It’s time to do your college basketball team research, fill out your brackets, and make predictions, because March Madness 2024 will be here in just one week. The NCAA Tournament starts with Selection Sunday on March 17, and the first game tips off on March 19.
Cheering on your favorite team and watching them dominate the bracket is always what a fan dreams about during March Madness, but those underdog upsets are just as exciting during the NCAA Tournament. Half the fun is bragging to your friends and co-workers as your predictions come true throughout the tournament, though there are always those surprise low-seeded winners that throw off almost everyone’s bracket.
As you prepare to watch the top games and your favorite team’s journey toward the NCAA Tournament, you might notice that the games will be spread out across several channels this year. For anyone without cable, it can be a struggle to figure out where to watch March Madness games online. Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered on how to watch March Madness online this year.
To watch the college basketball tournaments in real-time, see our guide below to streaming the 2023 NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament games online.
When and where is March Madness happening?
One of the biggest events in college sports, March Madness launches with Selection Sunday on March 17 for both the Men’s and Women’s tournaments, and the First Four tip-off happens a few days later on March 19 for the Men’s teams and March 20 for the Women’s teams.
The games will be played around the country with the Men’s Final Four teams going head to head at State Farm Studio in Phoenix, Arizona and the Women’s teams standing off at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio.
How can you watch March Madness without cable?
Those with cable can view most of the Sunday Selection and the Men’s March Madness NCAA games on CBS, with some of the tournament games also broadcasting on TBS, TNT and TruTV. The Women’s March Madness NCAA games will mostly air on ESPN and their sister sites like ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN News and ABC, as well as ESPN+.
If you want access to all the college basketball online, we’ve got you covered with live TV streaming options to watch the tournament starting with Sunday Selection up until the nail-biting March Madness Championship Game ends. Keep reading to learn more about all of your options.
ET, CBS and Paramount+ with Showtime are all subsidiaries of Paramount.
Hulu + Live TV
Hulu + Live TV is the only streaming service that will offer you access to all the Men’s and Women’s March Madness Tournament. A Hulu + Live TV plan starts at $76.99 per month and includes ESPN+ and Disney+ for no extra charge. Hulu + Live TV carries all the channels you need to watch the March Madness games including CBS, ESPN, TNT, TBS, TruTV and CBS Sports.
Sling TV
While they don’t have CBS, with Sling TV you can stream college basketball games that air on ESPN, TruTV, TBS and TNT live with Sling TV’s Blue Plan — for as low as $22.50 for your first month and then $45 per month after the promotional month.
To watch the March Madness games airing on CBS, pair Sling TV and Paramount+ with Showtime.
FuboTV
Fubo offers NCAA Basketball coverage on a variety of channels — including CBS, ABC and a variety of ESPN channels — to watch games live without cable. Start your seven-day free trial, then get $20 off your first month while you follow your favorite teams all season long with plans starting at $80 per month.
To watch the March Madness games airing on TNT, TBS and TruTV, pair FuboTV with Sling TV or Max.
Paramount+ with Showtime
The CBS streaming home, Paramount+, will stream the CBS March Madness coverage live, including the Men’s Tournament Sunday Selection for those with a Paramount+ with Showtime plan. You can sign up for a Paramount+ with Showtime plan directly or add the service to your Prime Video account. Both options are $12 per month.
To watch March Madness games that are not airing on CBS, pair Paramount+ with Showtime and Sling TV to catch all the March Madness games.
For those only watching the Men’s Tournament and won’t need access to ESPN (where the women’s Tournament will air), pair Paramount+ with Showtime and Max for access to all of the men’s March Madness games.
Sign Up for Paramount+ with Showtime
Add Paramount+ with Showtime to Prime Video
Max
Right now, Max is giving subscribers a complimentary B/R Sports Add-On package, which has a $10/month value, so it will only cost you the amount of a Max subscription, which starts at $10/month. This add-on allows viewers to watch 46 NCAA Men’s Division games airing on TNT, TBS and TruTV during March Madness.
To access every March Madness game, pair Max with FuboTV.
For those only watching the Men’s Tournament, pair Max with Paramount+ with Showtime.
Sign Up for Max B/R Sports Add-On
How to watch March Madness for free?
We haven’t figured out how to watch all of March Madness for free at home, but Paramount+ and FuboTV both offer free 7-day trials to eligible customers, so you could watch select games for free within this time frame. Keep in mind that this will not give you access to the entire NCAA March Madness tournament. Because the tournament takes place over three weeks, you run the chance of missing out on the fun if your team progresses.
Try the Paramount+ with Showtime Trial
Which teams are participating in NCAA March Madness?
There will be 68 Division I college basketball teams playing in the NCAA March Madness tournament. These teams and schools will be finalized on Selection Sunday, March 17. You can learn how to stream Selection Sunday.
We have some ideas of who will likely make it to the tournament. Bracket expert Jerry Palm of CBS Sports is predicting that UConn, Houston, Purdue and Tennessee will be first seeds in their regions. And we can expect the usuals like Duke, Gonzaga, UCLA, Baylor, Texas, Kansas State and Marquette to make it far into the tournament.
But like any March Madness fan knows, you never truly know what will happen during this championship tournament.
The March Madness Schedule 2024
Here is the schedule for March Madness 2024.
The 85th edition of the Men’s NCAA tournament begins with Selection Sunday on March 17, 2024.
- Selection Sunday: Sunday, March 17 on CBS
- First Four: March 19-20
- First round: March 21-22
- Second round: March 23-24
- Sweet 16: March 28-29
- Elite Eight: March 30-31
- Final Four: Saturday, April 6 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona
- NCAA championship game: Monday, April 8 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona
The Women’s NCAA tournament also begins with Selection Sunday on March 17, 2024.
- Selection Sunday: Sunday, March 17 on ESPN
- First Four: March 20-21
- First round: March 22-23
- Second round: March 24-25
- Sweet 16: March 29-30
- Elite Eight: March 31- April 1
- Final Four: Friday, April 5 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio
- NCAA championship game: Sunday, April 7 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio
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