We all discovered which of 68 teams will participate in the "Big Dance" when they were announced on Selection Sunday, March 12, 2023.
This year's madness kicks off with the First Four games in Dayton on Tuesday, March 14 and Wednesday, March 15 (see schedule, below).
With matches set, the first round begins on Thursday, March 16. The second round kicks off that weekend on Saturday, March 18.
As the teams drill down to the favored few, watch for the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight matchups to happen the week after.
Wrapping it all up are the Final Four games in Houston on Saturday, April 1 and the championship game on Monday, April 3.
2023 March Madness top contenders
UPDATE: Ladies and gentlemen, the winner of the 2023 NCAA Championship final are the UConn Huskies, who beat San Diego State by a final score of 76-59
2023 March Madness TV schedule
As usual, the First Four rounds will air on truTV. Sharing first and second round coverage will be CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV.
Thereafter, the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 rounds will air on TBS and CBS.
Watch for the Final Four (Saturday, April 1) and the Championship game (Monday, April 3) to air exclusively on CBS.
Meanwhile, keep it here for times and TV channels along with team matchups and final scores for every game of the 2023 Men's NCAA basketball tournament.
Championship Final
DATE
GAME
Monday, April 3
(4) UConn 76, (5) San Diego St. 59
Final Four final scores
DATE
GAME
Saturday, April 1
(5) San Diego St.72, (9) Florida Atlantic 71
(4) UConn 72, (5) Miami 59
Elite Eight final scores
DATE
GAME
Saturday, March 25
No. 9 Florida Atlantic 79, No. 3 Kansas State 76
No. 4 UConn 82, No. 3 Gonzaga 54
Sunday, March 26
No. 5 San Diego St. 57,. No. 6 Creighton 56
No. 5 Miami (FL) 88, No. 2 Texas 81
Sweet 16 final scores
DATE
GAME
Friday, March 24
No. 6 San Diego State 71, No. 1 Alabama 64
No. 5 Miami 89, No. 1 Houston 75
No. 6 Creighton . 86, No. 15 Princeton 75
No. 2 Texas 83, No. 3 Xavier 71
Sweet 16 final scores
DATE
GAME
Thursday, March 23
No. 3 Kansas State 98, No. 7 Michigan State 93
No. 4 UConn 88, No. 8 Arkansas 65
No. 9 Florida Atlantic 62, No. 4 Tennessee 55
No. 3 Gonzaga 79, No. 2 UCLA 76
Second round final scores
DATE
GAME
Sunday, March 19
No. 3 Xavier 84, No. 11 Pittsburgh 73
No. 3 Kansas State 75, No. 6 Kentucky 69
No. 7 Michigan State 69, No. 2 Marquette 60
No. 4 UConn 70, No. 5 Saint Mary's 55
No. 6 Creighton 85, No. 3 Baylor 76
No. 9 Florida Atlantic 78, No. 16 FDU 70
No. 5 Miami (Fla.) 85, No. 4 Indiana 69
No. 3 Gonzaga 84, No. 6 TCU 81
Second round final scores
DATE
GAME
Saturday, March 18
No. 5 San Diego State 75, No. 13 Furman 52
No. 4 Tennessee 65, No. 5 Duke 52
No. 8 Arkansas 72, No. 1 Kansas vs. 71
No. 15 Princeton 78, No. 7 Missouri vs. 63
No. 1 Houston 81, No. 9 Auburn 64
No. 2 Texas 71, No. 10 Penn State 66
No. 2 UCLA 68, No. 7 Northwestern 63
No. 1 Alabama 73, No. 8 Maryland 51
First round final scores
DATE
GAME
Friday, March 17
(7) Michigan State 72, (10) USC 62
(3) Xavier 72, (14) Kennesaw State 67
(3) Baylor 74, (14) UC Stanta Barbara 56
(5) Saint Mary's 63, (12 ) VCU 51
(2) Marquette 78, (15) Vermont
(11) Pittsburgh 59, (6) Iowa State 41
(6) Creighton 72, (11) NC State 63
(4) UConn 87, (13) Iona 63
(16) Fairleigh Dickinson 63, (1) Purdue 58
(6) Kentucky 61, (11) Providence 53
(5) Miami 63, (12) Drake 56
(3) Gonzaga 82, (14) Grand Canyon 70
(9) FAU 66, (8) Memphis 65
(3) Kansas State 77, (14) Montana State 65
(4) Indiana 71, (13) Kent State 60
TCU 72, (11) Arizona State 70
First Round final scores
DATE
GAME
Thursday, March 16
(9) Maryland 67, (8) West Virginia 65
(13) Furman 68, (4) Virginia 67
(7) Missouri 76, (10) Utah State 65
(1) Kansas 96, (16) Howard 68
(1) Alabama 96, (16) Texas A&M - CC 75
(5) San Diego St. 63, (12) Charleston 57
(15) Princeton 59, (2) Arizona 55
(8) Arkansas 73, (9) Illinois 73
(9) Auburn 83, (8) Iowa 75
(5) Duke 74, (12) Oral Roberts 51
(2) Texas 81, (15) Colgate 61
(7) Northwestern 75, (10) Boise State 67
(1) Houston 63, (16) Northern Kentucky 52
(4) Tennessee 58, (13) Lousiana 55
(10) Penn State 76, (7) Texas A&M 59
(2) UCLA 86, (15) UNC Asheville 53
First Four final scores
DATE
GAME
Tuesday, March 14
Texas A&M-CC 75, SE Missouri State 71
Pittsburgh 60, Mississippi State 59
Wednesday, March 15
Fairleigh Dickinson 84, Texas Southern 61
Arizona State 98, Nevada 73
March Madness tickets - watching the games live
The initial scramble for March Madness tickets for the first four, second/third round and regional games begins in late summer or fall of the year before.
Meanwhile, scoring tickets to local games means getting ready to pounce as venues are announced in March - whether its smaller college arenas, or mega-venues such as Madison Square Garden in New York City.
FINAL FOUR: For the most sought-after finals, the NCAA annually puts about 40% of allotted Final Four tickets up for grabs in a random selection process the year before. The rest are managed by their official partner, Prime Sport. They provide a safe venue for fans to swap or sell tickets for popular final game tickets. Don't forget that as the tournament heats up, prices can range anywhere from $30 and upwards to $15,000!
BUT BE CAREFUL OUT THERE: As usual, be wary of the unscrupulous ticket seller on Craig's list or any other person looking to score on the frenzy for March Madness tickets. Say no to cash payments and only use a credit card to have record of your purchase and to contest any argument. Pro Tip: Buy from reputable sites like StubHub and TicketsNow which offer guarantees for refunds or exchanges on ticket errors or canceled games.
March Madness trivia & fun facts
The
phrase March Madness was coined by Henry V. Porter in
1939 to describe an Illinois high school basketball tourney. Brent
Musburger first used it during NCAA coverage in 1982 causing a legal
battle almost as insane as the playoffs.
But
everyone finally worked things out and the madness was official.
There isn't a good record of who first called the playoffs "The
Big Dance", but it does describe the action.
The 5 schools
who have the winningest history in NCAA Division I Men's basketball
are:
UCLA with 11 championships;
Kentucky
who won the March Madness games 7 times;
Indiana with
5 Big Dance victories;
North
Carolina outlasted all the other teams 4 times, including
their championship win in 2005, and
Duke with 5 titles, the most recent in a nail biter over Wisconsin in 2015.
Although past
history is no guarantee in this Cinderella-laced NCAA tournament,
number one seeds have won every time in the first round for the
past 16 years and number two seeds have only lost three first round
games... a 95% win average.
What makes the
brackets exciting are the number 13 and 14 seeds who came out winners
in the first round 20 times since 1992... a sweet 16% that leads
to dreams of glory. Watch for them in your brackets. Also look for teams
from smaller conferences or those who had a bad start to the season,
but got their game on during the last weeks to pull off an invitation.
A power player in a slump or on a injury roster can mean
a lower seed for a solid team.
March Madness 2023 NCAA.com - Check out the official site for ticket information, the latest updates,
scores, ranking and related pictures, videos, and feature stories, interviews
and more.
NCAA
Basketball - CBS Sports - Here's headline reports & predictions, opinion
and news, plus the latest scores at a glance and key dates for major games.