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March Madness 2023: NCAA men’s basketball tournament TV schedule, game times and announcers

Here's everything you need to know about how to watch this year’s men’s tournament on TV and online.

This year's men's Final Four will be the last one in the play-by-play chair for CBS's Jim Nantz (center).
This year's men's Final Four will be the last one in the play-by-play chair for CBS's Jim Nantz (center).Read moreJamie Squire / Getty Images

Though none of the City Six schools is in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament this year, the event still promises to be the big spectacle it always is for college hoops diehards and casual fans alike.

Below, you’ll find everything you need to know about how to watch this year’s men’s half of March Madness on TV and online.

Click here to play Bracket Jawn, our NCAA men’s tournament bracket contest, and click on the links below to jump straight to the schedule for each round of games.

The host cities

First Four: Dayton, Ohio (University of Dayton Arena) on Tuesday, March 14 and Wednesday, March 15.

First and second rounds: Birmingham, Ala. (Legacy Arena), Des Moines, Iowa (Wells Fargo Arena), Orlando (Amway Center) and Sacramento, Calif. (Golden 1 Center) on Thursday, March 16 and Saturday, March 18; Albany, N.Y. (MVP Arena), Columbus, Ohio (Nationwide Arena), Denver (Ball Arena) and Greensboro, N.C. (Greensboro Coliseum) on Friday, March 17 and Sunday, March 19.

Regional rounds: New York (Madison Square Garden, East Region) and Las Vegas (T-Mobile Arena, West Region) on Thursday, March 23 and Saturday, March 25; Kansas City, Mo. (T-Mobile Center, Midwest), and Louisville, Ky. (KFC Yum! Center, South) on Friday, March 24 and Sunday, March 26.

Final Four and championship game: Houston (NRG Stadium) on Saturday, April 1 and Monday, April 3.

» READ MORE: A Selection Sunday drive around Philadelphia, with little March Madness to be found

TV and streaming

As ever, games are spread over four TV channels: CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV. The current rights deal runs through 2032, in case you’re wondering.

Online streaming is mainly through the March Madness Live website and apps for phones, tablets and connected TV devices like AppleTV, Roku, and Amazon Fire Stick. Streaming that way is free of charge with a login via your pay-TV provider — but you have to have a TV package to get it. There’s still no other way to buy streaming access to the games.

Even if fans don’t have a TV package, they can watch up to three hours of live action before being kicked off.

That’s one of a few perennial problems. While you can watch every game from all four TV channels on your computer, tablet, or mobile device, games on CBS aren’t available on the March Madness Live app for connected TV devices. Those streams will only be on the March Madness Live website and Paramount+, CBS’ subscription streaming platform. It’s a headache for fans who like to switch between games to catch whichever one is the most dramatic at the moment.

“We have certain games where we have to protect the exclusivity of our affiliated stations around the country,” CBS Sports chair Sean McManus said in a news conference a few days before the tournament.

The good news is that the Fast Break online live highlights show will be available on connected TV devices this year for the first time. Also new: the March Madness Live website allows viewers to watch up to four games at once. The apps for Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Google TV, and Xbox One allow fans to watch two games at once.

Finally, a reminder. If you subscribe to one of the cable-style streaming platforms (YouTube TV, fuboTV, etc.), make sure to check what your subscription includes. Some of them don’t have all the channels — for example, fuboTV doesn’t have TBS, TNT, and truTV.

Here’s the full NCAA men’s basketball tournament schedule for this year. All times listed are Eastern.

» READ MORE: March Madness 2023: NCAA women’s basketball tournament TV schedule, game times and announcers

First Four

Tuesday, March 14

The entire evening is on truTV. Pregame coverage starts at 6 p.m. and postgame coverage concludes at 12:30 a.m.

6:40 p.m.: S16a. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi vs. S16b. Southeast Missouri State at Dayton, Ohio (truTV — Tom McCarthy, Avery Johnson and Jon Rothstein)

9:34 p.m.: MW11a. Mississippi State vs. MW11b. Pittsburgh at Dayton, Ohio (truTV — Tom McCarthy, Avery Johnson and Jon Rothstein)

Wednesday, March 15

The entire evening is on truTV. Pregame coverage starts at 6 p.m. and postgame coverage concludes at 12:30 a.m.

6:40 p.m.: E16a. Texas Southern vs. E16b. Fairleigh Dickinson at Dayton, Ohio (truTV — Tom McCarthy, Avery Johnson and Jon Rothstein)

9:15 p.m.: W11a. Arizona State vs. W11b. Nevada at Dayton, Ohio (truTV — Tom McCarthy, Avery Johnson and Jon Rothstein)

First round

Thursday, March 16

Pregame shows start at noon on CBS and truTV, 1 p.m. on TNT, and 1:30 p.m. on TBS. truTV has the late-night wrap-up show, with coverage concluding at 1:30 a.m.

12:15 p.m.: S8. Maryland vs. S9. West Virginia at Birmingham, Ala. (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

12:40 p.m.: S4. Virginia vs. S13. Furman at Orlando (truTV — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

1:40 p.m.: S7. Missouri vs. S10. Utah State at Sacramento, Calif. (TNT — Brad Nessler, Brendan Haywood and Dana Jacobson)

2 p.m.: W1. Kansas vs. W16. Howard at Des Moines, Iowa (TBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

3:17 p.m.: S1. Alabama vs. S16a. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at Birmingham, Ala. (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

3:25 p.m.: S5. San Diego State vs. S12. College of Charleston at Orlando (truTV — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

4:18 p.m.: S2. Arizona vs. S15. Princeton at Sacramento, Calif. (TNT — Brad Nessler, Brendan Haywood and Dana Jacobson)

4:34 p.m.: W8. Arkansas vs. W9. Illinois at Des Moines, Iowa (TBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

6:50 p.m.: MW8. Iowa vs. MW9. Auburn at Birmingham, Ala. (TNT — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

7:10 p.m.: E5. Duke vs. E12. Oral Roberts at Orlando (CBS — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

7:25 p.m.: MW2. Texas vs. MW15. Colgate at Des Moines, Iowa (TBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

7:35 p.m.: W7. Northwestern vs. W10. Boise State at Sacramento, Calif. (truTV — Brad Nessler, Brendan Haywood and Dana Jacobson)

9:33 p.m.: E4. Tennessee vs. E13. Louisiana at Orlando (CBS — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

9:39 p.m.: MW1. Houston vs. MW16. Northern Kentucky at Birmingham, Ala. (TNT — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

10:11 p.m.: W2. UCLA vs. W15. UNC-Asheville at Sacramento, Calif. (truTV — Brad Nessler, Brendan Haywood and Dana Jacobson)

10:16 p.m.: MW7. Texas A&M vs. MW10. Penn State at Des Moines, Iowa (TBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

Friday, March 17

Pregame shows start at noon on CBS and truTV, 1 p.m. on TNT, and 1:30 p.m. on TBS. truTV has the late-night wrap-up show, with coverage concluding at 1:30 a.m.

12:15 p.m.: E7. Michigan State vs. E10 Southern California at Columbus, Ohio (CBS — Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas and Jamie Erdahl)

12:40 p.m.: MW3. Xavier vs. MW14. Kennesaw State at Greensboro, N.C. (truTV — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

1:30 p.m.: S3. Baylor vs. S14. UC-Santa Barbara at Denver (TNT — Lisa Byington, Avery Johnson, Steve Smith and Andy Katz)

2 p.m.: W5. St. Mary’s (Calif.) vs. W12. Virginia Commonwealth at Albany, N.Y. (TBS — Spero Dedes, Debbie Antonelli and AJ Ross)

2:51 p.m.: E2. Marquette vs. E15. Vermont at Columbus, Ohio (CBS — Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas and Jamie Erdahl)

3:31 p.m.: MW6. Iowa State vs. MW11b. Pittsburgh at Greensboro, N.C. (truTV — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

3:56 p.m.: S6. Creighton vs. S11. North Carolina State at Denver (TNT — Lisa Byington, Avery Johnson, Steve Smith and Andy Katz)

4:48 p.m.: W4. Connecticut vs. W13. Iona at Albany, N.Y. (TBS — Spero Dedes, Debbie Antonelli and AJ Ross)

6:50 p.m.: E1. Purdue vs. E16b. Fairleigh Dickinson at Columbus, Ohio (TNT — Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas and Jamie Erdahl)

7:13 p.m.: E6. Kentucky vs. E11. Providence at Greensboro, N.C. (CBS — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

7:35 p.m.: W3. Gonzaga vs. W14. Grand Canyon at Denver (truTV — Lisa Byington, Avery Johnson, Steve Smith and Andy Katz)

7:55 p.m.: MW5. Miami (Fla.) vs. MW12. Drake at Albany, N.Y. (TBS — Spero Dedes, Debbie Antonelli and AJ Ross)

9:44 p.m.: E8. Memphis vs. E9. Florida Atlantic at Columbus, Ohio (TNT — Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas and Jamie Erdahl)

9:56 p.m.: E3. Kansas State vs. E14. Montana State at Greensboro, N.C. (CBS — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

10:10 p.m.: W6. Texas Christian vs. W11a. Arizona State at Denver (truTV — Lisa Byington, Avery Johnson, Steve Smith and Andy Katz)

10:36 p.m.: MW4. Indiana vs. MW13. Kent State at Albany, N.Y. (TBS — Spero Dedes, Debbie Antonelli and AJ Ross)

Second round

Saturday, March 18

Pregame shows start at noon on CBS, 5 p.m. on TNT, and 7 p.m. on TBS. TBS has the late night wrap-up show, with coverage concluding at 1 a.m.

12:10 p.m.: S5. San Diego State vs. S13. Furman at Orlando (CBS — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

2:54 p.m.: E4. Tennessee vs. E5. Duke at Orlando (CBS — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

5:25 p.m.: W1. Kansas vs. W8. Arkansas at Des Moines, Iowa (CBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

6:10 p.m.: S7. Missouri vs. S15. Princeton at Sacramento, Calif. (TNT — Brad Nessler, Brendan Haywood and Dana Jacobson)

7:10 p.m.: MW1. Houston vs. MW9. Auburn at Birmingham, Ala. (TBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

8:17 p.m. (approx.): MW2. Texas vs. MW10. Penn State at Des Moines, Iowa (CBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

8:50 p.m.: W2. UCLA vs. W7. Northwestern at Sacramento, Calif. (TNT — Brad Nessler, Brendan Haywood and Dana Jacobson)

10:02 p.m.: S1. Alabama vs. S8. Maryland at Birmingham, Ala. (TBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

Sunday, March 19

Pregame shows start at noon on CBS, 5 p.m. on TNT, 7 p.m. on TBS and 7:30 p.m. on truTV. TBS has the late-night wrap-up show, with coverage concluding at 1 a.m.

12:10 p.m.: MW3. Xavier vs. MW11b. Pittsburgh at Greensboro, N.C. (CBS — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

2:55 p.m.: E3. Kansas State vs. E6. Kentucky at Greensboro, N.C. (CBS — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

5:20 p.m.: E2. Marquette vs. E7. Michigan State at Columbus, Ohio (CBS — Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas and Jamie Erdahl)

6:10 p.m.: W4. Connecticut vs. W5. St. Mary’s (Calif.) at Albany, N.Y. (TNT — Spero Dedes, Debbie Antonelli and AJ Ross)

7:10 p.m.: S3. Baylor vs. S6. Creighton at Denver, Colo. (TBS — Lisa Byington, Steve Smith, Avery Johnson and Andy Katz)

8:06 p.m.: E9. Florida Atlantic vs. E16b. Fairleigh Dickinson at Columbus, Ohio (truTV — Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas and Jamie Erdahl)

8:47 p.m.: MW4. Indiana vs. MW5. Miami (Fla.) at Albany, N.Y. (TNT — Spero Dedes, Debbie Antonelli and AJ Ross)

9:52 p.m.: W3. Gonzaga vs. W6. Texas Christian at Denver, Colo. (TBS — Lisa Byington, Steve Smith, Avery Johnson and Andy Katz)

Sweet 16

Thursday, March 23

Pregame shows start at 5:30 p.m. on TBS and 7 p.m. on CBS. TBS has the late-night wrap-up show, with coverage concluding at 12:30 a.m.

6:30 p.m.: E3. Kansas State vs. E7. Michigan State at New York (TBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

7:15 p.m.: W4. Connecticut vs. W8. Arkansas at Las Vegas (CBS — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

9:36 p.m.: E4. Tennessee vs. E9. Florida Atlantic at New York (TBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

10:04 p.m.: W2. UCLA vs. W3. Gonzaga at Las Vegas (CBS — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

Friday, March 24

Pregame shows start at 5:30 p.m. on TBS and 7 p.m. on CBS. TBS has the late-night wrap-up show, with coverage concluding at 12:30 a.m.

6:30 p.m.: S1. Alabama vs. S5. San Diego State at Louisville, Ky. (TBS — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

7:15 p.m.: MW1. Houston vs. MW5. Miami (Fla.) at Kansas City, Mo. (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

9:27 p.m.: S6. Creighton vs. S15. Princeton at Louisville, Ky. (TBS — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

9:59 p.m.: MW2. Texas vs. MW3. Xavier at Kansas City, Mo. (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

Elite 8

Saturday, March 25

TBS has the entire broadcast window. Pregame coverage starts at 5 p.m., and the late-night wrap-up show concludes at midnight.

6:09 p.m.: E3. Kansas State vs. E9. Florida Atlantic at New York (TBS — Brian Anderson, Jim Jackson and Allie LaForce)

8:59 p.m.: W3. Gonzaga vs. W4. Connecticut at Las Vegas (TBS — Kevin Harlan, Dan Bonner, Stan Van Gundy and Lauren Shehadi)

Sunday, March 26

CBS has the entire broadcast window. Pregame coverage starts at 1 p.m. There is no postgame show.

2:20 p.m.: S5. San Diego State vs. S6. Creighton at Louisville, Ky,. (CBS — Ian Eagle, Jim Spanarkel and Evan Washburn)

5:05 p.m.: MW2. Texas vs. MW5. Miami (Fla.) at Kansas City, Mo. (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

Final Four

Saturday, April 1

CBS has the entire broadcast window. Pregame coverage starts at 3 p.m. There is no postgame show.

6:09 p.m.: S5. San Diego State vs. E9. Florida Atlantic at Houston (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

8:49 p.m. (approx.): W4. Connecticut vs. MW5. Miami (Fla.) at Houston (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)

National championship game

Monday, April 3

Pregame coverage starts at 8:30 p.m. Postgame coverage wraps up when all is said and done, ending Jim Nantz’s 32-year run as the play-by-play voice of the men’s Final Four.

9:20 p.m.: W4. Connecticut vs. S5. San Diego State at Houston (CBS — Jim Nantz, Grant Hill, Bill Raftery and Tracy Wolfson)