Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 8:30pm
 
Championship - Sunday, March 8 – ESPN2
Game 8:  Championship – Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 6:00pm

The 2026 Air Force Reserve Big South Women's Basketball Championship will be televised on ESPN+ Wednesday-through-Saturday, while Sunday's Championship game will air live on ESPN2 for the third consecutive year.  The Big South's Tournament champion receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. 
 
FAN INFORMATION
Don't miss out on the chance to cheer on the Panthers as they make a run for the Big South title in Johnson City! For more information on tickets, parking, clear bag policy, restaurants, hotels, and things to do in Johnson City, click HERE!