About 350 Division 1 teams start off each basketball season with aspirations to win the national title. Players and coaches work tirelessly throughout the season to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament. As the conference tournaments come to a close, a selection committee meets the weekend before the first tournament game and decide which teams should be invited. 31 teams are automatically invited due to their outstanding season performances which entail winning their conferences, leaving the remaining slots open for the selection committee to decide. When deliberating, they look at the rankings in the national polls, conference records, road records, and the manner in which the team ends the regular season.
Once the teams are selected, the committee assigns each team a seed which in turn effects the team’s schedule in the tournament. The teams are separated into 4 regions: the South, the East, the West, and the Midwest. The committee announces these selections on television on "Selection Sunday". Personally, I love when they announce teams that weren’t expected to participate; the “Cinderella teams”. Watching these teams react to their mention on the show is enough to get anyone excited.
The tournament itself spans about 3 weeks. In the men’s tournament there is an opening round where the “first four” play for entrance into the tournament. Over the course of the first 2 days the 64 teams are whittled down to 32 teams, and after the following 2 days these 32 teams become the “sweet 16”. The following week the 16 teams become the “final four”. The teams that make it to the final four compete for a chance at the national title in April.
Even if you know nothing about basketball, following "march madness" can be a whole of fun. The buzzer beaters, watching the "cinderella teams" play, and witnessing these kids give everything they have makes this tournament magical.
