Small College Basketball and founder, John McCarthy, announced on Sunday the 2026 field for the annual Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic to be hosted at the George W. Jenkins Field House on the campus of Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. The Black Hills State University men’s basketball program will be making their first-ever appearance in the high-profile event, taking the court as one of five teams from last month’s NCAA Division II Elite Eight. BHSU will be coming off a 30-5 (17-3 RMAC) season in which they matched a school-record win total, won the RMAC regular season and conference tournaments, and reached their third Elite Eight in the last five seasons.
The Yellow Jackets will begin the 2026-27 season on Saturday, November 7, against the reigning national runner-up, Lander University, in a 3:30 p.m. ET match-up. The Bearcats are coming off a school-record 30-win campaign, going 30-6 (17-3 Peach Belt Conference) as they won the conference regular season and tournament championships. The Green & Gold then close the weekend on Sunday, November 8, at 5:45 p.m. ET against the host school of FSC, taking on the Mocs as they will be coming off a 22-11 (13-7 Sunshine Conference) season that ended in the program’s 35th NCAA Tournament appearance. It will be Black Hills State’s first-ever match-up against Lander and Florida Southern on the hardwood.
Joining Black Hills State, Lander, and Florida Southern in the season-opening classic are defending national champions, Gannon, Elite Eight qualifiers Oklahoma Baptist and Cal State East Bay, and NCAA Tournament qualifiers Central Missouri, West Liberty, Washburn, and Point Loma.
More information regarding tickets and the complete 2026-27 schedule will be available at a later time.
