The first full round of the 2024 NCAA men’s Division I basketball tournament begins on Thursday, with 64 teams battling for the national championship in college hoops.
With this year’s iteration of March Madness, teams will be playing to reach the Final Four in Arizona and ultimately the national championship game. Here is what to know about this year’s tournament.
Where are the games being televised?
For the first two rounds of the tournament, the games are aired on CBS, TBS, TNT, and TruTV. Channels for specific matchups can be found on the NCAA’s website. The first set of games on Thursday and Friday will begin around 12:15 p.m. EST.
For the second weekend of play, the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight, games are on either CBS or TBS. For the Elite Eight, the two games on Saturday, March 30, will be aired on TBS, and the two games on Sunday, March 31, will be aired on CBS.
The Final Four, on Saturday, April 6, and the national championship game, on Monday, April 8, will air on TBS.
Where is the Final Four?
The Final Four and the national championship game will be held at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, outside Phoenix. This will mark the second time State Farm Stadium hosts the Final Four after 2017.
In 2025, the Final Four and national championship game will be held at the Alamodome in San Antonio.
Who are the top seeds?
The No. 1 seeds for the four regions in this year’s tournament include the University of Connecticut Huskies (East region), the University of North Carolina Tar Heels (South region), Purdue Boilermakers (Midwest region), and the Houston Cougars (West region).
The top overall seed is the UConn Huskies. The last time the top overall seed won the national championship was the University of Louisville Cardinals in 2013.
How did last year’s Final Four participants do this year?
Last year’s national champions, UConn, returned to March Madness as the favorites to repeat as champions and are the top seed in the entire tournament, while the 2023 runner-up, the San Diego State Aztecs, qualified for the tournament again in 2024 as the No. 5 seed in the East region.
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The other two 2023 Final Four participants had mixed results. The Florida Atlantic University Owls made the 2024 tournament as the No. 8 seed in the East region.
The University of Miami Hurricanes failed to make the NCAA tournament in 2024 after going deep into the tournament in 2023.