Edition of USA college basketball tournament
The 2019 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 68 teams playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men's basketball national champion for the 2018–19 season. The 81st annual edition of the tournament began on March 19, 2019, and concluded with the championship game on April 8, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, between the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Virginia Cavaliers, with Virginia winning 85–77 in overtime.[1][2]
Two schools made their first appearances in the tournament: Big South champion Gardner–Webb and Southland champion Abilene Christian.
For the first time since 2001, no #8 seed survived the first round of the tournament. This was also the first time since the First Four was established in 2011 that no team in the First Four advanced past the first round of the tournament.[a] As of the 2024 tournament, this was the only Final Four since 2012 that did not include at least one team seeded #7 or higher.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]
This tournament marked the first time that the Auburn Tigers of the Southeastern Conference and the Texas Tech Red Raiders of the Big 12 Conference made the Final Four. This also marked the third Final Four appearance for the Virginia Cavaliers of the Atlantic Coast Conference, but their first since 1984.
The championship game was the first time since 1979 to see two first-time participants playing in the championship, and the first since 2006 to have a first-time national champion.[13] As a result of a worldwide COVID-19 pandemic that started in late 2019 and subsequently forced the cancellation of the 2020 tournament, this would be the last tournament held until 2021, and this would be also the last tournament held across the United States until 2022.
Carsen Edwards of Purdue was the leading scorer, with 139 points in only 4 games–producing an average of 34.8 points per game. Edwards also set the record for most made 3-point shots in a tournament, with 28. The previous record holder, Glen Rice of Michigan in 1989, made 27, but did so in 6 games.
In the previous year's tournament, Virginia had infamously become the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed. At the conclusion of this year's title game, CBS announcer Jim Nantz dubbed Virginia's win the "all-time turnaround title."[14]
Tournament procedure
A total of 68 teams entered the 2019 tournament. 32 automatic bids were awarded to each program that won their conference's tournament. The remaining 36 bids were "at-large", with selections extended by the NCAA Selection Committee.
Eight teams (the four lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and the four lowest-seeded at-large teams) played in the First Four (the successor to what had been popularly known as "play-in games" through the 2010 tournament). The winners of these games advanced to the main draw of the tournament.
The Selection Committee seeded the entire field from 1 to 68.
The selections and seedings were completed and revealed on Sunday, March 17.
Schedule and venues
2019 First Four (orange) and first and second rounds (green)
2019 Regionals (blue) and Final Four (red)
The following are the sites that were selected to host each round of the 2019 tournament:[15]
First Four
First and Second Rounds (Subregionals)
- March 21 and 23
- March 22 and 24
Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)
- March 28 and 30
- March 29 and 31
National semifinals and championship (Final Four and championship)
U.S. Bank Stadium became the 40th venue to host the Final Four. This was the first hosting of the event at the facility, built on the former site of the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, a two-time host in 1992 and 2001. The tournament returned to Hartford's XL Center for the first time since 1998. For the first time since 1970, the tournament returned to Columbia, South Carolina, with games played at the Colonial Life Arena.[17]
Qualification and selection
Four teams, out of 353 in Division I, were ineligible to participate in the 2019 tournament; Alabama A&M and Florida A&M failed to meet APR requirements, while California Baptist and North Alabama are amidst reclassification from Division II.[18][19][20]
Automatic qualifiers
Tournament seeds
The tournament seeds and regions were determined through the NCAA basketball tournament selection process.
*See First Four
Tournament bracket
First Four – Dayton, OH
The First Four games involved eight teams: the four overall lowest-ranked teams, and the four lowest-ranked at-large teams.
East Regional – Washington, DC
East Regional Final
East Regional all tournament team
[21]
West Regional – Anaheim, CA
West Regional Final
West Regional all tournament team
[21]
South Regional – Louisville, KY
South Regional Final
South Regional all tournament team
[21]
Midwest Regional – Kansas City, MO
Midwest Regional Final
Midwest Regional all tournament team
[21]
Final Four – Minneapolis, MN
National semifinals
National Championship
Final Four all-tournament team
Game summaries and tournament notes
Upsets
Per the NCAA, "Upsets are defined as when the winner of the game was seeded five or more places lower than the team it defeated." There were 5 upsets during the whole tournament, and all of them were in the first round.
Record by conference
- The R64, R32, S16, E8, F4, CG, and NC columns indicate how many teams from each conference were in the round of 64 (first round), round of 32 (second round), Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four, championship game, and national champion, respectively.
- The "Record" column includes wins in the First Four for the NEC, Ohio Valley, Pac-12, and Summit conferences and losses in the First Four for the American and Big East conference.
- The SWAC and MEAC each had one representative, eliminated in the First Four with a record of 0–1.
- The America East, Big Sky, Big South, Colonial, C-USA, Horizon, MAAC, Missouri Valley, Patriot, Southland, Sun Belt, WAC, and Ivy League each had one representative, eliminated in the Round of 64 with a record of 0–1.
Media coverage
Television
CBS Sports and Turner Sports (via TBS, TNT, and truTV) had U.S. television rights to the tournament.[23] As part of a cycle than began in 2016, CBS televised the 2019 Final Four and championship game.
In response to criticism over TBS's handling of the selection show in 2018 (which featured an unconventional two-hour format where all the qualifying teams were first revealed in alphabetical order before the matchups were actually unveiled, and had viewership fall by 52% partly due to it also being aired on cable rather than CBS), it was announced that CBS's selection show would revert to an hour-long format, and prioritize unveiling the bracket. CNN president Jeff Zucker, who had also become head of WarnerMedia's sports properties after a reorganization, explained that "it's a sign of understanding when things don't necessarily go as well as you would hope you change it. So there's no shame in that. At the end of the day, you have to give the fans what they want."[24] The show attracted its highest viewership since 2014 and averaged a 4.0 share on Nielsen overnight ratings.[25]
Television channels
- First Four – truTV
- First and Second rounds – CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV
- Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight) – CBS and TBS
- National semifinals (Final Four) and championship – CBS
Studio hosts
- Greg Gumbel (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
- Ernie Johnson (New York City, Atlanta, and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regional Semi-Finals, Final Four and National Championship Game
- Casey Stern (Atlanta) – First Four, first round and Second Round
- Adam Zucker (New York) – First round and second round (game breaks)
Studio analysts
- Charles Barkley (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
- Mike Brey (Atlanta) – Regional Semi-Finals
- Jeff Capel (Atlanta) – First round
- Seth Davis (Atlanta and Minneapolis) – First Four, first round, second round, Regional Semi-Finals, Final Four and National Championship Game
- Brendan Haywood (Atlanta) – First Four, first round, second round and Regional Semi-Finals
- Clark Kellogg (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
- Porter Moser (Atlanta) – Second Round
- Candace Parker (Atlanta and Minneapolis) – First Four, first round, second round, Regional Semi-Finals and Final Four
- Kenny Smith (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
- Gene Steratore (New York City and Minneapolis) (Rules Analyst) – First Four, first round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
- Wally Szczerbiak (New York City and Minneapolis) – Second Round and Final Four
- Jay Wright (Minneapolis) – Final Four
- Jim Nantz/Bill Raftery/Grant Hill/Tracy Wolfson – First and Second Rounds at Columbia, South Carolina; East Regional at Washington, D.C.; Final Four and National Championship at Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Brian Anderson/Chris Webber/Allie LaForce – First and Second Rounds at Columbus, Ohio; South Regional at Louisville, Kentucky
- Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel/Jamie Erdahl – First and Second Rounds at Jacksonville, Florida; Midwest Regional at Kansas City, Missouri
- Kevin Harlan/Reggie Miller/Dan Bonner/Dana Jacobson – First Four at Dayton, Ohio (Tuesday); First and Second Rounds at Des Moines, Iowa; West Regional at Anaheim, California
- Brad Nessler/Steve Lavin/Jim Jackson/Evan Washburn – First and Second Rounds at Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Spero Dedes/Steve Smith/Len Elmore or Jim Jackson/Rosalyn Gold-Onwude – First Four at Dayton, Ohio (Wednesday); First and Second Rounds at San Jose, California
- Jackson called the First Four (Wednesday) with Elmore doing the First and Second Rounds with Dedes, Smith and Gold-Onwude.
- Andrew Catalon/Steve Lappas/Lisa Byington – First and Second Rounds at Salt Lake City, Utah
- Carter Blackburn/Debbie Antonelli/John Schriffen – First and Second Rounds at Hartford, Connecticut
ESPN International had international rights to the tournament. Coverage uses CBS/Turner play-by-play teams until the Final Four.[26]
Radio
Westwood One had exclusive radio rights to the entire tournament.
Internet
Video
Live video of games was available for streaming through the following means:[27]
- NCAA March Madness Live (website and app, no CBS games on digital media players; access to games on WarnerMedia channels (TBS, TNT, truTV) required TV Everywhere authentication through provider)
- CBS All Access (only CBS games, service subscription required)
- CBS Sports website and app (only CBS games)
- Watch TBS website and app (only TBS games, required TV Everywhere authentication)
- Watch TNT website and app (only TNT games, required TV Everywhere authentication)
- Watch truTV website and app (only truTV games, required TV Everywhere authentication)
- Websites and apps of cable, satellite, and OTT providers of CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV (access required subscription)
In addition, the March Madness app offered Fast Break, whiparound coverage of games similar to NFL RedZone.
Audio
Live audio of games was available for streaming through the following means:
- NCAA March Madness Live (website and app)
- Westwood One Sports website
- TuneIn (website and app)
- Websites and apps of Westwood One Sports affiliates
Film
#16 seed Gardner-Webb's season and appearance in the tournament became the subject of a documentary titled The Dancin' Bulldogs released on October 16, 2020.
See also
Footnotes
- ^ This remains the only such instance in the men's tournament. However, the D-I women's tournament added its own First Four when it expanded to 68 teams in 2022, and no First Four winner in that tournament advanced beyond the first round.
References
- ^ Prather, Shannon (December 7, 2017). "Plans for 2019 NCAA Final Four are underway". Minneapolis Star Tribune. Retrieved December 8, 2017.
- ^ "March Madness 2019 dates and schedule". NCAA. March 7, 2019. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
- ^ "2013 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2014 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2015 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2016 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2017 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2018 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2019 NCAA tournament: Bracket, scores, stats, records | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2021 Division I Men's Basketball Official Bracket | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2022 Division I Men's Basketball Official Bracket | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ "2023 Division I Men's Basketball Official Bracket | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved June 25, 2023.
- ^ Russo, Ralph D. (April 7, 2019). "First time finalists meet". The Chippewa Herald.
- ^ Schuknecht, Cat. "'This Is A Great Story', Says Virginia Cavaliers' Coach On Team's NCAA Comeback". npr.org. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
- ^ "Future Division I Men's Basketball Championship sites". NCAA. April 21, 2017.
- ^ Cooper, J. A.; Alderman, Derek H. (May 26, 2020). "Cancelling March Madness exposes opportunities for a more sustainable sports tourism economy". Tourism Geographies. 22 (3): 525–535. doi:10.1080/14616688.2020.1759135. ISSN 1461-6688. S2CID 219462858.
- ^ "March Madness tournament could generate $9 million for Columbia". WLTX-TV. March 8, 2019. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
- ^ Hosick, Michelle Brutlag (May 23, 2018). "Penalties, lost postseason numbers decline". NCAA.
- ^ "Reclassifying Members". NCAA. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
- ^ Sharrock, Rory (February 13, 2019). "FAMU men's basketball, men's indoor/outdoor track, golf ineligible for postseason play". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
- ^ a b c d "2019 NCAA Tournament Summary". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 7, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e Patterson, Chip (April 8, 2019). "2019 Final Four All-Tournament Team: Kyle Guy named Most Outstanding Player". CBSSports.com. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
- ^ "Turner Sports and CBS Sports Announce 2019 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship Commentator Teams". Turner Broadcasting. March 11, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2019.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Strauss, Ben (March 12, 2019). "After backlash, the NCAA tournament selection show is going back to basics". Washington Post. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
- ^ Rosenthal, Phil (March 18, 2019). "CBS' streamlined NCAA 'Selection Show' scores best overnight ratings in 5 years". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
- ^ "ESPN to Present Extensive Coverage from Minneapolis Throughout the Men's Final Four". ESPN Press Room U.S. April 2, 2021. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
- ^ Maiman, Beth (March 8, 2017). "March Madness TV schedule: How to watch and live stream every game in the NCAA men's basketball tournament". NCAA. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
- ^ "Catch Tony Delk Adam Lefkoe Steve Alford March Madness Live App Thursday Sunday night Thursday".
