INDIANAPOLIS – The University of Utah and Salt Lake City is set to host a pair of NCAA Championships for the 2023-26 cycle the governing body announced late Wednesday morning. The U is set to host the Division I Men's Basketball Tournament and Division I Women's Gymnastics Regionals.
 
"We couldn't be more excited to host these championships and showcase to the country what Salt Lake City and the state of Utah has to offer," Utah Director of Athletics Mark Harlan said. "A huge thank you to Larry H. Miller Sports and Entertainment, Utah Jazz and Visit Salt Lake for their unwavering support to make this all possible and bring the championships to our city and state."  
 
Utah Athletics, thanks to its partnership with the Utah Jazz, will once again play host to the first and second rounds of the Division I NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament in 2024 and welcome participants to Vivint SMART Home Arena.
 
The U has hosted NCAA March Madness on four occasions at Vivint with the West Regionals being staged in 2010 – which saw Butler advancing to the Final Four. The first and second rounds were also staged at Vivint in 2013, 2017 and 2019. Overall, this will be the 17th time that Utah has hosted the first and second rounds with 13 of which occurring inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center.
 
The Utes last hosted the first and second rounds in 2019, which saw the fifth-seeded Auburn Tigers take on the 12th-seeded New Mexico State Aggies in an exhilarating first round game that came down to the last second. Auburn went on to win the Midwest Regional and advance to the Final Four.
 
Utah was also awarded the bid to host the NCCA Women's Gymnastics Regional in 2025 for the 16th time in school history. The Jon M. Huntsman Center will once again welcome some of the nation's top gymnasts in 2021 before welcoming them back in 2025. The Huntsman Center has served as a regional gymnastics venue in 1984, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2010, 2012 and most recently in 2018.