*Published on sjsuspartans.com on 10/14/2020
SAN JOSE, Calif. – San José State University will host a pair of NCAA postseason events in the near future. The NCAA announced on Wednesday that SJSU has been selected to host the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Regional Championship at SAP Center at San Jose. The Spartans will also serve as the host institution for the 2023 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Regional Championship held at The Institute in Morgan Hill, Calif.
“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to host two tremendous NCAA Championship events,” San José State Director of Athletics Marie Tuite said. “We are excited to work alongside the great staffs at the SAP Center and the San Jose Sports Authority to host what should be another outstanding basketball event. We also look forward to hosting the NCAA Men’s Golf Regional in 2023 in what will be another tremendous postseason opportunity for our student-athletes, coaches, staff and local community.”
This marks the fourth time that the Spartans have hosted the NCAA Tournament at SAP Center. SJSU hosted the West Regionals in 1997 and 2007, and was host for the first and second rounds in 2010. Overall, this will be the ninth time that the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament has been held at SAP Center with the West Coast Conference slated to host the first and second rounds in 2021.
“SAP Center at San Jose is honored to host the 2026 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship,” said Jonathan Becher, President of Sharks Sports & Entertainment. “As a six-time host, we are excited to put on another outstanding event for the student athletes and to showcase our world-class venue and City to tens of thousands of visitors from around the country. We look forward to working with our long-time partners at San José State University and the San Jose Sports Authority.”
San Jose State will once again partner with the San Jose Sports Authority and the SAP Center, home of the San Jose Sharks, to put on the event.
“We are once again honored to have been selected by the NCAA and the Men’s Basketball Committee to host the Regionals of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship in 2026. This will mark the ninth time San Jose has been selected to host March Madness, truly a testament to our City and the college basketball support of our region”, said San Jose Sports Authority Executive Director John Poch. “Together with our partners at San Jose State University and the SAP Center at San Jose, we are excited to once again present a world-class experience for the participating student-athletes and everyone attending the championship in San Jose.”
Additionally, San José State has also been selected to host the 2023 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Regional Championship. It will be the first time since 1991 that the Spartans have hosted a regional event.
“We are thrilled, absolutely thrilled that we get to host and we’re excited beyond belief to work with the people at The Institute,” San Jose State men’s golf head coach John Kennaday said. “The Institute is truly a very, very special place and we couldn’t be happier to have this opportunity.”
This is the third time for this specific NCAA championship bid process, which created the largest host site announcement ever, spanning 86 championships across a four-year cycle. Previously, selection announcements varied by sport. This process now gives the NCAA and host sites more time to plan each championship experience.
Bidding for 86 of 90 NCAA championships began in August 2019 and more than 3,000 bid applications were ultimately submitted. Each sport committee, per division, selected the host sites it believed would provide the ultimate experience for the respective student-athletes, resulting in more than 450 total championship event sites being awarded. More than 54,000 student-athletes compete in NCAA championships each year. The four championships not included in the process due to preexisting site arrangements are: Division I baseball, Division I football, Division I softball and Division III women’s ice hockey.