March Madness and UNC’s Chances to Lift their Seventh Title
When you hear “March Madness,” you already know it’s time for some college basketball games
It’s arguably the most anticipated National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1 men’s and women’s tournament usually played in March. The 2024 NCAA Division 1 Championship will see 68 college basketball teams compete.
Why It Is Called March Madness?
The term ‘March Madness’ dates back to 1939 when eight teams had to compete for the title. Henry V. Porter, a local basketball official at the time, used “March Madness” to describe the tournament.
The moniker only became popular in 1982, when CBS broadcaster Brent Musburger used it within his CBS coverage of the NCAA. He revealed that he got the term from a car dealership commercial he watched while broadcasting the Illinois State High School Basketball tournament.
What You Need to Know About This Tournament
Of the 68 sides, 32 teams enter the competition via automatic bids. That is, they qualify by winning their respective conference tournaments. The remaining 36 slots are reserved for teams that didn’t win their conference tournaments. From this point, a selection committee will decide the remaining teams to be included in the tournament bracket to fill the remaining slots.
Once this is set, players from across the state can wager on games in the tournament. For instance, some bookmakers will set a bracket challenge for bettors to participate. In North Carolina, various betting companies are set to storm the state with their various apps when they go live. Expect FanDuel, Caesars North Carolina, BetMGM, and DraftKings to launch in NC on March 11, just in time for March Madness. These apps for North Carolina sports betting will allow people to place bets on the North Carolina Tar Steel, the NBA, and NCAA basketball events.
The March Madness tournament format is quite simple. Eight teams compete in the first four rounds, eliminating four and leaving four to join the remaining 60 teams. In the same week, these 64 teams, making the first round, lock horns to advance to the second round. From there, these teams are narrowed down to 16 (the ‘Sweet Sixteen’). Eight teams make it out to the quarter-finals, known as the ‘Elite 8’. After the ‘Elite 8’ is the final four, before the Championship game that decides the competition’s winner.
UNC Chances in the 2024 March Madness
The UNC men’s basketball team is one of the most successful teams in the NCAA. They’ve won six titles, with the last one coming in 2017.
They trail behind UCLA and Kentucky with 11 and eight national championships, respectively. The Tar Heels didn’t qualify for the NCAA tournament’s last edition (2023). The last time they had a similar experience was in 2010. However, they are now in a comfortable position to make it to the 2024 stage.
To conclude, the 2024 March Madness is surely one to not miss out on. The tournament will commence on March 19 and end on April 8, with the championship game set to be held at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. If you want to bet on the UNC during the competition, the Tar Heels’ squad is in wonderful shape and will likely make it to the tournament. With so much experience in the competition, they are surely one of the tournament’s favourites. You can back them to win the NCAA Championship on the best betting apps in North Carolina when they go live.