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March Madness is on the verge of another huge step on the road to returning to normalcy in sports.
The 2022 NCAA Tournament will be held without many of the restrictions and policies that defined the 2021 competition, which itself was the first dose of March Madness that sports fans enjoyed since 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the event outright in 2020.
This year, for example, the tournament will return to several pre-pandemic operating procedures, such as hosting First Four games over the course of two days instead of one; featuring multiple host cities for the first and second rounds and regional semis/finals (as opposed to keeping the entire tournament in a singular area); and having seemingly no capacity restrictions. Fans in attendance will still need to adhere to local and state health regulations, however.
Regardless, that return to normalcy is great news for basketball fans who have missed the experience of March Madness as much as the on-court product. While the 2021 iteration was more than welcome after missing the tournament entirely in 2020, March Madness in 2022 could represent the closest to a "normal" tournament that fans have enjoyed in several years.
And that's not even considering the most important aspect of the tournament: the teams and players, of course. Already there are a few teams that stand out above the rest — most notably Gonzaga, which is aiming for redemption after getting blown out of the national championship game in 2021 to defending national champion Baylor.
Of course, this will also be the final NCAA Tournament with Duke's Mike Krzyzewski prowling the court, a fact that itself makes this tournament must-watch television. What other storylines and Cinderellas will reveal themselves as the tournament progresses?
Here's the schedule:
Selection Sunday: 6 p.m. ET March 13 on CBS
First Four: March 15-16
First round: March 17-18
Second round: March 19-20
Sweet 16: March 24-25
Elite Eight: March 26-27
Final Four: April 2
NCAA championship game: April 4
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