March Madness: how to watch the 2024 NCAA Tournament in Asia, and the teams and players to look out for
- The beloved annual tradition in American sport that is officially the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament starts this week
- Defending champions UConn are the favourites, while among the Asian players to feature are China’s Li Xinyi and Japan’s Keisei Tominaga
The countdown to March Madness, the tournament to find US college basketball’s top team, is on.
The beloved annual tradition that is officially the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament begins this week. Thousands of fans will fill out those brackets, or tournament draws, in hopes of winning the office poll or at least a bit of respect now that the matchups have been set on what is known as Selection Sunday.
Who will win it all? UConn, or the University of Connecticut, are the No 1 overall seeds and the trendy pick to claim a sixth overall title and become the first team to repeat as NCAA champion since Florida in 2006-07.
Other top seeds are Houston, Purdue and North Carolina.
But there are no obviously dominant teams this year and it could be a wild ride again; last year’s Final Four, remember, included two fifth seeds (Miami and San Diego State), the fourth-seeded Huskies and No 9 seeds Florida Atlantic.
Get ready: the tournament tips off with the First Four on Tuesday and the first round begins on Thursday.
Who is playing?
Defending national champion UConn are the No 1 overall seeds after sweeping the Big East regular-season and tournament titles. The other top seeds are Houston, Purdue and North Carolina.
Their opening games: UConn v Stetson, Houston v Longwood, Purdue v Montana State or Grambling, and North Carolina v Howard or Wagner.
Top matches
No 5 Gonzaga v No 12 McNeese State: McNeese State, aka the Cowboys, are in the tournament for the first time since 2002 and are among only four 30-win teams under first-year coach Will Wade. Zags’ seeding is their lowest in seven appearances.
No 6 South Carolina v No 11 Oregon: South Carolina tied for second in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) after being picked last in the preseason. The Ducks had to win the final Pac-12 Tournament to get in, and coach Dana Altman could face his old team (Creighton) if they get past the Gamecocks.
No 6 Clemson v No 11 New Mexico. The Tigers enter off losses in three of their past four games. Richard Pitino’s Lobos are hot after knocking off San Diego State in the Mountain West final.
No 8 Nebraska v No 9 Texas A&M. The Cornhuskers are the only Power Five programme to never win a game in the tournament. Their athletic director, Trev Alberts, made a surprise move to A&M last week to take the same job.
Players to look out for
Previously selected for the first phase of the Joe Tsai Basketball Scholarship Program in 2019, China’s Li Xinyi of Manhattan College has had an impressive start to his career. Li, who stands at six feet and nine inches (2.06 metres) and hails from Beijing, played with the national team at the U19 World Cup in 2023. In February 2, he scored 12 points in 10 minutes, without missing a single shot.
The University of Portland’s Japanese-American player, Yuto Yamanouchi-Williams made his debut for the side only on January 6 because of injury. However, he made an immediate impact, posting a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Just a fortnight later, he scored 17 points with six boards in a loss to Santa Clara.
Keisei Tominaga, also from Japan, has become a mainstay for Nebraska because of his three-point shooting ability. When he faced Purdue on January 9, Tominaga scored 19 points, including five three-pointers, to ensure his team upset one of the best national teams.
When are the games?
The First Four is in Dayton, Ohio, and first- and second-round games March 21-24 stretch from New York City to Spokane, Washington.
Sweet 16 weekend will see games March 28-31 in Boston (East Regional), Dallas (South), Detroit (Midwest) and Los Angeles (West).
The Final Four is in Glendale, Arizona, on Saturday, April 6, with the championship game the night of Monday, April 8.
How to watch?
Every game of the men’s tournament will be aired – here is a schedule that will be updated with matchups – either on CBS, TBS, TNT or TruTV and their digital platforms, including Paramount+. TBS will handle the Final Four and national title game this year.
The NCAA is streaming games via its March Madness Live option.
Those in Hong Kong looking to tune in will need to gain access to one of those streaming platforms.
Due to the time difference, most establishments showing live sports in the city will not be open when games begin.
Betting Guide
The top three betting favourites (in order) are UConn, Houston and Purdue, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
