Ayrton Oneill
The Big 12 Conference is a group of 16 universities that compete in the NCAA Division I level. The conference was formed in 1994 and began conference play in 1996. The Big 12 Conference sponsors championships in 25 sports, including men's and women's basketball. The first conference championship was awarded to Oklahoma in softball in 1996. Since its inception, the Big 12 men's basketball tournament has been held every year and is a single-elimination tournament of four rounds. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship tournament. Kansas has been the most successful team, winning 12 out of 25 postseason titles. The Big 12 Conference has undergone several format changes, including the elimination and reinstatement of the Big 12 Championship game.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Year of Inception | 1996 |
| Number of Universities | 16 |
| Original Number of Universities | 12 |
| Number of Sports | 25 |
| Number of Men's Sports | 10 |
| Number of Women's Sports | 15 |
| Number of Tournament Titles Won by Iowa State or Kansas | 18 |
| Number of Tournament Titles Won by Other Big 12 Schools | 6 |
| Number of Post-Season Titles Won by Kansas | 12 |
| Number of Championship Games Played by Kansas | 15 |
| Location of 2025 Tournament | Kansas City |
| Winner of 2025 Tournament | Houston |
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What You'll Learn
Who won the first Big 12 Conference championship?
The Big 12 Conference was created in 1996 from the merger of the Big Eight Conference and four teams from the Southwest Conference. The first championship game was played after the 1996 regular season. From its inception in 1996 until 2010, the Big 12 Championship Game was contested by the winners of the conference's two six-team divisions, the North and the South. The first Big 12 Conference championship was won by the North Division champion in 1996, although the specific team is not known.
The North and South Division champions continued to face off in the championship game each year until 2003, with the North champion winning in every odd-numbered year and the South champion winning in every even-numbered year. In 2003, the North Division champion Kansas State upset the Oklahoma Sooners by a score of 35-7.
Following the 2010 season, the Big 12 Conference eliminated the championship game due to the departure of Nebraska and Colorado, which left the conference with only ten members. From 2011 to 2016, the conference champion was determined through a round-robin format, with the team having the best conference record winning the title.
The Big 12 Conference reinstated the championship game in 2017, now featuring the two teams with the best conference records regardless of division.
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How many members did the Big 12 Conference have initially?
The Big 12 Conference initially had 12 members, as its name suggests. It was founded in February 1994 when all eight members of the former Big Eight Conference joined forces with half the members of the former Southwest Conference (Baylor, Texas, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech). The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It is headquartered in Irving, Texas, and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).
The conference expanded in 1996 when four Texas universities (Texas, Baylor, Texas Tech, and Texas A&M University) left the Southwest Conference and joined the Big 8. As the Big 12, it was split into two six-team divisions, one of which consisted of the two Oklahoma and four Texas schools.
Over the years, the membership of the conference has changed several times. In 2011, Colorado and Nebraska left the conference to join the Pac-12 and Big Ten, respectively. In 2012, Missouri and Texas A&M followed suit, departing for the Southeastern Conference, and TCU and West Virginia joined. BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF joined the conference for the 2023–2024 season, and the conference expanded to 14 members. In 2024, Texas and Oklahoma left the conference and were replaced by Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah, bringing the total number of members to 16.
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Which two schools have won the most tournament titles?
The Big 12 men's basketball tournament, a single-elimination tournament that began in 1997, has been dominated by two schools in particular: Iowa State and Kansas. Together, they have won 18 out of 27 titles.
Kansas has been the most successful, winning 12 out of 25 Big 12 postseason titles and appearing in 15 championship games. In 2021, the Texas Longhorns broke the streak by winning the championship game against Oklahoma State.
Iowa State has also had a strong showing in the tournament, although the exact number of their wins is not specified. Between 2005 and 2019, no current Big 12 member besides Iowa State or Kansas won the tournament.
The Big 12 Conference includes 16 universities competing in the NCAA Division I level. The conference was formed in 1994 but did not start conference play until 1996. The tournament has been held annually since the first full basketball season in 1997 and has been hosted in various cities, including Kansas City, Oklahoma City, and Kemper Arena in Missouri.
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Where is the Big 12 men's basketball tournament held?
The Big 12 men's basketball tournament is a single-elimination tournament that has been held since 1997. It features a format where the top six seeds receive byes in the first round. The tournament is currently held at the T-Mobile Center (formerly known as the Sprint Center) in Kansas City, Missouri, and will remain there until 2031. Kansas City has hosted the tournament more than any other city, with 2025 marking the 24th time the city has hosted a portion of the championship.
Prior to the tournament's long-term establishment in Kansas City, it was held in various locations. The 2009 edition, for example, took place in Oklahoma City. From 2010 to 2020, the tournament was consistently held in Kansas City, and this duration was further extended until 2025.
The Big 12 Conference, which organises the tournament, is a group of 16 universities (originally 12) that compete in NCAA Division I. The conference was formed in 1994 but did not begin play until 1996. The member universities of the Big 12 Conference have a rich history in basketball, with six national titles under their belt, three of which were won after the formation of the conference.
The T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri, serves as a vibrant and energetic venue for the highly competitive Big 12 men's basketball tournament. The city's passion for basketball, along with its central location within the conference footprint, makes it an ideal choice for hosting the tournament for many years to come. The tournament has found a welcoming home in Kansas City, with the city's hospitality, infrastructure, and basketball-loving community contributing to its prolonged stay.
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How many sports does the Big 12 Conference sponsor championships in?
The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It is a group of 16 universities that compete in the NCAA Division I level. The Big 12 Conference sponsors championships in 25 sports, with 10 men's sports and 15 women's sports. Two more women's sports are set to be added in the 2024-25 school year, bringing the total number of sponsored sports to 27.
The first conference championship awarded by the Big 12 Conference was the 1996 softball postseason tournament championship, which was won by Oklahoma. The conference includes universities from the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.
The Big 12 Conference is one of the Power Four conferences, the four highest-earning and most historically successful FBS football conferences. It is also a member of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the higher of the two levels of NCAA Division I football competition.
The men's sports sponsored by the Big 12 Conference include basketball, cross country, golf, football, and swimming. The only men's sport with full participation by all conference members is cross country, except for UCF, Utah, and West Virginia, which do not sponsor the sport. Rifle is also considered a men's sport, although it is an open co-ed sport in NCAA college athletics, with TCU and West Virginia fielding co-ed teams.
The women's sports sponsored by the Big 12 Conference include basketball, cross country, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track, beach volleyball, lacrosse, rowing, gymnastics, and wrestling. All current Big 12 schools sponsor women's cross country. Four schools participate in equestrian: Baylor, Oklahoma State, TCU, and associate member Fresno State.
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Frequently asked questions
It is unclear how many Big 12 basketball championships have been shared, however, the Big 12 Conference counts shared division championships as a full championship for each school. The Big 12 Conference sponsors championships in 25 sports, with the first conference championship awarded for the 1996 softball postseason tournament.
Iowa State and Kansas have won the most Big 12 basketball championships, with Kansas winning 12 out of 25.
The Big 12 Conference is a group of 16 universities, although it originally started with 12.
