The March Madness Is Dead… For Now

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Something killed the March Madness and its not what you think. Brackets are fun, but the basketball must rise back up to its former glory.

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The NCAA Tournament field was revealed on Sunday, marking the start of March Madness. The UConn Huskies are the country’s top team, trying to repeat as national champions. They did not get a kind draw from the selection committee though. UConn’s East region boasts four of the top 10 teams in the country according to Kenpom. That is…not how seeding is supposed to work.

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So, it will be tough sledding if the Huskies do manage to repeat, which would be quite a storyline to follow this tournament. In fact, with the exception of specific fan bases rooting for their own success, it could be the only interesting storyline we can outline ahead of time.

We may be entering hot take territory with this one, but is March Madness not that much fun anymore? Is the madness truly dead?

 

The March Madness Is Dead, But Is It Fun?

 

Todd Salem: The Day The Madness Died

The NCAA Tournament coverage is still enormous, and we have to wait and see what the television ratings end up being to say if interest actually wanes. I’m not sure it even will, statistically. But narratively, there are a number of factors working against the quality of this product.

These are not new phenomena over the past couple seasons, but things are coming to a head. First, and foremost, there are few recognizable players anymore. Thanks to the dearth of stars, lack of volume of upperclassmen, and the expansive transfer portal, fans are rooting for nothing but jerseys these days. In fact, the aforementioned Huskies have an incredibly deep team, but arguably their two best players are a transfer from 2022 and a transfer from 2023, respectively.

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With no famous players, the sport is relying on team interest. We know, though, it’s getting harder and harder to find teams on television thanks to the spreading media landscape and streaming vagaries.

Then there’s the kicker that always used to hold the Big Dance together. Cinderella wins are not only becoming easier thanks to volume three-point scoring, but they are less interesting when they do happen. So where does that leave the tournament? There may be one saving grace that actually has nothing to do with the basketball played on the court. The BRACKET.

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I don’t mean 2024’s bracket or how the teams are allotted. I mean the literal line connection web that holds the seed lines and future path of matchups is what prevents this from dying. Think of it this way. If the tourney didn’t follow a preset bracket and instead reseeded matchups after every round, it would technically be more fair, but March Madness wouldn’t exist like it does today. Gone are the bracket pools and the only thing that makes this of the least bit of interest to casual or zero-level basketball fans. All that remains are diehards. College basketball becomes hockey. People say the Stanley Cup Playoffs are the best thing in sports, but it’s the same as complimenting that friend you never invite out with you. Oh, Jerry is awesome; maybe we’ll catch him next time.

So the bracket saves this thing from dying. But does it keep it fascinating for years to come with the way the rest of the sport is fading? I don’t think so.

 

 

Dan Salem: We Need More Madness

Wow, I hadn’t truly thought about my feelings toward March Madness until you so aptly put them into words. I know not one player in college basketball and couldn’t tell you if any of the good ones from last season are still playing, or if they all entered the NBA and/or its development league. Since I don’t follow the sport on a regular basis, I just assumed it was me. But thank you! It’s not me, it’s college basketball. Where has all the March Madness gone?

The NCAA tournament still feels fun to me, because of the bracket and its associated games. Picking winners is fun. Watching your picks drop like flies is also fun. As long as March Madness keeps its bracket and the 64 teams competing to be in the Final Four, there really won’t be a huge problem.

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You see, no matter how repetitive it may be, gambling is still fun and that is what the bracket and March Madness are. Wager money or not, it’s still a game of chance that requires zero skill. Heck, you often do much better without trying to apply skill. It’s like a slot machine without a fee. One might think that all of the things you mentioned are truly hurting the tournament, and those people would be right. But it doesn’t matter.

What has happened is that only the first weekend of games is fun and exciting. This was always true, but the enormous contrast did not exist in prior years. With star players on star teams, we could watch a future NBA star play in the Final Four. That phenomenon is dead. The best players are gone after one season, so we casual fans know no one. Cinderella upsets were once pretty rare and super exciting after the first two rounds. They are more commonplace now, which kills later round excitement. But I’m not sure it matters. We still have 64 unpredictable teams fighting to be left standing. That alone is fun, even if the game itself is not so much anymore.

 

Meet our Writers:

Dan Salem is Lead Editor and Co-owner of BuzzChomp. He’s an award winning Actor, Director and Producer. Visit M Square Productions for his film work, or get lost in his old-school comedy on Pillow Talk TV. You can follow him on X, TikTok and Instagram. His latest film ‘Alone’ is now on Amazon.

Todd Salem is a Staff Writer and Contributing Editor at BuzzChomp. He’s also a champion of fantasy football and fantasy baseball, dominating leagues for over two decades. Comment below on his unfiltered opinions.

March Madness Photo Credits: dailypress.net and thespectrum.com via Getty Images

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