March Madness is an informal time that refers to when the men’s and women’s basketball championship tournaments are held for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The NCAA division for the men’s basketball tournament is a single-elimination tournament with 68 teams. The national championship tournament has seven rounds. The women’s tournament consists of 64 teams that qualify by either being chosen at large entry by the NCAA committee or by winning the conference title.
The first tournament for the men was held in 1939 and remained unpopular for 20 years due to prestigious tournaments such as the National Invitation Tournament that hosted some of the best teams. The first women’s tournament was a 32-team format that started in 1982 and has since reached 64 teams in 1994.
