The 2026 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament, popularly referred to as "Starch Madness", was the postseason tournament for the Big Sky Conference, held March 7–11, 2026, at Idaho Central Arena in Boise, Idaho. It was the 51st edition of the tournament, which debuted in 1976. The winner, seventh-seeded Idaho, received the Big Sky's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. It was the Vandals' fifth NCAA appearance, and their first in 36 years.
Seeds The ten teams were seeded by conference record, with a tiebreaker system for identical conference records. The top six teams received a first-round bye. SeedSchoolRecordTiebreaker1Portland State13–52Montana State12–63Eastern Washington11–74Montana10–82–0 vs. Portland State5Northern Colorado10–81–1 vs. Portland State6Weber State10–80–2 vs. Portland State7Idaho9–98Sacramento State6–129Idaho State5–1310Northern Arizona4–14
Schedule SessionGameTimeMatchupScoreTelevisionFirst round – Saturday, March 7115:30 p.m.No. 9 Idaho State vs. No. 10 Northern Arizona73–65ESPN+28:00 p.m.No. 7 Idaho vs. No. 8 Sacramento State68–45Quarterfinals – Sunday, March 8235:30 p.m.No. 1 Portland State vs. No. 9 Idaho State85–78ESPN+48:00 p.m.No. 2 Montana State vs. No. 7 Idaho74–78Quarterfinals – Monday, March 9355:30 p.m.No. 4 Montana vs. No. 5 Northern Colorado95–89ESPN+68:00 p.m. No. 3 Eastern Washington vs. No. 6 Weber State84–79Semifinals – Tuesday, March 10477:00 p.m.No. 1 Portland State vs. No. 4 Montana72–75ESPNU89:30 p.m.No. 3 Eastern Washington vs. No. 7 Idaho68–81ESPN2Championship game – Wednesday, March 11599:30 p.m.No. 4 Montana vs. No. 7 Idaho66–77ESPN2 Game times in MT. Rankings denote tournament seeding.
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Awards and Honors All-Tournament Team Player Team Money Williams Montana Kolton Mitchell Idaho Jackson Rasmussen Isaiah Brickner Terri Miller Jr. Portland State Alton Hamilton IV Eastern Washington
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