Selection Sunday is the official beginning of March Madness. The moments where the entire country gets to see the reveal of the NCAA tournament bracket and begin the always fun process of analyzing the matchups and picking the winners.
Some love a deep dive, analyzing advanced metrics and spending plenty of time watching and reading breakdowns. Others would just as soon fill out the bracket based on mascots or school colors.
Hey, we won’t judge. March Madness is supposed to be fun.
So you’re going to want to tune in on Sunday, March 16. Here’s how to watch both the men’s and women’s Selection Shows.
What Is Selection Sunday and Why It Matters
If you can believe it, there was a time before a Selection Show. A time before “Bracketology.” Rather than tuning in on national television, selection committee members would call either a school’s head coach or athletic director and inform them that their program had made the cut.
Everyone else would see the bracket in the Monday newspaper.
Now, of course, things are very different. More people usually watch the men’s Selection Show than watch the conference tournament finals.
Even the teams get involved, anxiously waiting for their logo to appear on screen to see what seed they were given and who they’ll be playing.
Selection Sunday Schedule and Broadcast Details
The Selection Show for the men’s tournament will air on CBS at 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 16.
ESPN will air the women’s Selection Show at 8 p.m. ET, also on Sunday, March 16.
The shows will go region by region to reveal the entirety of the bracket and give quick breakdowns of each team and matchup.
Plus, they will provide some brief insight as to how the selection committee picked the 37 at-large teams and seeded the 68-team field.
How to Watch Selection Sunday on Cable TV
Whether you have a cable package or a set of rabbit ears on top of your television, you’ll be able to catch the Selection Show on CBS.
The channel number for CBS will depend on your location, but you can access the CBS network directory here.
Meanwhile, ESPN is included in just about every basic television package.
How to Stream Selection Sunday Without Cable
If you don’t have a streaming service or don’t wish to sign up for one, the Selection Show will also be broadcast on the March Madness app and clips will be available on the March Madness YouTube page.
The ESPN app will have a feed of the women’s selection show, but ESPN is also included in most streaming services.
What Happens After Selection Sunday?
After the Selection Show, the fun really begins. The First Four games will take place on Tuesday, March 18, and Wednesday, March 19. Once the two winners have been decided, the first round of the NCAA tournament will begin Thursday, March 20, and continue Friday, March 21.
Men's NCAA Tournament Schedule
This article was originally published on www.si.com as How to Watch Selection Sunday 2025, With & Without Cable.
