The Story

​​It's time to fill out your brackets.

Already?

Yes. March Madness tips off tonight with Selection Sunday. Aka, when the teams competing in the men’s and women’s NCAA basketball tournaments are finalized. The men’s selection begins at 6 pm ET on CBS, followed by the women’s at 8 pm ET on ESPN. For those who don’t know: Sixty-eight teams are picked for each of the tournaments. Thirty-two of those teams will have received automatic bids after winning their respective conference tournaments (check out the list here), while the other 36 will be announced during tonight’s ceremonies. After that, the best of the best in college basketball will spend the next month vying for the national championship — and fans at home will be hoping their bracket swishes come true.

And that’s true for both the men and the women?

Now it is. Reminder: March Madness hasn’t always been an even playing field, err, court. In fact, the women’s tournament was only given the same number of teams — and the March Madness branding — last year. That came after female players called out some big disparities, leading to an internal investigation. The result? Surprise, surprise, the NCAA had dropped the ball on gender equality.

What else should I know?

Early predictions for the women’s tournament (whose games begin Wednesday) favor Indiana, Stanford, UConn, and defending champion South Carolina. Meanwhile, in the men’s tournament (whose games begin Tuesday), all eyes are on Houston, UCLA, Purdue, and defending champion Kansas. But nothing is a slam dunk yet. And there’s already been some drama off the court, with some coaches getting benched: Last week, Georgetown and California fired their men’s basketball coaches. While Syracuse said goodbye to Jim Boeheim — after 47 years as the men’s head coach.

theSkimm

A couple of years after the NCAA’s big gender reckoning, an equal roster of men’s and women’s teams will leave it all on the court during March Madness. Whether you’re a basketball lover or just in it for the snacks, the tournaments are always a good time.