March 16, 2026 鈥� Jesuit March Madness is here!
Six basketball teams from five different Jesuit colleges and universities will be participating in the 2026 women鈥檚 and men鈥檚 NCAA Division I tournaments.
Below, find info about each team, an interesting fact about each college, and one of our episodes of the AMDG podcast that features a guest connected to the institution.
Women
Fairfield University Stags 鈥� No. 11 seed, Fort Worth 1 Regional
See you Saturday!
馃馃弨馃
鈥� Fairfield Women鈥檚 Basketball (@StagsWBball)
First Round Opponent: Notre Dame
Record: 28鈥�4 overall, 19鈥�1 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC Champion)
Leading Scorer: Kaety L’Amoreaux 鈥� 17.6 points per game (ppg)
Interesting Fairfield Fact: Fairfield has developed a distinctive access-focused academic model through Fairfield Bellarmine, its two-year associate鈥檚 degree program, which combines liberal-arts coursework with substantial wraparound support such as mentoring, transportation assistance, meals and technology support.
Fr. Jeffrey von Arx, SJ, served as the president of Fairfield University from 2004 until 2016.
Gonzaga University Bulldogs 鈥� No. 12 seed, Sacramento 2 Regional
First Round Opponent: Ole Miss
Record: 24鈥�9 overall, 14鈥�4 in the West Coast Conference (WCC Champion)
Leading Scorer: Lauren Whittaker 鈥� 19.4 ppg
Interesting Gonzaga Fact: One of Gonzaga鈥檚 most distinctive academic traditions is Gonzaga in Florence, a long-running study-abroad program established in 1963 that has become a major part of the university鈥檚 international and humanistic formation.
Fr. Bryan Pham, SJ, is the chaplain of the women鈥檚 and men鈥檚 basketball teams at Gonzaga, where he鈥檚 also a professor in the law school.
College of the Holy Cross Crusaders 鈥� No. 15 seed, Fort Worth 3 Regional
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First Round Opponent: Michigan
Record: 23鈥�9 overall, 14鈥�4 in the Patriot League (Patriot League Champion)
Leading Scorer: Meg Cahalan 鈥� 15.3 ppg
Interesting Holy Cross Fact: The college鈥檚 Montserrat first-year program, required for all freshmen, intentionally integrates academics, residential life and cocurricular formation as a unified introduction to the liberal arts.
Vincent Rougeau is the first lay president in the history of the College of the Holy Cross, a role he has held since 2021.
Men
Gonzaga University Bulldogs 鈥� No. 3 seed, West Region
First Round Opponent: Kennesaw State
Record: 30鈥�3 overall, 16鈥�2 in the West Coast Conference (WCC Champion)
Leading Scorer: Graham Ike 鈥� 19.7 ppg
Exclusive club. 2,500 points.
鈥� Gonzaga Basketball (@ZagMBB)
Saint Louis University Billikens 鈥� No. 9 seed, Midwest Region
First Round Opponent: Georgia
Record: 28鈥�5 overall, 15鈥�3 in the Atlantic 10 (At-Large Selection)
Leading Scorer: Robbie Avila 鈥� 12.9 ppg
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Interesting SLU Fact: SLU was the first university west of the Mississippi River, making it a landmark institution in the history of American higher education.
Dr. Eleonore Stump, Ph.D., is the Robert J. Henle, S.J., professor of philosophy at Saint Louis University, where she has taught since 1992.
Santa Clara University Broncos 鈥� No. 10 seed, Midwest Region
First Round Opponent: Kentucky
Record: 26鈥�8 overall, 15鈥�3 in the WCC (At-Large Selection)
Leading Scorer: Christian Hammond 鈥� 15.8 ppg
Interesting Santa Clara Fact: SCU is California鈥檚 oldest operating institution of higher learning, and its campus is built around Mission Santa Clara de As铆s, founded in 1777.
Fr. Matt Carnes, SJ, is the vice president for mission and ministry at Santa Clara University.
