NCAA D1, National Collegiate Athletic Association Division 1, is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics which features colleges and receives players from all over the Country. It has a huge budget with full media coverage to support its athletic programs. It streams the Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship Tournaments. This Single elimination tournament happens every March with 68 fields for men and 64 fields for women. The term ‘March Madness’ basically describes the excitement and madness of fans towards this championship. March madness has a more competitive and professional environment as compared to College Basketball matches. The three weeks of the tournament give a different experience to the contestants and create a buzz among millions of fans. It starts in the mid of March and ends at the beginning of April. Theodore Roosevelt formed Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 1906 to frame competition and eligibility rules for intercollegiate sports. Intercollegiate Athletic Association was later named as National Collegiate Athletic Association (1910). The rise of deaths and injuries in collegiate sports during 1905 led to the formation of NCAA.
Growth of the tournament
The tournament first started with the participation of 8 teams and then the number of teams doubled to2 teams and then 68 teams. NCAA has grown over the years and currently, 68 teams are there.
Bracket game of NCAA
It is an official game of NCAA which open after the announcement of Selection Sunday and end before the first round of the tournament. Contestants who wish to participate in NCAA have to fill the bracket and play the Bracket Challenge Game.
Making of College towns
The tournament divides the country into 4 sections geographically which are called College towns or Regions. These four towns are then named East, West, South, and Mideast. A lottery divides the schools into these towns. Each town has sixteen teams at least.
Selection Sunday
It is the day when the committee announces all the brackets for all the sixty-eight teams.
Selection committee
There are ten members of the selection committee. These members are school and college administrators nominated by their conference.
Selection in the Championship
By winning the conference’s championship, thirty-two teams get automatic entry into the tournament. The rest of the teams got selected by the selection committee.
Team sheet
Each team has a Team sheet which is a document containing team information about their strengths and performance. It helps the selection committee to know in detail about the team.
Rounds in the tournament
The tournament consists of 6 official rounds with a four-team play in the beginning.
• First Four
Round of 64
Round of 32
Sweet 16
Elite 8
Final 4
National Championship
Weird names during March Madness
The fun part of the tournament is that a new team comes out of nowhere to make the tournament artful every year. This team is called ‘Cinderella’ as it surprises everyone. However, these teams rarely won, but it creates memorable moments and add buzz to the tournament. Similarly, the third round is called ‘Sweet 16’ as only 16 teams are left in the third round. The next round is called ‘Elite 8’ with the final eight teams in it and after that final 4 teams left in the tournament.
Award for the winning team
The winning team gets the NABA National Championship Trophy, and the head coach of the winning team is honored by the Waterford Crystal Trophy. The team also gets an amount of money as their prize.
End of March Madness
The Final 4 teams play over three days to find out the National Champion. And finally, the March Madness ends with campus parties in the successful college town.
Gender Inequality
Hence, both Men and Women’s championships are there, NCAA highly promotes and respects Men championships. NCAA is accused many times of promoting gender inequality among college students. So, March Madness is a single-elimination basketball tournament with the participation of 68 teams for three weeks. Defining the craze of fans with its name.
Q-1 What do the winners get?
A-1 The price money can be $40,000 to $100,000. Even if a team didn’t win, it will get $1.76 million.
Q-2 Why is it called March madness?
A-2 Simply, it happens in march and depicts the craze and madness of the fans.
Q-3 Can we see March madness live on Roku?
A-3 Yes, everyone can see live streaming of March madness on Roku whether they have the cable subscription or not.
Q-4 On which channels can we see the tournament?
A-4 Tournament broadcasts on CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV.
Q-5 How to participate in NCAA?
A-5 Interested people have to fill the bracket to participate in NCAA.
