2025 March Madness updates: NCAA tournament watch times, bracket news, first-round schedule, TV
March Madness is here, and the craziness started with the opening game of the NCAA men's tournament.
The men's bracket is now set at 64 teams after Xavier rallied to beat Texas in the final of the First Four. Mount St. Mary's beat American in the earlier game.
The First Four began Tuesday night with Alabama State stunning St. Francis on a layup with a second left following a football-style, length-of-the-court pass that was tipped.
Alabama State will now take on overall No. 1 seed Auburn in the South region on Thursday. North Carolina ran past San Diego State, 95-68, in Tuesday's second First Four game and will now face No. 6 Ole Miss on Thursday.
The women's First Four begins on Wednesday.
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Selection Sunday was full of surprises, celebration and heartbreak. The bracket reveals are complete with the full selections for the men and women listed below.
Here's how the No. 1 seeds shook out for the men:
Auburn (South Region)
Duke (East Region)
Houston (Midwest Region)
Florida (West Region)
The SEC won the day with a record 14 of 16 teams making the NCAA tournament. The Big Ten was next with eight teams, followed by the Big 12 with seven.
Here's how the No. 1 seeds shook out for the women:
UCLA (Spokane 1)
South Carolina (Birmingham 2)
Texas (Birmingham 3)
USC (Spokane 4)
So, what can we make of the men's committee's selections? Here were some takeaways from Yahoo Sports analyst Jeff Eisenberg:
It was clear by Sunday morning that Auburn, Duke, Houston and Florida had each separated themselves in the race for No. 1 seeds. Credit the committee for not messing that up — and for getting that in the right order.
The same goes for the SEC getting 14 bids. You'll probably hear some complaints about it, but the truth is the SEC earned that respect.
Where the selection committee stumbled a bit: selecting North Carolina over more deserving teams like West Virginia. The Tar Heels snared the final at-large spot in the field despite going 1-12 in Quadrant 1 games and only defeating one at-large-caliber NCAA tournament team.
Also wrong: The committee claims that conference tournament title games matter — even the ones on Sunday that bump right up to the selection show. That's undoubtedly true when there's a bid thief involved. It's a little more difficult to believe, however, when there is just a potential seed line bump or two at stake. Michigan being slotted in as a No. 5 seed while the team it just beat (Wisconsin) was given a No. 3 seed, despite comparable résumés, makes the claim seem dubious.
On the women's side of the bracket, Ryan Young thinks the selection made at least one mistake.
Going into Selection Sunday, it seemed as if South Carolina had the edge for the No. 1 overall seed.
The reigning national champions were fresh off a blowout win in their conference championship game and looked strong closing out the year. The Gamecocks had won seven straight, all by double digits, and had clearly put a 29-point home loss to UConn behind them.
But the committee opted to go with UCLA instead. And it shouldn't have.
The Bruins absolutely earned a No. 1 seed in the tournament. That was never in doubt. They went 30-2 and won the Big Ten tournament title with a win over USC. They started the year on a 23-game win streak, too. So the committee gave UCLA the top overall seed for the first time in program history.
The biggest reason for that, they said on ESPN, was two-fold. First, UCLA beat South Carolina by 15 points in November. While a head-to-head matchup usually does the trick, that was months ago. The second was South Carolina losing by nearly 30 points to UConn at home. UCLA didn't have a loss that bad.
Here's what you need to know about March Madness:
2025 NCAA men's and women's tournament printable brackets
NCAA tournament bracket 101: How to make your picks
Selection Sunday winners and losers
5 biggest men's tournament snubs of 2025
What the selection committee got right and wrong
Cinderellas capable of making a deep tourney run
Ranking every NCAA tournament team from 1 to 68
10 best NBA prospects in the NCAA tournament
Predictions, odds, lines, schedule for every first-round game
Why expanding the NCAA tournament is such a bad idea
No. 1 Auburn vs. No. 16 Alabama State (Lexington, Thursday, 2:50 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 8 Louisville vs. No. 9 Creighton (Lexington, Thursday, 12:15 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 5 Michigan vs. No. 12 UC San Diego (Denver, Thursday, 10 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 4 Texas A&M vs No. 13 Yale (Denver, Thursday, 7:25 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 11 North Carolina (Milwaukee, Friday, 4:05 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 3 Iowa State vs. No. 14 Lipscomb (Milwaukee, Friday, 1:30 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 7 Marquette vs. No. 10 New Mexico (Cleveland, Friday, 7:25 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 2 Michigan State vs. No. 15 Bryant (Cleveland, Friday, 10 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 1 Duke vs. No. 16 Mount St. Mary's (Raleigh, Friday, 2:50 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 8 Mississippi State vs. No. 9 Baylor (Raleigh, Friday, 12:15 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 5 Oregon vs. No. 12 Liberty (Seattle, Friday, 10:10 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 4 Arizona vs. No. 13 Akron (Seattle, Friday, 7:35 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 6 BYU vs. No. 11 VCU (Denver, Thursday, 4:05 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 3 Wisconsin vs. No. 14 Montana (Denver, Thursday, 1:30 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 7 Saint Mary's vs. No. 10 Vanderbilt (Cleveland, Friday, 3:15 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 2 Alabama vs. No. 15 Robert Morris (Cleveland, Friday, 12:40 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 1 Houston vs. No. 16 SIU Edwardsville (Wichita, Thursday, 2 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 8 Gonzaga vs. No. 9 Georgia, (Wichita, Thursday, 4:35 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 5 Clemson vs. No. 12 McNeese (Providence, Thursday, 3:15 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 4 Purdue vs. No. 13 High Point (Providence, Thursday, 12:40 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 6 Illinois vs. No. 11 Xavier (Milwaukee, Friday, 9:45 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 14 Troy (Milwaukee, Friday, 7:10 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 7 UCLA vs. No. 10 Utah State (Lexington, Thursday, 9:25 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 15 Wofford (Lexington, Thursday, 6:50 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 1 Florida vs. No. 16 Norfolk State (Raleigh, Friday, 6:50 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 8 UConn vs. No. 9 Oklahoma (Raleigh, Friday, 9:25 p.m. ET, TNT)
No. 5 Memphis vs. No. 12 Colorado State (Seattle, Friday, 2 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 4 Maryland vs. No. 13 Grand Canyon (Seattle, Friday, 4:35 p.m. ET, TBS)
No. 6 Missouri vs. No. 11 Drake (Wichita, Thursday, 7:35 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 3 Texas Tech vs. No. 14 UNC Wilmington (Wichita, Thursday, 10:10 p.m. ET, TruTV)
No. 7 Kansas vs. No. 10 Arkansas (Providence, Thursday, 7:10 p.m. ET, CBS)
No. 2 St. John's vs. No. 15 Omaha (Providence, Thursday, 9:45 p.m. ET, CBS)
Here's what you need to know about this year's brackets:
2025 NCAA men's and women's tournament printable brackets
SEC sets March Madness record with 14 teams in the men's bracket
UCLA, Texas, South Carolina and USC are top women's seeds
5 biggest tournament snubs
All conference champions and automatic bids earned
THE BRACKET 🙌#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/fo6lA8hJ7g
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 16, 2025
The Bracket.🔗 https://t.co/s2UWgWxAxq🎟️ https://t.co/tvAMtQIw1n#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/Rj4HS27YtY
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
The March Madness tip times for the first round of the 2025 men's NCAA tournament are set.
The tournament begins Tuesday with the first of four First Four games in Dayton, Ohio. The first round gets underway on Thursday with 16 games and then 16 games on Friday. Below are the start times for the First Four games and all 32 first-round games here. All times are Eastern.
6:40 p.m.: No. 16 St. Francis vs. No. 16 Alabama State
9:10 p.m.: No. 11 North Carolina vs. No. 11 San Diego State
6:40 p.m.: No. 16 Mount St. Mary's vs. No. 16 American
9:10 p.m.: No. 11 Xavier vs. No. 11 Texas
Now that the March Madness brackets have been revealed for both the men's and women's NCAA tournaments, some teams fared better than others.
After taking a look at each of the 68-team fields, here are the winners and losers from Selection Sunday as March Madness is officially ready to get underway this week.
The SEC has a record 14 teams dancing in the men's tourney 🕺🏀 pic.twitter.com/i3WVjOLDnu
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 16, 2025
Stanford will be watching the NCAA tournament from home for the first time in decades.
The Cardinal officially did not receive a bid for the women's NCAA tournament on Sunday night after a rough campaign that resulted in a first-round exit from the ACC tournament earlier this month. It marks the first time since 1987 that Stanford has missed the NCAA tournament.
That 36-season streak was the second longest in women's college basketball. Only Tennessee has been better with 42 straight tournament appearances. UConn has now made it 36 times to match Stanford. Baylor is the next-closest team with 21 consecutive appearances.
USC-UConn Elite Eight rematch brewing? 👀 pic.twitter.com/sQQ17cZopE
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 17, 2025
Region 4 in Spokane.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/ltJaPdDHYK
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
The Trojans lead the pack in Regional 4 as the one seed ✌️ pic.twitter.com/jOKf7lw5Sn
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 17, 2025
Region 3 in Birmingham.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/tMuAHTp8Fk
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
THREE (!) Ivy League teams officially make the women's NCAA Tournament. #3BidIvy
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) March 17, 2025
Bit of a stunner that ND falls to a No. 3 seed, but recent play had to be a factor
— Alexa Philippou (@alexaphilippou) March 17, 2025
THE TEXAS LONGHORNS ARE THE REGIONAL 3 TOP SEED 🤘 pic.twitter.com/u66ZpBXNUb
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 17, 2025
Region 2 in Birmingham.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/lilYJaaBux
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
They'll face No. 16 Tennessee Tech on Friday in Columbia
The No. 1 overall seed who will play at Region 2 in Birmingham is South Carolina.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/zYyv3rvBOY
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
Region 1 in Spokane.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/TxOXL9AqLf
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
NC State will face No. 15 Vermont.
Home sweet home 🏠For the fifth time in the last seven NCAA Tournaments, the Pack will host the first two rounds in Raleigh! pic.twitter.com/Em7tzvDLsn
— NC State WBB 🐺🏀 (@PackWomensBball) March 17, 2025
LSU is a No. 3 seed in the Spokane 1 Regional! pic.twitter.com/4knYbw1G9f
— LSU Women's Basketball (@LSUwbkb) March 17, 2025
UCLA will take on UC San Diego or Southern depending on who wins that First Four matchup.
The No. 1 overall seed who will play at Region 1 in Spokane is UCLA.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/PItURfiK6w
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
The 31 Automatic Qualifiers are solidified ✅BRING. ON. THE. BRACKET. 🙌#NCAAWBB pic.twitter.com/C7eJDgGOwo
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 16, 2025
There's a new favorite to win the 2025 men's NCAA tournament.
Florida is now the team with the best odds to win the national title at BetMGM after the Gators beat Tennessee for the SEC tournament title on Sunday. Florida, the No. 1 seed in the West region, is now +350 to win it all.
The Gators have won 12 of their last 13 games and enter the tournament with a 30-4 record. All four of those losses are to teams that made the NCAA tournament: Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia and Missouri.
let the madness commence 😎we're heading to raleigh pic.twitter.com/QsmrjyxqFa
— Florida Gators Men's Basketball (@GatorsMBK) March 16, 2025
It's the most predictable part of Selection Sunday.
Every year, there are more teams convinced they deserve an NCAA men's tournament bid than there is room in the 68-team bracket.
Three years ago, Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams distributed a nine-page manifesto arguing the Aggies were wronged and the selection process needed an overhaul. Last year, the Big East called itself 'understandably very disappointed' over the conference's historically low number of teams selected. This March, the bubble teams passed over in favor of North Carolina had the most reason to be fuming after the unveiling of the bracket Sunday evening.
Many amateur bracketologists projected the Tar Heels to narrowly miss the field of 68 since they went 1-12 in Quadrant 1 games and beat only one projected NCAA tournament team all year. The committee apparently felt otherwise, awarding one of the final at-large bids to the Tar Heels (22-13) by virtue of their top-40 metrics and strong strength of schedule.
While North Carolina experienced the relief of hearing its name called, other bubble teams weren't so lucky. Here are this year's biggest NCAA tournament snubs.
Here's what you need to know about this year's brackets:
2025 NCAA men's and women's tournament printable brackets
SEC sets March Madness record with 14 teams in the men's bracket
UCLA, Texas, South Carolina and USC are top women's seeds
5 biggest tournament snubs
All conference champions and automatic bids earned
THE BRACKET 🙌#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/fo6lA8hJ7g
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 16, 2025
The Bracket.🔗 https://t.co/s2UWgWxAxq🎟️ https://t.co/tvAMtQIw1n#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/Rj4HS27YtY
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
The March Madness tip times for the first round of the 2025 men's NCAA tournament are set.
The tournament begins Tuesday with the first of four First Four games in Dayton, Ohio. The first round gets underway on Thursday with 16 games and then 16 games on Friday. Below are the start times for the First Four games and all 32 first-round games here. All times are Eastern.
6:40 p.m.: No. 16 St. Francis vs. No. 16 Alabama State
9:10 p.m.: No. 11 North Carolina vs. No. 11 San Diego State
6:40 p.m.: No. 16 Mount St. Mary's vs. No. 16 American
9:10 p.m.: No. 11 Xavier vs. No. 11 Texas
Now that the March Madness brackets have been revealed for both the men's and women's NCAA tournaments, some teams fared better than others.
After taking a look at each of the 68-team fields, here are the winners and losers from Selection Sunday as March Madness is officially ready to get underway this week.
The SEC has a record 14 teams dancing in the men's tourney 🕺🏀 pic.twitter.com/i3WVjOLDnu
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 16, 2025
Stanford will be watching the NCAA tournament from home for the first time in decades.
The Cardinal officially did not receive a bid for the women's NCAA tournament on Sunday night after a rough campaign that resulted in a first-round exit from the ACC tournament earlier this month. It marks the first time since 1987 that Stanford has missed the NCAA tournament.
That 36-season streak was the second longest in women's college basketball. Only Tennessee has been better with 42 straight tournament appearances. UConn has now made it 36 times to match Stanford. Baylor is the next-closest team with 21 consecutive appearances.
USC-UConn Elite Eight rematch brewing? 👀 pic.twitter.com/sQQ17cZopE
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 17, 2025
Region 4 in Spokane.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/ltJaPdDHYK
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
The Trojans lead the pack in Regional 4 as the one seed ✌️ pic.twitter.com/jOKf7lw5Sn
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 17, 2025
Region 3 in Birmingham.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/tMuAHTp8Fk
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
THREE (!) Ivy League teams officially make the women's NCAA Tournament. #3BidIvy
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach) March 17, 2025
Bit of a stunner that ND falls to a No. 3 seed, but recent play had to be a factor
— Alexa Philippou (@alexaphilippou) March 17, 2025
THE TEXAS LONGHORNS ARE THE REGIONAL 3 TOP SEED 🤘 pic.twitter.com/u66ZpBXNUb
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 17, 2025
Region 2 in Birmingham.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/lilYJaaBux
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
They'll face No. 16 Tennessee Tech on Friday in Columbia
The No. 1 overall seed who will play at Region 2 in Birmingham is South Carolina.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/zYyv3rvBOY
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
Region 1 in Spokane.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/TxOXL9AqLf
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
NC State will face No. 15 Vermont.
Home sweet home 🏠For the fifth time in the last seven NCAA Tournaments, the Pack will host the first two rounds in Raleigh! pic.twitter.com/Em7tzvDLsn
— NC State WBB 🐺🏀 (@PackWomensBball) March 17, 2025
LSU is a No. 3 seed in the Spokane 1 Regional! pic.twitter.com/4knYbw1G9f
— LSU Women's Basketball (@LSUwbkb) March 17, 2025
UCLA will take on UC San Diego or Southern depending on who wins that First Four matchup.
The No. 1 overall seed who will play at Region 1 in Spokane is UCLA.#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/PItURfiK6w
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 17, 2025
The 31 Automatic Qualifiers are solidified ✅BRING. ON. THE. BRACKET. 🙌#NCAAWBB pic.twitter.com/C7eJDgGOwo
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 16, 2025
There's a new favorite to win the 2025 men's NCAA tournament.
Florida is now the team with the best odds to win the national title at BetMGM after the Gators beat Tennessee for the SEC tournament title on Sunday. Florida, the No. 1 seed in the West region, is now +350 to win it all.
The Gators have won 12 of their last 13 games and enter the tournament with a 30-4 record. All four of those losses are to teams that made the NCAA tournament: Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia and Missouri.
let the madness commence 😎we're heading to raleigh pic.twitter.com/QsmrjyxqFa
— Florida Gators Men's Basketball (@GatorsMBK) March 16, 2025
It's the most predictable part of Selection Sunday.
Every year, there are more teams convinced they deserve an NCAA men's tournament bid than there is room in the 68-team bracket.
Three years ago, Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams distributed a nine-page manifesto arguing the Aggies were wronged and the selection process needed an overhaul. Last year, the Big East called itself 'understandably very disappointed' over the conference's historically low number of teams selected. This March, the bubble teams passed over in favor of North Carolina had the most reason to be fuming after the unveiling of the bracket Sunday evening.
Many amateur bracketologists projected the Tar Heels to narrowly miss the field of 68 since they went 1-12 in Quadrant 1 games and beat only one projected NCAA tournament team all year. The committee apparently felt otherwise, awarding one of the final at-large bids to the Tar Heels (22-13) by virtue of their top-40 metrics and strong strength of schedule.
While North Carolina experienced the relief of hearing its name called, other bubble teams weren't so lucky. Here are this year's biggest NCAA tournament snubs.
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A new college sports system for paying athletes could begin as early as July 1, pending the multi-billion-dollar House settlement, which resolves three federal antitrust lawsuits against the NCAA and four power conferences (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC). That settlement could come any day now. There's growing skepticism that it will solve the legal and structural problems in college sports, although some are cautiously optimistic that it'll at least achieve some progress. Opponents of the new state law believe Tennessee is nixing an effective agreement days before it's signed by a federal judge. But proponents of the state law believe Tennessee is being proactive by keeping its legal options in anticipation of a system it believes will fail. The most straightforward take of the situation is that Tennessee is protecting its own interests ahead of the SEC or college sports. Whether that's a wise move or heavy handed is debatable, but it certainly got the attention of college sports leaders. Tennessee schools intend to comply with the system prescribed in the House settlement, but that plan remains hazy. UT, specifically, wants legal cover if the new rules violate antitrust law. Here are examples of what UT fears if it's not given liability protection by the state law. A new clearinghouse will determine if NIL deals are legitimate and of fair market value. Legally, that appears to be a difficult standard to define. If an athlete or collective sues because an NIL deal is declined, UT wants the flexibility to approve the contract independent of NCAA rules or at least opt out of the system to avoid a lawsuit. Lawsuits on numerous antitrust grounds are anticipated after the House settlement is approved. The NCAA, power conferences and schools could be sued. There's no indication whether those suits would be successful. But UT doesn't want to be among the defendants, and the state law says Tennessee schools don't have to follow anticompetitive NCAA rules. If damages are awarded in antitrust lawsuits, the state law says that Tennessee schools can't be held responsible for paying them. Instead, the NCAA would be liable. UT wants to avoid punishment from the NCAA if it opts out of rules that it finds to violate antitrust laws. If that occurs, the state law protects UT from NCAA sanctions. Notably, UT football is already on probation until July 13, 2028, as a result of the Jeremy Pruitt recruiting scandal. Some college sports stakeholders believe Tennessee isn't being a team player. But UT has reasons to distance itself from the NCAA in future lawsuits, and it has a good track record against the governing body. They faced off in federal court in 2024 after the state of Tennessee, on behalf of UT, sued the NCAA to loosen its stringent rules over NIL benefits. UT won that battle. On Jan. 31, 2025, the NCAA and a coalition of states led by Tennessee reached a settlement that protects student-athletes' NIL rights during the recruiting process and prohibits the NCAA from bringing back its NIL recruiting ban. And in 2023, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti threatened to sue the NCAA if it gave the UT football team a postseason ban in the Pruitt recruiting scandal. UT also won that battle, as the NCAA relented from issuing a postseason ban. The bad blood between UT and the NCAA can't be ignored as a backdrop to this state law. And don't be surprised if Skrmetti or Tennessee lawmakers get involved again if this situation escalates. Adam Sparks is the Tennessee football beat reporter. Email X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing at Get the latest news and insight on SEC football by subscribing to the SEC Unfiltered newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox. This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: If Tennessee chooses state law over NIL pledge, it risks SEC expulsion
