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Instead of "March Madness", perhaps we should call it "March Sports Madness" as the month is loaded with action from a variety of top-notch events. Forgive us if we leave anything out.
The World Baseball Classic has its final qualifier tournament in Tucson March 2-6. So far, we have 18 that have qualified with 2 entries remaining. Brazil, China, Colombia and Germany are the teams vying for the coveted spots. Germany will be looking to advance for the first time. Samurai Japan are the defending champions, downing the United States 3-2 in Miami in 2023 with a final strikeout delivered by Shohei Ohtani to Mike Trout. The tournament will take place March 6-19, 2026 in Tokyo, San Juan, Miami and Houston.
The NFL Combine, which begins today (February 27) runs through Sunday, March 2 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Later this month, the United Football League looks to build on its 2024 success when it kicks off its 10-game regular season on March 28 when the St. Louis Battlehawks visit the Houston Roughnecks. The Birmingham Stallions won last year's championship game, blanking the San Antonio Brahmas 25-0 in St. Louis.
The 2025 Major League Baseball season will begin early for the defending world champion Los Angeles Dodgers with Ohtani and Company facing the Chicago Cubs at the Tokyo Dome on March 18 and 19. Opening day for the bulk of the league is March 27. The New York Yankees will host the Milwaukee Brewers and will have the first pitch on that festive day at 3:05, two minutes ahead of the Toronto Blue Jays at the Baltimore Orioles at 3:07.
As for March Madness basketball, keep track of all of the conference tournaments brackets at HoopsHD.com. Here are the dates/location for each of the men's tournament:
ACC: March 11-15. Charlotte, North Carolina
American East: March 8-15. Campus sites
American: March 12-16 Arlington, Texas
ASUN: March 2-9, Campus sites
Atlantic 10: March 12-16. Washington, DC.
Big East: March 12-15. New York's Madison Square Garden
Big Sky: March 8-12. Boise, Idaho
Big South: March 5-9. Johnson City, Tennessee
B1G: March 12-16. Indianapolis, Indiana
Big XII: March 11-15. Kansas City, Missouri
Big West: March 12-15. Henderson, Nevada
CAA: March 7-11. Washington, DC.
CUSA: March 11-15. Huntsville, Alabama
Horizon: March 4 & 6 at Campus sites, March 10-11 at Indianapolis
Ivy League: March 15-16. Providence, Rhode Island
Metro Atlantic: March 11-15, Atlantic City, New Jersey
MAC: March 13-15. Cleveland, Ohio
MEAC: March 12-15. Norfolk, Virginia
Missouri Valley: March 6-9. St. Louis, Missouri
Mountain West: March 12-15. Las Vegas, Nevada
Northeast: March 5-11. Campus sites
Ohio Valley: March 5-8. Evansville, Indiana
Patriot: March 4-12. Campus sites
SEC: March 12-16. Nashville, Tennessee
Southern: March 7-10. Asheville, North Carolina
Southland: March 9-12. Lake Charles, Louisiana
SWAC: March 11-15. Atlanta, Georgia
Summit League: March 5-9. Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sun Belt: March 4-10. Pensacola, Florida
West Coast: March 6-11. Las Vegas, Nevada
WAC: March 11-15. St. George, Utah
The NCAA selection begins Sunday, March 16 at 6:00 p.m. eastern time on CBS and First Four games will take place Tuesday & Wednesday, March 18 & 19 in Dayton. First round games will be held on March 20 & 21.
This year's Final Four games will take place April 5 & 7 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
The women's conference tournaments are almost universally a week ahead of the men. The NCAA women's selection show is Sunday, March 16 at 8 p.m. eastern time on ESPN and First Four games will be held March 18 & 19 with the Final Four April 4-6 at Amalie Arena in Tampa. The 2024 women's tournament saw a cumulative 22% increase in attendance over 2023. Ratings were up 289% over 2022 and 90% over 2023.
Here are some of the other highlights on the March Sports Schedule:
The LPGA will return from its Asia Swing the end of March for the Ford Championship in Chandler, Arizona. That's an important date as it will mark the return of Nelly Korda after she is skipping the Asia Swing to protect her health after a neck injury late last year in a season that saw her win a ridiculous 7 tournaments against a field that is miles stronger than it has ever been in its history. Mickey Wright owns the record with 13 in 1963 and in recent history, Annika Sorenstam tied Wright's 1964 total of 11 to rank as the second most all-time.
The PGA hits Florida in March with the Cognizant at Palm Beach Gardens today through March 2, the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill March 6-9, and the "fifth major" - the TPC at Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach from March 13-16. The Florida leg finishes with a trek across the state to the gulf coast for the Valspar at Palm Harbour from March 20-23.
IndyCar racing also hits Florida with the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 2 while NASCAR that same day stages the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix in Austin. NASCAR will be in Vegas March 16.
The NBA waiver deadline for playoff eligibility is March 1, and the FIS World Cup of Skiing is March 1-8 in Norway.
Bowlers will converge on Reno, Nevada for the annual The World Series of Bowling from March 3-22.
Spring practice begins today (February 27) for Army West Point, tomorrow for Clemson, and not until April 4 for Kansas State. Most teams get underway at some point in March and most of the spring games take place April 19 or 26. Some teams have canceled spring games because of the poaching that has been seen following those exhibitions over the past couple of years. Defending national champion Ohio State is leading that parade along with Nebraska, Texas, USC, Missouri and Florida State. Don't be surprised if that list grows much longer because, as Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule said in making the announcement, “To go out and bring in a bunch of new players and showcase them for all the other schools to watch, that doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.”