With the regular season in the books and conference tournaments into the meat of their brackets during Champ Week, that can only mean Selection Sunday is quickly approaching. For those that may not be as familiar, Selection Sunday is the day the NCAA Selection Committee reveals which teams are in the field of 68 and sets the stage for what has come to be known as March Madness, where close games, upsets and Cinderella stories are to be expected.
From the time, date, TV info, bracket predictions and major storylines surrounding Selection Sunday, there is a lot to be familiar with before teams are officially announced and brackets are put together. For both the men's and women's NCAA Tournaments, Selection Sunday is when teams can come together and wait to see their name called. While the selection processes are similar for both the men's and women's tournaments, Selection Sunday is a day that teams and fans alike can gather and see what the next three weeks have in store.
When is Selection Sunday 2025? Date and start time
The men's Selection Sunday special is Sunday at 6 p.m. ET, while the women's bracket reveal will take place at 8 p.m. ET. Although the bracket for the men's NCAA Tournament has traditionally followed the conclusion of the Big Ten Championship game around 6 p.m. ET, the women's selection special used to take place on the Monday afterward. However, due to the inclusion of the First Four in the women's tournament, it now takes place an hour after the men's special concludes.
How to watch Selection Sunday 2025: TV channel and live streaming
The Selection Sunday men's special will air on CBS Sports, with additional streaming options on NCAA March Madness Live and Paramount Plus. The women's selection special will air on ESPN with the ability to stream on ESPN.com, the ESPN app and ESPN+. The broadcasting for each special is relatively similar in terms of announcing the field of 68 teams, breaking down matchups, and discussing which teams just made it into the field and which ones were left on the outside looking in.
How the NCAA Tournament bracket is selected
For both the men's and women's tournaments, there are 31 automatic qualifiers that are guaranteed a spot in the field of 68 due to winning their conference tournament. The remaining 37 teams are deemed at-large bids and are selected by the NCAA's selection committee. There are four regions, each of which seeded one to 16.
Key metrics are used to determine which teams are selected for the Big Dance. For both the men and women, NET ranking, strength of schedule, quality wins/losses and head-to-head results can prove extremely valuable when comparing resumes. The quadrant system, which is focused on the expected win percentage against a specific opponent, differs slightly for the men and women. Aside from that minor distinction, the selection factors are similar as the committee tries to distinguish which teams are more deserving to be in the field.
What to expect: Biggest Selection Sunday storylines
According to ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi's latest projections as of Thursday afternoon, Duke, Auburn and Houston appear to be as close to a lock as you can get to a one-seed, assuming things go accordingly between now and Selection Sunday. All three teams are at the top of the NET rankings as well. The remaining No. 1 seed will likely be between Florida, Alabama and Tennessee, given the strength of the SEC.
Notable bubble teams include Indiana and North Carolina (Last Four In), Texas and Ohio State (First Four Out) and Wake Forest and Villanova (Next Four Out). Also on the bubble are teams like Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Xavier and four Mountain West programs (Utah State, San Diego State, Boise State, Colorado State). Indiana and Ohio State have already been eliminated from the Big Ten Tournament, while Vanderbilt is out of the SEC Tournament and could fall victim to any of the remaining bubble teams still in action.
Any of those teams, regardless of who makes it and who does not, will have a tough road ahead. The two-time defending champions UConn, who are currently projected as an eight-seed, could potentially face a No. 1 seed as early as the second-round, which would make for a difficult road to a three-peat.
Projected No. 1 seeds and top teams to watch
The current No. 1 seeds (Duke, Auburn, Houston, Florida) are top four in NET Ranking. Auburn (15) has the most Quad 1 wins, while Duke (seven) has the fewest. The biggest concern surrounds the Blue Devils, who lost star freshman Cooper Flagg to an ankle injury during the ACC quarterfinals against Georgia Tech. Depending on the severity of Flagg's injury, Duke's season could be turned upside down.
With four SEC teams among the top two seeds, and the likelihood they will face one another at some point this week in the SEC Tournament, that could open the door for a team like Michigan State to potentially get some consideration. However, the strength of the SEC will presumably win out and most likely give us two of the four one-seeds.
The top four teams in the NCAA women's Tournament projections from ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme are South Carolina, UCLA, Texas and USC. South Carolina (16) has the most Quad 1 wins and USC (13) has the least. With the best NET ranking in the country, don't be surprised to see UConn on the one-seed line, depending on the selection committee's criteria.
Selection Sunday Bubble Watch: Who's in and who's out?
Much like the discussion for the No. 1 seeds, SEC teams like Oklahoma, Vanderbilt and Texas will garner a lot of attention from the selection committee. All three programs have at least five Quad 1 wins, compared to North Carolina, who only had one coming into Thursday. In years past, the committee has typically favored power conference teams over mid-major programs despite similar resumes between them. If that happens again, any of the Mountain West teams on the bubble could get left out. Big Ten programs Indiana and Ohio State may have already played themselves out, while North Carolina has itself in the ACC Semifinals and one step closer to the Big Dance.
March Madness Bracket reveal: How the bracket will be announced
The bracket is typically announced by revealing the top overall seed and then proceeding through that team's side of the bracket. For the men, the First Four is played in Dayton, Ohio, while eight sites play host to first and second-round games. In the women's tournament, the top seeds will host first and second-round games. Watch parties, interviews and instant analysis should be expected. For anyone looking to find official printable and interactive brackets, you can go to sites like ESPN, NCAA, CBS Sports and Yahoo.