The start of the NCAA Tournament is a celebration for sports fans as work productivity across America declines on the first two days of action. With 32 games spread across four broadcast windows on Thursday and Friday, there is so much high-quality action to watch that it is frankly overwhelming to identify the top games to watch.
Whether it is watching your potential national champion in action or figuring out which of your upset picks pan out, there is something for everyone in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Let's take a look at the best games to watch in each broadcast window on Thursday and Friday.
2025 March Madness Viewing Guide
Thursday Early Afternoon
The NCAA likes to put a compelling game in the first slot on Thursday and tuning into CBS at 12:15 p.m. ET gives us a great 8-9 game between Louisville and Creighton. The Cardinals will have a strong presence in Lexington and are still upset about being under-seeded while the Bluejays have plenty of tournament experience to challenge the Cardinals.
The other must-watch game in the first four is the second game, which will air at 12:40 p.m. on TruTV between Purdue and High Point. The Panthers and their high-flying offense are making their first NCAA Tournament bid with a legitimate shot to upset the 4-seed Boilermakers, who stumbled a bit down the stretch.
Thursday Late Afternoon
This window might be the strongest of the whole tournament. While the 1-16 matchup between Auburn and Alabama State is a skip, the other three games here have high drama potential, including the potential game of the tournament between 6-seed BYU and 11-seed VCU around 4:00 p.m. on TNT.
The 5-12 matchup between Clemson and McNeese has some upset potential while the other great 8-9 game of the day features Gonzaga, which is a Top 10 team according to some predictive metrics, taking on SEC darling Georgia. Clemson hits the floor around 3:00 p.m. on TruTV while the Gonzaga-Georgia game is set for about 4:30 p.m. on TBS.
Thursday Early Evening
CBS' primetime coverage starts with a matchup of Hall of Fame coaches in Kansas' Bill Self and Arkansas' John Calipari at 7:10 p.m. Both rosters have a lot of talent but underachieved during the regular season, which sets the stage for a potential thriller.
Another great game in this window is a 6-11 matchup between Missouri and Drake, which won 30 games during the regular season and features the best player you've never heard of in Bulldogs' guard Bennett Stirz. That matchup will tip at approximately 7:35 p.m. on TruTV.
Thursday Late Night
There are two games worth staying up for late on Thursday night. One of the more compelling 7-10 games on the board as UCLA takes on Utah State at approximately 9:25 p.m. on TNT. There is another great matchup in Denver at approximately 10:00 p.m. ET on TBS between UC San Diego, which won 30 games in the regular season, and Michigan in a 5-12 matchup.
For those curious about Rick Pitino's return to March Madness with St. John's, they will take on 15-seed Omaha at approximately 9:45 p.m. in the second game of the night on CBS. Omaha is also making its first NCAA Tournament appearance so its a fun spot for them.
Friday Early Afternoon
This window is one of the weaker ones of the bunch so if you need to appease your boss and be productive there's not a ton to miss. The most interesting game in this slot comes at 2:00 p.m. on TBS as Colorado State will look to take out Memphis, which is down star Tyrese Hunter for the entire tournament, in a 5-12 upset.
Baylor and Mississippi State will lead off the day in another 8-9 game at 12:15 p.m. on CBS but is the least compelling of the 8-9s on the board. The other two games have serious blowout potential.
Friday Late Afternoon
This window is loaded so make sure to try and get to happy hour early. Vandebilt and Ole Miss is a fascinating 7-10 matchup at 3:15 p.m. on TruTV while North Carolina will look to become the latest First Four winner to advance to the Round of 32 by taking out 6-seed Ole Miss at approximately 4:05 p.m. on TNT.
There's a good 4-13 matchup at approximately 4:35 p.m. ET on TBS as Maryland takes on Grand Canyon. The other game here is Duke against the winner of Wednesday's First Four matchup between Mount St. Mary's and American, but with the potential of limited Cooper Flagg minutes this is a skip unless there's an upset brewing late in the second half.
Friday Early Evening
CBS' pick for the 7:10 p.m. national window is Kentucky and Troy, which is a pass since the Wildcats should cruise in that one. New Mexico and Marquette is a strong 7-10 game at 7:25 p.m. on TBS while TruTV will offer up another good 4-13 spot as Akron, the MAC champion with a ton of experience, will look to take out inconsistent Arizona at 7:35 p.m. ET.
The other game in this window is the final 1-16 matchup of the day with Florida taking on Norfolk State. With the Gators entering as nearly 30-point favorites, this one should also be a skip.
Friday Late Night
Put some coffee on so you're wide awake for the last window of the first round, which has only one potential skip with 2-seed Michigan State expected to cruise past 15-seed Bryant. The last 8-9 game of the round is a good one as UCONN looks to extend its NCAA Tournament winning streak to 13 games against Oklahoma, a strong SEC side with a potential Top 10 pick in the NBA Draft with point guard Jeremiah Fears.
That game will tip at approximately 9:25 p.m. on TNT. The other games of interest include the final 5-12 matchup between Oregon and Liberty at approximately 10:10 p.m. on TruTV and Illinois' matchup against either Texas or Xavier at approximately 9:45 p.m. on CBS.