March Madness refers to the annual NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, which have a history rooted in a 1939 high school event in Illinois before a CBS broadcaster used the term for the college tournament in 1982. The tournament has expanded over the decades from a small field of eight teams in 1939 to the current 68-team knockout bracket format.
Tournament format and origins
- The first tournament: The inaugural NCAA men’s tournament was held in 1939 with an eight-team field, organized by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. The Oregon Ducks won the first title by defeating Ohio State.
- Expansion through the years: The tournament field gradually expanded from 8 to 16 teams in 1951, 32 teams in 1975, and 64 teams in 1985. The current 68-team format, which includes the “First Four” play-in games, was established in 2011.
- “March Madness” nickname: The phrase “March Madness” was first coined by Illinois High School Association official Henry V. Porter in 1939 to describe the state’s high school basketball tournament. The term became associated with the NCAA tournament after CBS broadcaster Brent Musburger used it during coverage in 1982.
Notable historical highlights
- Early rivalries: In its early years, the NCAA tournament competed for prestige with the National Invitation Tournament (NIT), which was founded a year earlier in 1938 and was initially more popular.
- Landmark championship games:
- 1966: Texas Western (now UTEP) defeated Kentucky to become the first team with an all-black starting lineup to win the championship.
- 1979: The championship game featured future NBA rivals Larry Bird (Indiana State) and Magic Johnson (Michigan State), drawing significant national attention.
- 1985: An 8th-seeded Villanova team defeated top-seeded Georgetown in a major championship upset.
- Major upsets: The tournament is known for its upsets, also called “Cinderella stories”. Two of the most significant upsets in the men’s tournament include:
- 2018: 16-seed UMBC became the first No. 16 seed to defeat a No. 1 seed, beating Virginia.
- 2023: Fairleigh Dickinson joined the club by also defeating a No. 1 seed (Purdue).
Selection process and logistics
Revenue and impact: The tournament has become a massive commercial success for the NCAA, generating billions of dollars in revenue from media rights, merchandise, and ticket sales.