When is March Madness 2020? Dates, TV schedule, locations, odds & more for the NCAA Tournament



The 2020 NCAA Tournament is right around the corner, bringing with it the usual March Madness that takes hold of the nation this time of year.

The 2019-20 men’s basketball season will culminate with the Final Four, held this year in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. More notably, the 2020 tournament will mark the 35-year anniversary of the 1985 NCAA Tournament, the first to include a 64-team field.

That’s fitting, in more ways than one.

MORE: Projecting the 2020 NCAA Tournament field of 68

Several teams could be classified as “good” ahead of the 2020 tournament, and they will likely claim favorite status ahead of March Madness. But there are no great teams, such as 2019 Duke, 2017 Villanova or 2012 Kentucky. Some of the nation’s top teams — Duke, Kentucky, Baylor, San Diego State and more — have all suffered head-scratching losses, almost as if March Madness bled into the regular season.

Similarly, there are no generational talents such as Zion Williamson, Ja Morant or Jalen Brunson, though the likes of Iowa’s Luka Garza, Dayton’s Obi Toppin and Marquette’s Markus Howard are sure to thrill when their teams reach the tournament.

All that begs the question: How much Madness can we expect to see in March? Based on the season thus far, quite a lot. And there’s no better way to end a college basketball season.

With that, here’s everything you need to know about March Madness 2020, including the start and end dates, a TV schedule and locations for each round of the NCAA Tournament, updated betting odds and more.

When is March Madness 2020?

  • Start date: Tuesday, March 17
  • End date: Monday, April 6

The 2020 NCAA Tournament — comprised of the First Four, Rounds 1 and 2, the Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four and national championship game — will begin shortly after Selection Sunday and c onclude in early April.

Here is the full schedule for March Madness 2020:

Round Dates
First Four March 17-18
Round 1 March 19-20
Round 2 March 21-22
Sweet 16 March 26-27
Elite Eight March 28-29
Final Four April 4
National championship April 6

Where is March Madness 2020?

  • First Four location: Dayton, Ohio
  • Final Four location: Atlanta

The 2020 NCAA Tournament begins in Dayton, Ohio with the First Four and finishes in Atlanta with the Final Four. Several cities will host the first, second and regional rounds between the bookend rounds, however.

Below is a full rundown on the sites and locations of the NCAA Tournament:

Round Location Site
First Four Dayton, Ohio UD Arena
Rounds 1-2 Albany, N.Y. Times Union Center
  Spokane, Wash. Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena
  St. Louis Enterprise Center
  Tampa, Fla. Amalie Arena
  Greensboro, N.C. Greensboro Coliseum
  Omaha, Neb. CenturyLink Center Omaha
  Sacramento, Calif. Golden 1 Center
  Cleveland Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
Midwest Regional Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium
West Regional Los Angeles STAPLES Center
South Regional Houston Toyota Center
East Regional New York Madison Square Garden
Final Four Atlanta Mercedes-Benz Stadium

MORE MARCH MADNESS:
Best upsets | Pivotal moments | Greatest buzzer-beaters

NCAA Tournament schedule 2020

When is Selection Sunday 2020?

Selection Sunday, the day on which the 68-team field is unveiled, will take place on Sunday, March 15 in 2020. Like last year, the Selection Sunday show will air on CBS and will go for a region-by-region reveal, as opposed to TBS’ alphabetical reveal in 2018. The 2020 NCAA Tournament’s selection show will begin at 6 p.m. ET, though the full bracket won’t be released until the completion of that day’s conference championship games.

When is the First Four?

The 2020 First Four games will take place March 17-18, with doubleheaders played on each of those days.

Not all of the 68 teams — comprised of 32 automatic qualifiers and 36 at-large bids — will get to play in the 2020 NCAA Tournament. Since 2011, eight teams — the four lowest-seeded automatic and at-large bids — have been selected to play in four “First Four” games: essentially, play-in games for the tournament proper.

When is the Final Four?

The 2020 NCAA Tournament ends with the Final Four (April 4) and national championship (April 6) games in Atlanta after the field has been whittled down from 68, 64, 32, 16 and eight teams.

How to watch March Madness 2020 live

The 2020 NCAA Tournament will be broadcast between CBS and Turner Sports stations (which includes TV channels TBS, TNT and TruTV). Due to a 2016 contract between CBS and Turner Sports, Turner Sports has broadcast rights to the Final Four and national championship game every other year. That means this year’s Final Four in Atlanta will be broadcast on TBS.

Here is the full TV schedule and streaming options for the 2020 NCAA Tournament:

Odds to win March Madness 2020

Kansas, Gonzaga, Baylor and Dayton — all considered potential 1-seeds in the 2020 NCAA Tournament — have the best odds to win March Madness 2020, per BetOnline (via SportsInsider). Below are the top 11 teams with the best odds:

  • Kansas: +500
  • Gonzaga: +700
  • Baylor: +900
  • Dayton: +1000
  • Duke: +1200
  • Kentucky: +1200
  • Michigan State: +1400
  • San Diego State: +1400
  • Louisville: +1800
  • Maryland: +1800
  • Seton Hall: +1800

MARCH MADNESS MEMORIES:
Thrill of victory | Agony of defeat

Future March Madness locations, host sites

The NCAA Tournament takes place across several host cities throughout the First Four, Rounds 1 and 2, Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. Each tournament finishes with the Final Four, which — much like the Super Bowl — changes venues each year.

Here are the future sites and locations for future Final Fours:

Year City Final Four host site
2021 Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium
2022 New Orleans Mercedes-Benz Superdome
2023 Houston NRG Stadium
2024 Phoenix State Farm Stadium
2025 San Antonio Alamodome
2026 Indianapolis Lucas Oil Stadium

NCAA Tournament 2020 tickets

The NCAA offers several customizable ticket deals for March Madness 2020 through its ticket partner, PrimeSport. Those include package and individual ticket options for each round of the NCAA Tournament. The main draw is the Final Four, held in Atlanta, for which the NCAA has offered individual tickets and the “Official NCAA Fan Experience.” A single ticket starts at $275. A fan experience ticket, which starts at $541, includes:

  • Semifinals (Saturday): Appearances from Fran Fraschilla, others, and musical performances by Karen Waldrup and DJ Mal-ski
  • Championship (Monday): Appearances from Dominique Wilkins, Fran Fraschilla and performances by The A-Town A-List and DJ Mal-ski
  • Light buffet dinner
  • Full premium cash bar
  • Photo opportunity with the NCAA Final Four national championship trophy
  • Commemorative NCAA Final Four lanyard and ticket holder

The NCAA also offers a “Premium Club Hospitality” package, prices of which begin in the thousands and includes:

  • All-inclusive premium bar and food menu from gate opening through the end of halftime of the final game
  • Premium grab and go food served throughout the game
  • Photo opportunity with the NCAA Final Four National Championship trophy
  • Commemorative game program
  • Private restrooms and club access

Second-party options include StubHub ($265 tickets to semifinals and championship game), Vivid Seats ($274) and SeatGeek ($285).

More March Madness news by Sporting News

Need a fix on March Madness content before the 2020 NCAA Tournament? Sporting News has you covered:

NCAA Tournament winners

UCLA leads all men’s college basketball programs with 11 national championships, followed by blue bloods Kentucky, North Carolina and Duke.

Virginia, the 2019 March Madness winner, finally joined the list last year with its first NCAA Tournament title in program history.

School National titles Most recent Runner-up finishes
UCLA 11 1995 2
Kentucky 8 2012 4
North Carolina 6 2017 5
Duke 5 2015 6
Indiana 5 1987 1
Connecticut 4 2014 0
Kansas 3 2008 6
Villanova 3 2018 1
Cincinnati 2 1962 1
Florida 2 2007 1
Louisville 2 1986 0
Michigan State 2 2000 1
North Carolina State 2 1983 0
Oklahoma State 2 1946 0
San Francisco 2 1956 0
Arizona 1 1997 1
Arkansas 1 1994 1
California 1 1959 1
City College of New York 1 1950 0
Georgetown 1 1984 3
Holy Cross 1 1947 0
La Salle 1 1954 0
Loyola (Ill.) 1 1963 0
Marquette 1 1977 1
Maryland 1 2002 0
Ohio State 1 1960 4
Oregon 1 1939 0
Stanford 1 1942 0
Syracuse 1 2003 2
UNLV 1 1990 0
Utah 1 1944 1
UTEP 1 1966 0
Virginia 1 2019 0
Wisconsin 1 1941 1
Wyoming 1 1943 0



LO MÁS LEÍDO

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *