The 2012 NCAA men’s basketball tournament schedule is out and ready for the NCAA tournament selection committee to finish up the brackets. The official brackets won’t come out until Sunday, March 11, but the overall schedule is ready to go for those looking to purchase tickets. 68 teams will make the field in 2012, consisting of at least one school from each conference, typically the tournament champion, and many at-large selections made by a NCAA committee.
2012 NCAA Tournament Schedule
Sunday, March 11 (Selection Sunday)
Section Sunday reveals the 68 teams participating in the 2012 NCAA tournament.
March 13-14 (First Round)
First round games get played in Dayton, Ohio. These are classified as the play-in games by most college basketball fans.
March 15-18 (Second and Third Round)
The second and third round games take place from Thursday, March 15 to Sunday, March 18. These two rounds will take the field from 64 schools down to just 16. Eight cities will host the second and third round games and they are located in Portland (Oregon), Albuquerque, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Columbus, Omaha, Nashville and Greensboro (North Carolina).
March 22-25 (Regionals)
The Sweet 16 games take place in four cities, slimming the field down to just the final four schools by the end of the weekend. The East Regional is played in Boston (March 22, 24), the Southwest Regional is played in Phoenix (March 22, 24), the Midwest Regional is played in St. Louis (March 23, 25) and the Southeast Regional is in Atlanta (March 23, 25).
March 31-April 2 (Final Four)
The Final Four takes place in New Orleans this year, with the semifinal games on March 31 and the 2012 championship game on April 2.
Source:
NCAA Tournament Hub