NCAA Tournament
For those of you who do not know, NCAA stand for National Collegiate Athletic Association – an association which promotes and organizes athletic events amongst different colleges on different levels.
The NCAA tournament is carried out in different seasons in the United States. Let’s take an example of the basketball teams—there are almost 68 various college basketball teams across the United States which take part in this tournament. The purpose of the tournament is obviously to establish the champion college team of that season.
The NCAA tournament started back in 1939; originally thought of by a coach at Ohio State University, it was accumulatively put together by the National Association of the Basketball Coaches. This tournament has been mainly held in March, which is why it was also nick named as March Madness.
NCAA Tournament has gained a lot of popularity over the years, and has become one of the most popular events in the United States. As the tournament became famous, the live broadcast of the games was also made available on the Television from 1969. But that was then, and now the event is covered by the likes of CBS, TNT, truTV and TBS. By each passing year the hype about the tournament grows amongst Television viewers as they anticipate the champions of the season.
The NCAA Tournament is held for both Men and Women separately. So far it is UCLA which holds the most won championships title. There are many rituals or traditions that have become part of the tournament, such as cutting off the net after the game is won. This happens both in the regional championship games and the national champion ship games as well. The seniors make the first attempt, followed by the juniors and in the last it is the head coach who cuts the last strand.
NCAA Tournament Schedule
Here are the dates and locations for the 2012 NCAA men’s basketball tournament:
• Selection Sunday
March 11, 2012
• First Round
March 13-14, 2012
UD Arena (Dayton, Ohio)
• Second-Third Rounds
March 15, 17, 2012
Rose Garden (Portland, Oreg.)
The Pit (Albuquerque, N.M.)
Consol Energy Center (Pittsburgh)
KFC Yum! Center (Louisville, Ky.)
March 16, 18, 2012
Nationwide Arena (Columbus, Ohio)
Qwest Center Omaha (Omaha, Neb.)
Bridgestone Arena (Nashville, Tenn.)
Greensboro, N.C. (Greensboro, N.C.)
• East Regional
March 22, 24, 2012
TD Garden (Boston)
• Southwest Regional
March 22, 24, 2012
US Airway Center (Phoenix)
• Midwest Regional
March 23, 25, 2012
Edward Jones Dome (St. Louis)
• Southeast Regional
March 23, 25, 2012
Georgia Dome (Atlanta)
• National Semifinals
March 31, 2012
Louisiana Superdome (New Orleans)
• Championship Game
April 2, 2012
Louisiana Superdome (New Orleans)