Kristian Ferrell
The selection process for the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament is a highly anticipated event in the world of college basketball. It determines which teams will enter the tournament and their seedings and matchups in the knockout bracket. The selection process primarily takes place on Selection Sunday and the days leading up to it. Selection Sunday is a significant day for fans and teams alike, as it is when the men's brackets and seeds are publicly announced, allowing teams and fans to make game plans and travel preparations. The selection committee, composed of athletic directors and conference commissioners, plays a crucial role in deciding the teams' fate, with the exception of the 31 teams that gain automatic entry by winning their conference championships. The men's selection show is typically scheduled for 6:00 PM ET on CBS, with the women's selections announced later in the evening.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date | Sunday, March 16, 2025 |
| Time | 6:00 PM ET |
| Channel | CBS |
| Event | Selection Sunday |
| Tournament | 2025 March Madness |
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What You'll Learn
Selection Sunday
The men's and women's tournaments are the centrepieces of the basketball championship frenzy known as "March Madness". Selection Sunday is a crucial date for teams, fans, and college basketball enthusiasts, as it officially kicks off the excitement of March Madness. Once the teams are announced, they and their fans begin to make game plans and travel preparations. Millions of college basketball fans start filling in their brackets, often as part of March Madness pools and contests.
The selection process for the tournaments involves deciding which teams will compete. While 31 teams gain automatic entry by winning their conference championships, the committees select the remaining 37 teams for the men's and women's tournaments, who receive at-large bids. The committees also select four additional teams, the "First Four Out", who do not qualify for the tournament but are placed as top seeds in the National Invitation Tournament.
On Selection Sunday 2025, which took place on March 16, the men's tournament bracket was revealed at 6 pm ET on CBS, with Auburn as the No. 1 overall seed. The women's bracket was announced later that day at 8 pm ET on ESPN.
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March Madness
The annual March Madness NCAA Division I basketball tournament is one of the most exciting times of the year for college basketball fans. The single-elimination tournament format creates a thrilling environment for fans and players alike, as teams compete for the national championship.
The 2025 Selection Sunday, which took place on March 16, revealed the 68-team brackets for both the men's and women's tournaments. The men's bracket was announced at 6 p.m. ET on CBS, marking the official start of March Madness with the First Four. The women's bracket was revealed later that evening at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The First Four is considered the official start of March Madness, with teams competing in this round aiming to secure their spot in the main tournament bracket. Following the First Four, the tournament progresses through rounds such as the Sweet 16, Elite Eight, and Final Four, until eventually, a national champion is crowned.
In the men's tournament, Florida emerged as the national champion in 2025, defeating Houston in a thrilling final where they led for only 63 seconds. The Walter Clayton Jr., the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, led Florida to their intended destiny. This victory added to Florida's impressive basketball legacy, solidifying their reputation as a force to be reckoned with in college basketball.
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Brackets and seeds
The selection process for the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament determines which teams will enter the tournament and their seedings and matchups in the knockout bracket. The tournament is the centerpiece of the basketball championship frenzy known as "March Madness".
The selection process primarily takes place on Selection Sunday and the days leading up to it. Selection Sunday is when the men's brackets and seeds are released to the public. On this day, the 68-team brackets for the men's NCAA DI basketball tournament are revealed during selection shows. The men's tournament bracket is usually revealed at 6 p.m. ET, with the women's bracket announced at 8 p.m.
Before the official selections are announced on Selection Sunday, the DI Men's Basketball Committee shares its in-season top 16 seeds. This is not the official bracket, as there are many games to be played after this announcement. However, it gives an idea of what the committee thinks.
Bracketology is conducted extensively for the men's tournament, and the selection committee's work to seed the teams is just as important as their work to select the at-large teams. While the selection process starts before the seeding process, the two often overlap. Some conference tournaments do not finish until Selection Sunday itself, and there is only one hour between the end of the last game and when the brackets are officially unveiled.
Many predictions and speculations are made by various people and organizations before the official announcements. ESPN's Joe Lunardi, Ken Pomeroy of kenpom.com, Jerry Palm of CBSSports.com, Gary Parrish of CBSSports.com, and Dean Oliver of ESPN's BPI are some well-known experts in this field.
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Tournament schedule
The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, also known as March Madness, is an annual college basketball competition in the United States. The 2025 edition of the tournament commenced with Selection Sunday on March 16, during which the 68-team single-elimination bracket for the tournament was revealed. The First Four games mark the official start of the tournament.
The 2025 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championship, meanwhile, began with a selection show on Sunday, March 9, revealing a 64-team field, including 23 automatic bids. Regional competitions determined the eight quarterfinalists that advanced to the Men's Elite Eight, held at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, from March 25–29.
The Division I tournament schedule typically features a round-robin group stage, followed by a single-elimination bracket. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage, which begins with the Round of 32 and concludes with the National Championship game. The First Four games are considered a preliminary round and do not contribute to the official tournament record.
Specific dates and times for each game are usually announced during Selection Sunday, allowing fans to fill out their brackets for the Bracket Challenge Game. The Bracket Challenge allows fans to predict the outcomes of all games and select a potential champion before the tournament begins.
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Selection committee
The NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee, also known as the selection committee, is responsible for selecting the teams that will compete in the tournament. The committee is made up of athletic directors and conference commissioners from Division I men's and women's athletics, with separate committees for the men's and women's tournaments. The committees consist of one member selected from each of the five autonomy conferences and three members from the seven highest-ranked non-autonomy conferences based on basketball success. The remaining four members are chosen from the 20 other conferences. All appointments are for five-year terms. Historically, the men's committee was all-male, but recently women have been serving as well. The same is true of the women's committee, which has recently included male members.
The selection process for the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, often referred to as "March Madness," determines which teams will enter the tournament and their seedings and matchups in the knockout bracket. While 31 teams gain automatic entry by winning their conference championship, the selection committee must select the remaining 37 teams that will receive at-large bids. The committee also selects four additional teams, the "First Four Out," who do not qualify for the tournament but are placed as the top seeds in the National Invitation Tournament.
The selection committee's work primarily takes place on Selection Sunday and the days leading up to it. Selection Sunday is when the brackets and seeds for the men's and women's tournaments are released to the public. In the 2025 season, Selection Sunday took place on March 16, with the men's bracket revealed at 6 pm ET and the women's bracket announced at 8 pm.
The 2024-2025 selection committee included Bubba Cunningham, the chairperson and athletic director from North Carolina, as well as Mark Coyle, Greg Byrne, and others. The committee revealed the top 16 seeds one month before Selection Sunday, placing the teams into four regions.
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Frequently asked questions
The men's basketball selection show is on Sunday, also known as Selection Sunday.
The men's basketball tournament begins a few days after Selection Sunday. In 2025, the tournament started on March 18, two days after the selection show.
The selection process for the men's basketball tournament involves 31 teams that gain automatic entry by winning their conference championships. The remaining 37 teams are selected by a 12-member selection committee.
The men's basketball tournament is called "March Madness".
The 2025 men's basketball selection show was broadcast on CBS.
