College basketball’s signature tournament is nearly upon us. After months of battling, Sunday brings the start of the 2022 March Madness tournament: Selection Sunday. After a wild 2021-22 season, including a recent Saturday that saw seven of the top 10 men’s teams lose in one day, today is the day we find out who will be competing for a Division I national champion.
A number of schools have already punched their tickets either through winning their respective conference tournaments or through strong play during the regular season. Where they will seed and who they will play remains a mystery. The men’s tournament will be revealed at 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT) with the Selection Sunday show on CBS.
Here’s all you need to know to watch the reveal — and March Madness — without cable.
Paolo Banchero (#5) and the rest of the Duke Blue Devils will find out Sunday where they rank heading into March Madness.
Sarah Stier/Getty ImagesWhen is Selection Sunday?
Selection Sunday is March 13. The Selection Show, which reveals all 68 teams playing in the men’s NCAA tournament, will air at 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT) on CBS.
When does March Madness start?
The First Four games will take place on Tuesday, March 15, and Wednesday, March 16.
The First Round, which features 64 teams, begins on Thursday, March 17 and continues on Friday, March 18.
Where is the Final Four taking place?
The Final Four and national championship game will take place in New Orleans at the Caesars Superdome and will air on TBS.
Which channels will air March Madness games?
Games for the NCAA tournament will air on CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV.
Per the NCAA, here is the breakdown of where you can find games:
- CBS will broadcast 21 games throughout the tournament, including the Elite 8, Sweet 16 and first and second rounds.
- TBS will televise 21 games, including the National Championship, Final Four, Elite 8, Sweet 16 and first- and second-round games.
- TruTV will air a total of 13 games, including the First Four and the first and second rounds.
- TNT will televise 12 games, including first- and second-round matchups.
Three of the streaming services — YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV and DirecTV Stream — offer all four of the above CBS-owned stations needed to catch all of the madness this month.
You can also stream the games live at with NCAA March Madness Live, but in the past you’ve needed to log in with a TV provider to prove you are a pay-TV subscriber. You can also watch the games broadcast on CBS with Paramount Plus, but that’s less than an ideal choice, because the Final Four games and national championship game will be shown TBS this year, not CBS.
YouTube TV costs $65 a month and includes CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV to watch every game of March Madness. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to see what live, local networks are available where you live. Read our YouTube TV review.
Hulu With Live TV costs $70 a month and includes CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV. Click the “View all channels in your area” link on its welcome page to see which local channels are offered in your ZIP code. Read our Hulu With Live TV review.
DirecTV Stream’s basic, $70-a-month package includes CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV. You can use its channel lookup tool to see if you get a live feed of CBS and the other local networks in your ZIP code. Read our DirecTV Stream review.
Sling TV is a poor choice for watching March Madness because it does not include CBS. Its $35-a-month Blue plan includes TruTV along with TBS and TNT. Read our Sling TV review.
FuboTV costs $65 a month and includes CBS, but not TBS, TNT or TruTV. With the Final Four games and national championship game on TBS, FuboTV is not a good pick for college basketball fans. Click here to see which local channels you get. Read our FuboTV review.
All of the live TV streaming services above offer free trials, allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live-TV streaming services guide.
