NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament: Preview, Brackets, Schedule and Locations
The participants for the upcoming NCAA Men's basketball tournament have been unveiled, now it's time to find out the locations that will serve as the battlegrounds.
The Florida Gators, Virginia Cavaliers, Arizona Wildcats and Wichita State Shockers are all hailed as the top seeds of their groups. However, winning the elusive National Championship won't be easy; the brackets are loaded with teams capable of pulling off an upset.
South Regional - Memphis, Tenn.
Florida, the overall top seed in the tournament, will open their NCAA men's basketball campaign against the winner of the First Four match between Albany and Mount St. Mary's on March 20 at Amway Center in Orlando, Fla. No. 2 seed Kansas, on other hand, will take on Eastern Kentucky on March 21 at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo.
West Regional - Anaheim, Calif.
The West Regional tournament will feature Pac-12 kingpin Arizona Wildcats and traditional tournament powerhouse Wisconsin Badgers. Up-and-coming basketball programs such as Creighton, San Diego State and Baylor are also placed in the bracket, making it a very competitive West Regional tournament. The Wildcats will open their campaign against Weber State on March 21 at Veijas Arena in San Diego California while the Badgers will play the American University Eagles in the second round.
Midwest Regional - Indianapolis, Ind.
After going undefeated in the regular season and sweeping the conference tournament, Wichita State is in for a very perilous tournament after being bracketed along with Kentucky Wildcats, Duke Blue Devils, last year's finalist Michigan Wolverines and defending champion Louisville Cardinals. The Shockers will play the winner of the first round match between Cal Poly and Texas Southern, while no.2 seed Michigan plays Warford on March 20 in Milwaukee.
East Regional - New York City, N.Y.
The Big Apple will host the East Regional Finals, and it is expected to be a rowdy one with No. 1 seed Virginia, No. 2 Villanova, No. 3 Iowa State, No. 5 Cincinnati and No. 6 North Carolina all bracketed in the same group. Virginia will play Coastal Carolina on March 21 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina while No. 2 Villanova takes on Milwaukee on March 20.
Schedule & Locations
The Sweet 16 and Elite Eight matches will be held in four satellite locations (FedEx Forum, Honda Center, Madison Square Garden and Lucas Oil Stadium), while AT&T Stadium will host the Men's Final Four matches and the National Championship game. Full Brackets can be seen here while locations and schedule can be found here.