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Sweet 16 starts today: See the full men’s March Madness schedule for 2024 NCAA tournament games
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March Madness 2024 is off to a dramatic start with major upsets, including Clemson over Baylor, as the men’s bracket heads into the Sweet 16 today. The Big Dance is delivering the quality of play and the kind of Cinderella stories that make March Madness so thrilling to watch.
Figuring out when each March Madness showdown will be played and which network or streaming platform will broadcast each game of the tournament requires a level of detective work in which most fans would rather not partake. We’ve got you covered below. This is the March Madness page to bookmark and refresh for the latest schedules, showdowns and scores of the 2024 NCAA men’s basketball tournament schedule.
CBS Essentials, CBS and Paramount+ are all subsidiaries of Paramount. CBS is one of the broadcast homes of the 2024 men’s March Madness tournament.
When is March Madness 2024?
The 2024 NCAA men’s college basketball tournament is being played from March 19, 2024 through April 8, 2024.
Sweet 16 games: March 28-29
And then there were 16. The Sweet 16 of the men’s tournament will be played Thursday March 28, 2024 through Friday, March 29, 2024. Below is the men’s Sweet 16 game schedule and matchups. All times Eastern.
Men’s March Madness Sweet 16: Thursday, March 28
Below are matchups, game times and networks airing each game being played on Thursday, March 28, 2024.
Men’s March Madness Sweet 16: Friday, March 29
Below are matchups, game times and networks airing each game being played on Friday, March 29, 2024.
March Madness 2024: Elite 8 games schedule
The Elite 8 games will be played from Saturday, March 30, 2024 through Sunday, March 31, 2024.
March Madness 2024: Final Four games schedule
The Final Four will be played on Saturday, April 6, 2024. The games will be played at State Farm Stadium in Phoenix, AZ.
March Madness 2024: NCAA Tournament Championship Game
The NCAA Tournament Championship Game will be played on Monday, April 8, 2024. The game will be played at State Farm Stadium in Phoenix, AZ at 9:20 p.m. ET. The game will air on TBS.
Completed March Madness rounds: First Four dates and scores
The First Four games were played from March 19 through March 20, 2024. All games were played at the University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, OH.
First Four winners: March 19, 2024
Below are the men’s First Four matchups and scores for Tuesday, March 19, 2024.
Tuesday, March 19 (First Four)
First Four winners: March 20, 2024
Below are the men’s First Four matchups and scores for Wednesday, March 20, 2024.
Wednesday, March 20 (First Four)
March Madness 2024: First round
The NCAA March Madness Round of 64 began on Thursday, March 21, 2024 with the Mississippi State vs. Michigan State game and ended on Friday, March 22, 2024.
March Madness first round: Thursday, March 21 game times and network
Below are the March Madness first round matchups, winners, scores and networks that aired each men’s March Madness game on Thursday, March 21, 2024. All times Eastern.
- (8) Mississippi State vs. (9) Michigan State | 12:15 p.m. | CBS (Michigan, 69-51)
- (6) BYU vs. (11) Duquesne | 12:40 p.m. | truTV (Duquense, 71-67)
- (3) Creighton vs. (14) Akron | 1:30 p.m. | TNT (Creighton 77-60)
- (2) Arizona vs. (15) Long Beach State | 2 p.m. | TBS (Arizona, 85-65)
- (1) North Carolina vs. (16) Wagner | 2:45 p.m. | CBS (North Carolina, 90-62)
- (3) Illinois vs. (14) Morehead State | 3:10 p.m. | truTV (Illinois, 85-69)
- (6) South Carolina vs. (11) Oregon | 4 p.m. | TNT (Oregon, 87-73)
- (7) Dayton vs. (10) Nevada | 4:30 p.m. | TBS (Dayton, 63-60)
- (7) Texas vs. (10) Colorado State | 6:50 p.m. | TNT (Texas, 56-44)
- (3) Kentucky vs. (14) Oakland | 7:10 p.m. | CBS (Oakland, 80-76)
- (5) Gonzaga vs. (12) McNeese | 7:25 p.m. | TBS (Gonzaga, 86-65)
- (2) Iowa State vs. (15) South Dakota State | 7:35 p.m. | truTV (Iowa State, 82-65)
- (2) Tennessee vs. (15) Saint Peter’s | 9:20 p.m. | TNT (Tennessee, 83-49)
- (6) Texas Tech vs. (11) NC State | 9:40 p.m. | CBS (NC State, 80-67)
- (4) Kansas vs. (13) Samford | 9:55 p.m. | TBS (Kansas, 93-89)
- (7) Washington State vs. (10) Drake | 10:05 p.m. | truTV (Washington State, 66-61)
March Madness first round: Friday, March 22 game times and network
Below are the game times, matchups, scores and networks that aired each first-round men’s March Madness game on Friday, March 22, 2024. All times Eastern.
- (8) Florida Atlantic vs. (9) Northwestern | 12:15 p.m. | CBS (Northwestern, 77-65)
- (3) Baylor vs. (14) Colgate | 12:40 p.m. | truTV (Baylor, 92-67)
- (5) San Diego State vs. (12) UAB | 1:45 p.m. | TNT (San Diego State, 69-65)
- (2) Marquette vs. (15) Western Kentucky | 2 p.m. | TBS (Marquette, 87-69)
- (1) UConn vs. (16) Stetson | 2:45 p.m. | CBS (UConn, 91-52)
- (6) Clemson vs. (11) New Mexico | 3:10 p.m. | truTV (Clemson, 77-56)
- (4) Auburn vs. (13) Yale | 4:15 p.m. | TNT (Yale, 78-76)
- (7) Florida vs. (10) Colorado | 4:30 p.m. | TBS (Colorado, 102, 100)
- (8) Nebraska vs. (9) Texas A&M | 6:50 p.m. | TNT (Texas, 98-83)
- (4) Duke vs. (13) Vermont | 7:10 p.m. | CBS (Duke, 64-47)
- (1) Purdue vs. (16) Grambling/Montana State | 7:25 p.m. | TBS (Purdue, 78-50)
- (4) Alabama vs. (13) College of Charleston | 7:35 pm. | truTV (Alabama, 109-96)
- (1) Houston vs. (16) Longwood | 9:20 p.m. | TNT (Houston, 86-46)
- (5) Wisconsin vs. (12) James Madison | 9:40 p.m. | CBS (James Madison, 72-61)
- (8) Utah State vs. (9) TCU | 9:55 p.m. | TBS (Utah State, 88-72)
- (5) Saint Mary’s vs. (12) Grand Canyon | 10:05 p.m. | truTV (Grand Canyon, 75-66)
March Madness 2024: Second round
The NCAA March Madness Round of 32 began on Saturday, March 23, 2024 and ended on Sunday, March 24, 2024.
March Madness second round: Saturday, March 23
Below are the March Madness second round matchups, winners and scores for games played on Saturday, March 23, 2024.
- (2) Arizona vs. (7) Dayton (Arizona, 78-68)
- (5) Gonzaga vs. (4) Kansas (Gonzaga, 89-68)
- (1) North Carolina vs. (9) Michigan State (North Carolina, 85-69)
- (2) Iowa State vs. (7) Washington State (Iowa State, 67-56)
- (11) NC State vs. (14) Oakland (NC State, 79-73)
- (2) Tennessee vs. (7) Texas (Tennessee, 62-58)
- (3) Illinois vs. (11) Duquesne (Illinois, 89-63)
- (3) Creighton vs. (11) Oregon (2OT) (Creighton, 86-73 2OT)
March Madness second round: Sunday, March 24
Below are the March Madness second round matchups, winners and scores for games played on Sunday, March 24, 2024.
- (2) Marquette vs. (10) Colorado (Marquette, 81-77)
- (1) Purdue vs. (8) Utah State (Purdue, 106-67)
- (4) Duke vs. (12) James Madison (Duke, 93-55)
- (6) Clemson vs. (3) Baylor (Clemson, 72-64)
- (4) Alabama vs. (12) Grand Canyon (Alabama, 72-61)
- (1) UConn vs. (9) Northwestern (UConn, 75-58)
- (1) Houston vs. (9) Texas A&M (OT) (Houston, 100-95 OT)
- (5) San Diego State vs. (13) Yale (San Diego State, 85-57)
How to watch March Madness 2024 without cable
If you’ve given up your cable subscription, or your cable provider doesn’t include the channels carrying March Madness this year, you can subscribe to one of the streaming or live TV platforms featured below.
How to watch March Madness 2024: Paramount+ with Showtime
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CBS will play host to some of this year’s men’s March Madness games, which means Paramount+ with Showtime subscribers can stream CBS-aired men’s March Madness games live.
The streamer offers access to all college basketball games locally and nationally televised on CBS on all its subscription tiers. In addition, you can watch top-tier soccer like the Champions League live and SEC college football games, plus popular shows such as “Survivor” and “NCIS.”
A subscription to Paramount+ with Showtime is $11.99 per month. The streamer offers a seven-day free trial. (You won’t be able to stream men’s March Madness live with a Paramount+ Essential subscription.)
Stream March Madness: Paramount + with Showtime free on Amazon Prime Video
Paramount+ content, including men’s March Madness 2024, is available to stream on Amazon Prime via a Paramount+ on Prime Video add-on subscription. Prime Video also carries some of the best sports documentaries, including “Kelce,” which chronicles former Philadelphia Eagles star Jason Kelce’s last season in the league.
Amazon is offering a seven-day free trial of Paramount+ with Showtime. Tap the button below to start your trial and start streaming now for free. After the free trial period ends, a subscription to the Paramount+ with Showtime tier is $11.99 per month.
Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle: The one way to stream every March Madness game
You can watch March Madness 2024, including both the men’s and women’s tournaments, with the Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle. The bundle features 95 channels, including CBS, ESPN, TNT, TBS, ABC and TruTV, and includes the ESPN+ streaming service, so you’ll be able to watch every game of both tournaments. The women’s Final Four will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Unlimited DVR storage is also included. Watch every March Madness game on every network this season with Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle.
Hulu + Live TV comes bundled with ESPN+ and Disney+. It’s priced at $77.
Watch March Madness free with Fubo
If you’re new to streaming sports, you should know about Fubo. Fubo is a sports-centric streaming service that offers access to every March Madness game airing on network and cable TV, plus your local TV affiliates, hundreds of cable TV channels and 1,000 hours of cloud DVR storage. Another great reason to love Fubo is its lookback feature, which lets you watch sporting events up to 72 hours after they air live.
Start watching NCAA basketball on Fubo and also get access to network-aired NFL, NBA and MLB games by starting a seven-day free trial of Fubo. You can begin watching immediately on your TV, phone, tablet or computer. Fubo starts at $80/month for the Pro tier, which includes 199 channels, but the streamer is currently offering the first month for $60.
Note: Because Fubo doesn’t carry TruTV, TBS or TNT, you won’t be able to watch every game of the tournament with a FuboTV subscription. If you want one streaming platform to watch the entire tournament, you’ll need a subscription to Hulu + Live TV.
What you’ll get with Fubo Pro Tier:
- There are no contracts with Fubo — you can cancel at any time.
- The Pro tier includes 199 channels, so there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
- Fubo includes all the channels you’ll need to watch college and pro sports, including CBS.
- In addition to March Madness, Fubo offers NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS and international soccer games.
- All Fubo tiers come with 1,000 hours of cloud-based DVR recording.
- Stream on your TV, phone and mobile devices.
Save $40 on Sling TV: The most cost-effective way to stream March Madness 2024
If you don’t have cable TV that includes TNT, TBS and ESPN, one of the most cost-effective ways to stream March Madness games this year is through a subscription to Sling TV. The streamer offers access to your local network affiliate’s live feed (excluding CBS) and also includes the NFL Network and ESPN with its Orange tier plan. Also worth noting: Sling TV comes with 50 hours of cloud-based DVR recording space included, perfect for recording all the season’s top NFL matchups.
The Orange tier is normally $40 per month, but right now Sling TV is offering a pair of offers for new subscribers. You can choose to take $10 off your first month of service on any tier or save $40 when you prepay $120 for four months of the Sling TV Orange tier.
Note: Because some men’s March Madness 2024 will be broadcast on CBS, you won’t be able to watch all men’s March Madness 2024 games with a Sling TV subscription. If you’re looking to stream the men’s tournament, we suggest a subscription to one of the other platforms featured here.
Top features of Sling TV Orange tier:
- There are 32 channels to watch in total, including ESPN, TNT and TBS.
- You get access to most local NFL games and nationally broadcast games next season at the lowest price.
- All subscription tiers include 50 hours of cloud-based DVR storage.
ESPN+: How to watch the women’s Final Four
ESPN+ is ESPN’s subscription streaming platform. It offers exclusive live events, original studio shows and top-tier series that aren’t accessible on the ESPN networks. To watch the women’s Final Four, simply sign into the ESPN app. You’ll watch college basketball at no extra charge. You can stream ESPN+ through the ESPN app on your favorite mobile device and ESPN.com. It’s also available as an app through major smart TV streaming platforms and gaming consoles such as the PS5.
Keep in mind some blackouts will prohibit you from watching certain in-market games with ESPN+, even if they’re nationally televised. If you’re looking to avoid those blackouts, we suggest subscribing to the Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle featured above.
It is important to note that ESPN+ does not include access to the ESPN network. It is a separate sports-centric service, with separate sports programming.
An ESPN+ subscription costs $10.99 per month, or save 15% when you pay annually ($110). ESPN+ is also currently offering a cost-saving bundle. Get ESPN+ (with ads), Disney+ (with ads) and Hulu (with ads) for $14.99 per month.
Watch March Madness games live with a digital HDTV antenna
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You can also watch CBS and the network’s 2024 March Madness coverage on TV with an affordable indoor antenna, which pulls in local over-the-air HDTV channels. Here’s the kicker: There’s no monthly charge.
For anyone living in a partially blocked-off area (those near mountains or first-floor apartments), a digital TV antenna may not pick up a good signal — or any signal at all. But for many homes, a digital TV antenna provides a seriously inexpensive way to watch NASCAR without paying a cable company. Indoor TV antennas can also provide some much-needed TV backup if a storm knocks out your cable.
This amplified digital antenna with a 300-mile range can receive hundreds of HD TV channels, including NBC, ABC, Fox, PBS, Univision and more (depending on your location) and can filter out cellular and FM signals. It delivers a high-quality picture in 1080p HDTV and top-tier sound. It comes with an 18-foot digital coax cable.
California voters will soon decide on a high-profile ballot measure that would increase penalties for certain drug and theft crimes.
Last week, CBS News California took a closer look at the drug component of Proposition 36 — also known as The Homeless, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act.
Here, we examine whether retail theft is really on the rise in California and whether the tough-on-crime Proposition 36 would actually help.
Are California retail crime rates up? Yes and no.
We analyzed data from the California Department of Justice (DOJ), which shows that statewide retail crime — which includes shoplifting, commercial robberies and burglaries, and organized retail theft — reached its highest levels in two decades in 2023, with about 213,000 reported incidents.
Shoplifting and commercial robbery in 2023 were both at their highest levels since 1997 — however, there were nearly seven times the number of shoplifting incidents than there were robberies. In 2023, the number of reported non-residential burglaries was slightly higher than in pre-pandemic years but lower than levels seen during the pandemic.
Statewide, reported shoplifting crimes increased by about 2% from the five years before another controversial ballot measure was passed by California voters to the five years after. Passed in 2014, Proposition 47 made hard drug possession and theft under $950 misdemeanors instead of felonies.
In 2015, immediately after Proposition 47 was passed, there was a 12% increase in statewide shoplifting, but those numbers ended up decreasing in the years after.
In 2023, reported shoplifting statewide rose 26% from 2019 levels. However, last year’s numbers for both shoplifting and overall retail crime were far lower than those of the 1980s and 1990s, and the trends vary from county to county.
Compared to pre-pandemic (2015-2019) averages, about half of California counties saw an increase in shoplifting in 2023, while the other half saw a decrease, according to state crime data.
There were significant jumps in many larger, more populated counties, but some large counties saw decreases.
According to a Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) study of data from the DOJ, a statewide increase in overall retail theft between 2019-2023 was mostly driven by “11 of the state’s 15 most populous counties but generally decreased in smaller counties.”
For instance, the PPIC study shows that rises in retail crime in Sacramento County, Alameda County, San Mateo County and Los Angeles County during those five years accounted for more than 90% of the statewide increase over that time.
Property crime in California, which includes all robberies, burglaries, and thefts regardless of location jumped above the national average for the first time in 2015 and saw a gradual decrease afterward, state and federal crime data show.
However, the statewide property crime rate has remained above the national average ever since that jump and has separated from the national average more after the pandemic when many countries relaxed criminal justice policies even more.
“We had individuals in our city who were arrested or cited over 15, 20, 25 times in a period of 24 months,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said. “That culture of a lack of accountability really started to take root.”
Why is retail crime up? That depends on who you ask.
Mahan and Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho are among a growing number of high-profile elected Democrats who support Proposition 36.
“I think it cuts to the core of the cycle of serious addiction and retail theft and unsheltered homelessness,” Mahan said.
Ho and Mahan took us to a homeless encampment along the Guadalupe River in downtown San Jose, across from a Target shopping center. They described the area as a microcosm of the need for voters to pass the high-profile ballot measure. That is where we met a homeless man named Richard.
“Some people that have a drug problem, they choose to go steal something,” he said.
Richard said it’s not uncommon for some of his unhoused neighbors to steal from nearby stores. Whether they get cited for shoplifting, drug use, or unauthorized camping, he said repeat misdemeanor tickets are not a deterrent.
“I’m going to keep getting tickets and keep getting tickets,” he said.
Supporters of Proposition 36 say the ballot measure is needed to fix the unintended consequences of Proposition 47.
“We took away tools to intervene in cycles of addiction that have an interplay with retail theft, with unsheltered homelessness,” Mahan said.
Ho noted that misdemeanor petty theft is a cite-and-release offense, which means even repeat offenders generally walk away with a notice to appear in court.
“We have in Sacramento over 30,000 bench warrants for people that never even show up,” Ho said, echoing what Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper said at a Senate Standing Committee on Public Safety hearing in September.
While the first two offenses under Proposition 36 would remain misdemeanors, the ballot measure would make a third conviction a felony.
The No on Proposition 36 campaign points to a decrease in theft clearance rates — arrests for reported crimes — as a key factor in the rise of the statewide retail crime rate.
Simply put, critics like Cristine Soto DeBerry — who wrote the opposition argument to Proposition 36 — argue that theft is up because “no one is being arrested.”
Our CBS News California analysis of state crime data found that clearance rates dropped after Proposition 47 passed.
The statewide clearance rate for thefts was about 8% in 2023, according to DOJ data. Clearance rates for theft peaked at more than 20% in 1990 and declined steadily until about 2000, where rates hovered around 14-16% until 2014, when Proposition 47 was passed.
Theft clearance rates then dropped after 2014 and then dropped again to an all-time low of 6% during the pandemic. They’ve been slightly increasing since.
However, just like the retail crime, clearance rates vary by county, and more counties saw a drop after the COVID-19 pandemic than after the passing of Proposition 47.
Soto DeBerry pointed to law enforcement claims that they often can’t respond to reports of theft due to understaffing. She argues that Proposition 36 won’t change that.
“What deters people from committing crime is the belief that they will get caught. That’s it,” Soto DeBerry said.
Supporters of Proposition 36 say that repeat offenders will face a so-called “wobbler,” which can be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony. They argue that under Proposition 36, repeat offenders would be more likely to be held in jail until they see a judge, which would incentivize officers to make an arrest and create a greater deterrent for serial thieves.
Proposition 47 or the COVID-19 pandemic?
The struggle to pinpoint the cause of the recent increase in retail crime isn’t only figuring out if it was due to lesser consequences or a lower chance of getting caught. There’s also the challenge of pinpointing changes during different time frames.
For example, a PPIC study examining crime after Prop 47 and the pandemic found evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic might have had a stronger impact on retail crime than Proposition 47 and that clearance rates are more closely tied to retail crime increases than jail or prison.
The study found that while jail and prison populations have dropped by a total of 30%, “the impact on crime has been modest and limited.”
Lower incarceration as a result of Proposition 47 likely only contributed to a roughly 4% rise in auto thefts and car break-ins (neither of which are retail crimes). Meanwhile, Proposition 47 clearance rates led to a 3% rise in burglaries, a 2% rise in auto thefts and a 1% rise in thefts.
However, the study found that when jail populations and burglary clearance rates fell during the pandemic, “commercial burglaries rose by a combined 5.3%, representing roughly one-third of the increase observed over that time. Some weak evidence also points to a 2021 rise in commercial burglaries tied to low clearance rates.”
The study did not include the increase in 2023 and it acknowledged that retail crime data is messy and not always complete. Some stores may be reporting fewer thefts to law enforcement, while others may be reporting more.
“Given the lack of data that accurately, completely, consistently, and credibly captures retail theft incidents, it is impossible to reliably assess the role of Prop 47 on retail theft,” the study read.
One grocery store worker we spoke with, who we’ll call Laura, is just one of many on the front lines of what has become a constant and well-publicized retail theft battle in the nation’s most populous state.
We agreed to conceal Laura’s true identity to protect her job. She said felt compelled to speak out on behalf of her coworkers, showing us videos of repeated thefts in her store.
“They know if the police even come, they’re just taken off the property, they turn right back around and come back,” she said of offenders.
Laura added that viral retail theft videos like these don’t show the reality of retail theft.
Many stores forbid employees from stopping shoplifters and, in some cases, fire employees who do, like this Safeway employee in the San Francisco Bay Area.
“Everybody knows that we can’t touch them,” Laura said.
Laura added that workers can’t report every theft, and when they do call the cops, thieves are often long gone before law enforcement arrives.
“It’s not just homeless and the drug addicts,” she said. “It is people coming in Teslas, walking out with carts full of groceries.”
Even California Gov. Gavin Newsom has witnessed retail theft. He described to a group of California mayors on a Zoom call how a Target clerk blamed him for the rash of retail theft after the governor witnessed the incident.
The governor was a proponent of Proposition 47 and is now against Proposition 36.
In August, Newsom signed a bill package into law targeting organized retail theft and property crimes. This package featured harsher punishments targeting repeat offenders. In September, Newsom signed another bill specifically targeting smash-and-grab robberies, mandating harsher sentences for incidents that result in major theft and damages.
Laura hopes that stiffer penalties under the governor’s bill package and Proposition 36 will incentivize officers to make more arrests and deter would-be thieves. She said that while it may not put an end to all retail theft, “we have got to do something.”
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