We are now two weeks into March which can only mean one thing: March Madness has officially begun. If you are not really into sports, and wondering what this is all about and why is it all over the news, you have come to the right place.
What is March Madness?
March Madness is a NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament in which 68 teams compete against each other to win the national title. It is divided into 4 regions — East, South, West and Midwest and they get eliminated each round.
When does this start?
March Madness begins in March, duh! It officially begins March 19 and March 20 in Dayton, OH. You can find the official schedule here.
Why does everyone keep mentioning brackets?
The brackets are what make March Madness so much fun. The brackets are where each individual person chooses who they think is going to become a national champion. You can print out your own bracket here and pick who you think is going to win it all.
Who should I pick as my winner?
Many, including ESPN, CBS Sports, and Fox Sports, have Duke as the champion. The other number one seeds (the highest ranked teams) are Virginia, North Carolina— and Gonzaga, so of course they could also win the championship. But our own Michigan State team, number two seed in the East, is another possible team to make it to the Final Four given their ability to beat teams higher ranked than them throughout the season. In the West, number two seed Michigan and number three seed Texas Tech are other favorites to make it to the Final Four and in the Midwest there’s a high possibility that number two seed, Kentucky, could beat North Carolina and make it to the Final Four.
You can’t really rely on past years’ brackets because, as seen above, Villanova won the national title last year and this year they were ranked as a number six seed and are not even a favorite to make it to the Final Four, let alone win the competition. You never really know what is going to happen until the madness really starts. All I have to say is do your research and keep in mind that upsets always happen.
Where can I watch?
March Madness games are usually shown on four channels: CBS, TNT, TBS and truTV. You can also live stream them through YouTube online, Hulu with Live TV, FuboTV and DirecTV (of course you will have to pay for these). For more information, click here.
Important vocabulary to know:
Sweet 16: the remaining 16 teams that advance
Elite 8: the remaining 8 teams
Final Four: the last four teams that have advance
Upset: when a lower seed team that was expected to win loses to, usually, a team ranked lower than them
Bracket Busted: when you have so many loses in your bracket that there’s no way in hell you are going to win
So, now that you more or less know what’s up, happy choosing and let’s get this madness started!