Sports fans across the world are busy writing down and scratching out their NCAA tournament brackets, but when is the deadline to get in on March Madness?
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WATCH HEREThe tournament’s first day will come later this week, but the “First Four” games will get underway on Tuesday night in Dayton, Ohio.
In those games, St. Francis will be taking on Alabama State for the No. 16 seed in the South Region, with the winner advancing to take on Auburn on Thursday afternoon.
In the nightcap, North Carolina and San Diego State will square off for the right to face Ole Miss in the South Region’s first round on Friday afternoon.
Tomorrow’s games will feature Mount Saint Mary’s and American facing off, with the winner earning a shot at Duke in the first round. The Xavier-Texas nightcap will determine which team will face Illinois on Friday in Milwaukee.
Despite those games taking place under the NCAA tournament banner, they typically aren’t included in March Madness brackets, and as a result you’ll still have time to fill your bracket out before the competition gets underway in earnest.
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Brackets on websites like CBS Sports and ESPN will lock at 11:15 a.m. Central time on Thursday when Louisville and Creighton tip-off in their first-round game in the South Region. Purdue and High Point will then square off at 11:40 a.m., kicking off a day of 16 games.
In all, there will be 48 games played in the first four games of the tournament, including 16 more on Friday and then eight each on Saturday and Sunday.
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SIGN UP By the end of the weekend, the tournament will already be down to its Sweet 16 teams, who will have a few days off before the tournament resumes next week.
