With this year’s conference tournaments coming to a close, the focus is now on March Madness 2024. It is one of the most entertaining events on the yearly sports calendar and this space will give you all the details you’ll need to enjoy the greatest tournament in North American sports.
Related: College basketball games today: Full schedule for every round of March Madness 2024
When March Madness 2024 starts?
For this year’s edition of the NCAA Tournament, games will kick off on March 19 with the “First Four.” Back in 2011, the NCAA added a pair of play-in games to help decide which teams will be the No. 16 seed in the four-tournament regions.
After those two games are played on March 19 and 20, the traditional 64-team tourney begins with Round 1 action on March 21 and March 22.
When is Selection Sunday?
Before the iconic college basketball tournament begins, the 68 teams that will be involved must first be chosen. That occurs this weekend with the massively important Selection Sunday show. This year’s edition of the event will air on March 17 at 6 PM ET on CBS.
- Date: Sunday, March 17
- Time: 6 PM ET
- TV: CBS
Related: College Basketball TV ratings 2024 – Womens and mens TV viewership before March Madness
When is Selection Sunday for women’s basketball?
March Madness is also an opportunity to see the best teams and best players in women’s college basketball battle it out to decide the best team in the nation. Fittingly, Selection Sunday for the women’s tourney is also on March 17, but over on ESPN.
- Date: Sunday, March 17
- Time: 8 PM ET
- TV: ESPN
March Madness schedule
Below you can find the dates for each round of the 2024 NCAA tournament schedule for men’s college basketball.
First Four schedule 2023
| Date | Teams | Time | TV |
| Tuesday, March 19 | TBD | TBD | truTV, March Madness Live App |
| Tuesday, March 19 | TBD | TBD | truTV, March Madness Live App |
| Wednesday, March 20 | TBD | TBD | truTV, March Madness Live App |
| Wednesday, March 20 | TBD | TBD | truTV, March Madness Live App |
- First Four: Tuesday, March 19 through Wednesday, March 20
- Round of 64: Thursday, March 21 through Friday, March 22
- Round of 32: Saturday, March 23 through Sunday, March 24
- Sweet 16: Thursday, March 28 through Friday, March 29
- Elite Eight: Saturday, March 30 through Sunday, March 31
- Final Four: Saturday, April 6
- National Championship:Â Monday, April 8
Related: Latest Top 25 Mens College Basketball Rankings 2024
How to watch March Madness?
This year’s event can be watched on four different networks. CBS and TBS will each air 21 games, TNT will have 12, and truTV will broadcast another 13. The Madness can also be found on streaming platforms Sling TV and the NCAA March Madness Live app.
- First Four: truTV, Sling TV
- First Round: TBS, TNT, truTV, CBS
- Second Round: TBS, TNT, truTV, CBS
- Sweet 16: TBS, CBS
- Elite Eight: TBS, CBS, SlingTV
- Final Four: ESPN
- National Championship Game: ABC
Where is March Madness 2024?
This year’s tournament will be spread out across 14 cities including Brooklyn, NY, and Dallas, TX. Below you can find the full location breakdown in 2024.
First Four:
- UD Arena (Dayton, Ohio)
Rounds 1 and 2
- Barclays Center (Brooklyn, NY)
- Spectrum Center (Charlotte, NC)
- Gainbridge Fieldhouse (Indianapolis, IN)
- CHI Health Center (Omaha, NE)
- PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, PA)
- Delta Center (Salt Lake City, UT)
- Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena (Spokane, WA)
- FedExForum (Memphis, TN)
Related: 10 best women’s college basketball players ever: From Caitlin Clark to Cheryl Miller
Sweet 16 and Elite 8:
- East Region: TD Garden (Boston, MA)
- South Region: American Airlines Center (Dallas, TX)
- Midwest Region: Little Caesars Arena (Detroit, MI)
- West Region: Crypto.com Arena (Los Angeles, CA)
Final Four
- State Farm Arena (Phoenix, AZ)
What March Madness means?
Henry V. Porter was the person to create the “March Madness” moniker when he penned an essay on the 1939 tournament. It was a name that stuck and is a nationally recognized brand for the yearly tournament.
Related: 10 Best college basketball players of all time – From Christian Laettner to Bill Russell
How many teams in March Madness?
There are 68 teams in March Madness, with the field narrowed to 64 after the First Four play-in series. Each round eliminates half the field, culminating in a single national champion crowned in a single-elimination title game.
Originally, per NCAA.com, the first tournament started with only eight teams competing (1939). By 1951, they expanded to a 16-team format. The 64-team tournament was adopted in 1985, with a play-in game added in 2001. A decade later, the field expanded to 68 teams with four play-in matchups.
Who won March Madness in 2023?
After winning the Big East championship, the Connecticut Huskies continued their hot play through last year’s tournament and were able to win the program’s fifth national title when they beat San Diego State 76-59
Previous March Madness winners
- Kansas (2022)
- Baylor (2021)
- No Champion (2020)
- Virginia (2019)
- Villanova (2018)
- North Carolina (2017)
- Villanova (2016)
- Duka (2015)
- Connecticut (2014)
- Louisville (2013)
- Kentucky (2012)
- Connecticut (2011)
- Duke (2010)
Related: Best women’s college basketball players to watch in March Madness 2024, led by Caitlin Clark
March Madness records
The tournament has had many record-breaking moments. Below you can find the best record-setting performances in tournament history.
- Most points in an NCAA tournament game: 61, Austin Carr (1970)
- Most 3-pointers made in an NCAA tournament game: 11, Jeff Fryer (1990)
- Most rebounds in an NCAA tournament game: 34, Fred Cohen (1956)
- Most assists in an NCAA tournament game: 18, Mark Wade (1987)