NCAA championship basketball tourney begins

As the line from the movie “Hunger Games” stated, “May the odds be ever in your favor,” so it goes with the biggest – and most popular – collegiate basketball tournaments in the United States.

The frenzy of the collegiate basketball finals is getting underway with sports fans filling out brackets in basketball poolsin living rooms, locker rooms and offices all over the country.

As always, there will be predictable winners and upsets throughout to keep it interesting, if not tearful in some cases.

The defending men’s champions from Connecticut will top off that field while the No. 1 seed for the women is undefeated South Carolina.

Other top seeds in NCAA Division 1 men’s basketball include Purdue, North Carolina and Houston. For the women, top teams emerge from Iowa, Southern California and the University of Texas.

Thirty-two teams automatically qualified in both the men’s and women’s tournaments by winning their conference tournaments. A selection committee determined which teams received one of the 36 at-large bids. Those ranked between 64 and 68 play in the First Four vying to be a part of the final 64 teams.

The First Four men’s games were scheduled for March 19-20, followed by the First Round on March 21-22; Second Round on March 23-24; Sweet 16, March 28-29; Elite Eight, March 30-31; Final Four, April 6; and finally, the NCAA championship on April 8.

The First Four women’s games are set for March 20-21, followed by the First Round, March 22-23; Second Round, March 24-25; Sweet 16, March 29-30; Elite Eight, March 31-April 1; Final Four, April 5; and the NCAA championship on April 7.

Texas teams playing in the men’s First Round include Houston vs. Longwood; Texas A&M vs Nebraska; Texas Tech vs. North Carolina State; TCU vs. Utah State; and Texas vs. Virginia-Colorado State.

Texas women’s teams in the First Round include Texas A&M vs. Nebraska; Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs Southern Cal; University of Texas vs. Drexel; Baylor vs. Van/CLMB; and Rice vs. LSU.

So – how is it possible to watch the games? As in past years, the tournament will be shown across four channels: CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV. Go to the NCAA’s March Madness Live site or use its March Madness Live app to watch games for free. March Madness Live can be viewed on iOS and Android devices along with Apple TV, Roku, Fire TV and Xbox One. The app also supports AirPlay and Chromecast.