There are days on the sports calendar that feel less like events and more like moods, and the first Friday of March Madness is one of them. It is a day that asks little except to cancel plans, silence notifications, and surrender to the chaos that only college basketball can provide.
With the First Four concluded, the tournament now expands in full: 16 games, one after another, each carrying the promise of heartbreak, heroics, and at least one result that will challenge assumptions about every bracket.
March Madness: Friday’s Complete Viewing Guide and Schedule
Friday does not ease in; it arrives all at once, like a crowded room where every conversation is worth overhearing. The games begin just after noon and continue without pause, each moment handing off to the next.
For those keeping track, here is the schedule (all times ET):
- 12:15 p.m.: No. 7 Kentucky vs. No. 10 Santa Clara (CBS, Paramount+)
- 12:40 p.m.: No. 5 Texas Tech vs. No. 12 Akron (truTV, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 1:35 p.m.: No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 16 LIU (TNT, March Madness Live/HBO)
- 1:50 p.m.: No. 3 Virginia vs. No. 14 Wright State (TBS, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 2:50 p.m.: No. 2 Iowa State vs. No. 15 Tennessee State (CBS, Paramount+)
- 3:15 p.m.: No. 4 Alabama vs. No. 13 Hofstra (truTV, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 4:10 p.m.: No. 8 Villanova vs. No. 9 Utah State (TNT, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 4:25 p.m.: No. 6 Tennessee vs. No. 11 Miami (Ohio) (TBS, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 6:50 p.m.: No. 8 Clemson vs. No. 9 Iowa (TNT, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 7:10 p.m.: No 5 St. John’s vs. No. 12 Northern Iowa (CBS, Paramount+)
- 7:25 p.m.: No. 7 UCLA vs. No. 10 Central Florida (TBS, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 7:35 p.m.: No. 2 Purdue vs. No. 15 Queens (NC) (truTV, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 9:25 p.m.: No. 1 Florida vs. No. 16 Prairie View A&M (TNT, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 9:45 p.m.: No. 4 Kansas vs. No. 13 Cal Baptist (CBS, Paramount+)
- 10:00 p.m.: No. 2 UConn vs. No. 15 Furman (TBS, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
- 10:10 p.m.: No. 7 Miami (FL) vs. No. 10 Missouri (truTV, March Madness Live/HBO Max)
MARCH MADNESS: Fill In Your Bracket Now!
Somewhere between the early tip-offs and the final buzzer, the day develops its own rhythm, one where you promise to watch just one more game, then another, until it is late and you are still watching, still waiting for the next moment of magic to unfold.
After Thursday and Friday’s first round, the tournament will continue with the regionals from March 26 to 29, followed by the Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on April 4 and 6.
