Selection Sunday & Monday: Which teams will make the cut?

Selection Sunday takes place on March 13, 2016—that’s only two days away, which means in two days, we’ll know which NCAA teams will play in this year’s championships. According to NCAA.com, the selection committee works through the following three phases:

1. They select 36 best at-large teams (at-large refers to a bid offered by invitation).
2. They seed the 68 teams.
3. They place teams into the tournament bracket.

The whole Selection Sunday process is an in-depth one, and this year, will be completed by a committee of ten members. The selection process can actually take several days, with announcements made on Selection Sunday for the men’s championship bracket, and on Selection Monday (this year March 14) for the women’s championship bracket.

What do ratings have to do with selection?

Throughout the season, RPI—basically, team ratings—are released on regularly. These ratings can impact a team’s ability to earn an invitation to bid—but there have been instances where high-rated teams have not made it into the championships, and there have bene instances where low-rated teams have played.

According to Collegerpi.com, “Since 2005, the RPI predicted 363/526 (69%) teams within one of their actual seeds.” In other words, it’s not a perfect indicator, but more times than not can suggest which teams will be invited to play in the championships.

Current RPI

RPI can change as often as every day. As of March 11, 2016, Kansas topped the list for NCAA Division I men’s basketball, closely followed by Virginia, Villanova, and Oregon. For NCAA Division I women’s basketball, Notre Dame, Baylor, UConn, and South Carolina are currently at the top.

March Madness 2016 Schedules

After Selection Sunday and Selection Monday, the real fun begins for fans as March Madness kicks off. The men’s basketball schedule starts with the First Four playing March 15-16 in Dayton, OH, and concludes with the Final Four on April 2 in Houston, TX.

For women’s basketball, 2016 will see a first with Divisions I, II, and III all playing to determine champions in the same two-day period: April 4-5. The games begin for Division I with games from March 18-21, while Division II starts March 11-14. Division III began their championship games already—they played March 4-5, with the next round from March 11-12.

Want to see the games live? CapitalCityTickets.com has seats to both the men’s and women’s NCAA championships, from First Four to Final Four.