Hoops fans, the High Holy Days have finally arrived. The 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament kicks off on Thursday, March 20 with a jam-packed slate of games running all weekend and into April. The games will be broadcast on three channels, CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV, so it can be a bit confusing for cord-cutters when trying to figure out how to stream all of the action. So, I broke it all down and am here to help you figure out the best and cheapest way to catch every game of the Men’s March Madness. The answer is not a single streaming service, but a pair. I recommend watching the Big Dance with 50% off a subscription to Sling TV and a subscription to Paramount+ with SHOWTIME. Check out the reasons why below.
How to watch the 2025 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament
- When: Thursday, March 20, 2025 at 12:15 p.m. ET through Monday, April 7
- TV: CBS, TBS, TNT, truTV
- Stream: Watch with 50% off a subscription to Sling TV and Paramount+, and Max.
- From anywhere: Watch with a subscription to a VPN.
Everything you need to know to stream the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament:
When does the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament take place?
The Big Dance kicks off on Thursday, March 20 at 12:15 p.m. ET as the No. 8Louisville Cardinals will take on the No. 9Creighton Bluejays in a matchup on CBS. There will be a total of 16 games on both Thursday and Friday, and then the second round will consist of eight games on Saturday and eight games on Sunday.
In the second week of the tournament, the Sweet 16 will take place on Thursday, March 27 and Friday, March 28 and the Elite 8 will happen on Saturday, March 29 and Sunday, March 30. From there, we move to the Final Four which will have two games on Saturday, April 5. They will air on CBS at 6:09 p.m. and 8:49 p.m. ET.
Then, the winners of those two games will meet for the national title on CBS two days later on Monday, April 7 at 8:50 p.m. ET.
What channels will air the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament?
As has been the case for many years, the men’s tournament broadcast rights are split between Paramount Global and Warner Bros. Discovery. That means that half of the games during the first two weeks of March Madness will air on the Paramount-owned CBS broadcast network, while the other half will take place on WBD’s cable channels TBS, TNT, and truTV.
The two media companies then alternate the rights to the Final Four and National Championship games. This year, CBS has the honor of broadcasting the national semifinals and title game.
Why do we recommend Sling TV and Paramount+ to watch the tournament?
The NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament takes place over three weeks, far longer than any streaming free trial, so when trying to figure out the best way to watch the Big Dance, we take in a lot of factors, but ultimately it comes down to one question: What’s the cheapest way to watch all of the games?
Since the streaming experience is relatively equal across platforms, price is often the differentiating factor. Usually when price is the biggest determinant, we side with Sling TV, but in this case, that’s a little complicated, because Sling doesn’t carry CBS, which will be broadcasting more than half of the tournament games including the Final Four and National Championship. But let’s start with what Sling does have.
If you sign up for the Sling Orange plan, you will have access to TBS, TNT, and truTV which will broadcast all of the games not airing on CBS. Normally a subscription to Sling costs $46 per month, but currently, the service is offering a 50% discount to all new and some returning customers, which means that you can watch all of the Turner-broadcast games for just $23.
Sling TV
Sling TV is The Streamable’s choice for cord cutters on a budget. Sling is a live TV streaming service with multiple channel packages. The $45.99/month Sling Orange plan offers about 30 channels, including Disney Channel and ESPN. The $45.99/month Sling Blue plan offers about 40 channels, including ABC, Fox, and NBC in major markets.
You can combine Orange+Blue for a total of $60.99 / month. Sling also offers many channel add-on packages starting at $6/month.
Now it’s time to tackle the games on CBS. The cheapest way to stream those is with a subscription to the premium tier on Paramount’s flagship streaming service Paramount+. The Essential plan runs just $8 per month, but doesn’t get you access to the games, so if you want to stream March Madness on the service, you will need to sign up for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME, which runs $13 per month.
Not only will this tier get you ad-free streaming on all on-demand titles, but it will also come with a simulcast of your local CBS affiliate, meaning that you will be able to watch every game on the channel. So, if you combine Sling and Paramount+, you will have access to every game of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament for just $36. Then, if you want to make sure you are able to check out every game in the NCAA Women’s Tournament as well, you can also sign up for the Sling Blue package. That will get you access to all of the games on the ESPN family of networks and will only raise your price to $43.50, which is just about half the price of any other live TV streaming option.
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Paramount+ with SHOWTIME
Paramount+ with SHOWTIME is a video streaming service offering access to A-list movies and compelling original series like Yellowjackets, Billions, Shameless, Homeland, Ray Donovan, Dexter, Weeds, and Nurse Jackie. The service includes live access to your local CBS station, and movies and TV shows from the Paramount library including “Yellowstone” spinoffs from Taylor Sheridan, Nickelodeon shows like “PAW Patrol” and “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and other classics like “Survivor,” “Beavis and Butt-Head,” and “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
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Can you watch the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament for free?
Unfortunately, you cannot watch the entire tournament for free. Even with an over-the-air antenna to get the CBS games for free, you still would have to pay for the games airing on cable. While there are a number of live TV streaming services that will be carrying the channels covering the games offering free trials, none of them are nearly long enough to get from the first round through “One Shining Moment.”
However, if you want to check out the action-packed First Round for free, then I would recommend Hulu + Live TV. Not only does it offer a three-day free trial, but it provides access to all of the channels you need to watch the entirety of the men’s tournament as well as the women’s tournament. But what really separates Hulu + Live TV from its competitors is the added value it provides that no one else can. In addition to all of the live broadcast and cable channels, the streamer throws in the on-demand Hulu platform, all of Disney+, and ESPN+ at no extra cost. So, for the price of one live streaming service, you get two of the best on-demand streamers, and the most popular sports-focused streamer on the market.
Now, if you are looking for a way to check out the first weekend of the Big Dance without having to pay, then DIRECTV STREAM might be a good option. The streamer has the industry’s longest reliable trial at five days, meaning that you can watch all of the first and second rounds for free.
Those are pretty straightforward, but when it comes to another streamer with a free trial. The YouTube TV trial is said to be “up to two weeks,” but can be as short as two days. So it is difficult to ascertain what you are actually getting before you go through the signup process.
If you are looking to watch the game for free, I would recommend Hulu + Live TV, because of all of the added value that the streamer provides.
| DTVSTREAM | Fubo | Hulu | Philo | SlingTV | YouTube | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Trial | Free Trial | Free 3-Day Trial | Free Trial | Get 50% OFF | Sign Up | |||
| $34.99 | $94.99 | $82.99 | $28 | $45.99 | $45.99 | $82.99 | ||
| CBS | +$52 | ✓ | ✓ | - | - | - | ✓ | |
| TBS | +$52 | - | ✓ | - | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| TNT | +$52 | - | ✓ | - | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| truTV | +$52 | - | ✓ | - | +$6 | ✓ | ✓ | |
What are all of the streamers that will broadcast the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament?
Fortunately for basketball fans, there are seven different streaming services that will carry some or all of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, so you have options to choose from if you don’t already subscribe to any of them. We discussed Sling TV and the three free trial options above, but there are two others worth discussing.
Every sporting event that airs on TBS, TNT, or truTV is available to stream on the flagship Warner Bros. Discovery streaming service Max, so this game qualifies. While the plan had long been for WBD to eventually make the Bleacher Report Sports Add-On a paid part of the platform, the company recently announced it will not cost extra, but instead will only be available on the service's ad-free tiers. That means that you can watch this game by signing up for Max’s $17 per month Ad-Free plan.
Sports-focused live TV streaming service Fubo will carry all of the games on CBS, including the Final Four and Championship Game, but will not provide access to any of the WBD channels. That means that Fubo isn’t ideal for streaming the tournament, but if you already subscribe to the service, combining it with Max will take care of all of your March Madness needs.
If you are looking to find a long-term streaming service and want to avoid the potential of having to pay more if price hikes strike, then DIRECTV via Internet is your best bet. Packages start as low as $70 per month and come with a two-year price guarantee. This, of course, locks you into a two-year contract, but with prices increasing fairly regularly, it is understandable why this would be an attractive offer to many people.
Ultimately, there are tons of different ways to stream the game, and while we recommend Sling TV as the best way to stream all of the college and pro basketball season, you have plenty of options to find the platform that meets your needs.
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Max
Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library and exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Within Max, B/R Sports allows users to watch NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.
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Max has three tiers: an ad-supported plan for $9.99, an ad-free plan for $16.99, and the ultimate tier that includes 4K for $20.99.
All Max subscribers will get the full libraries of shows like “Friends”, “The Big Bang Theory”, “South Park”, “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”, “The West Wing”, and more.
You can choose to add Max as a subscription through Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, or other Live TV providers.
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$9.99+ / month
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Watch a preview of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament
What is the schedule for the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament?
First Round Schedule
| Date | Time (ET) | Matchup | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday, March 20 | 12:15 p.m. | (8) Louisville vs. (9) Creighton | CBS |
| 12:40 p.m. | (4) Purdue vs. (13) High Point | truTV | |
| 1:30 p.m. | (3) Wisconsin vs. (14) Montana | TNT | |
| 2:00 p.m. | (1) Houston vs. (16) SIUE | TBS | |
| 2:50 p.m. | (1) Auburn vs. (16) Alabama State | CBS | |
| 3:15 p.m. | (5) Clemson vs. (12) McNeese | truTV | |
| 4:05 p.m. | (6) BYU vs. (11) VCU | TNT | |
| 4:35 p.m. | (8) Gonzaga vs. (9) Georgia | TBS | |
| 6:50 p.m. | (2) Tennessee vs. (15) Wofford | TNT | |
| 7:10 p.m. | (7) Kansas vs. (10) Arkansas | CBS | |
| 7:25 p.m. | (4) Texas A&M vs. (13) Yale | TBS | |
| 7:35 p.m. | (6) Missouri vs. (11) Drake | truTV | |
| 9:25 p.m. | (7) UCLA vs. (10) Utah State | TNT | |
| 9:45 p.m. | (2) St. John’s (NY) vs. (15) Omaha | CBS | |
| 10:00 p.m. | (5) Michigan vs. (12) UC San Diego | TBS | |
| 10:10 p.m. | (3) Texas Tech vs. (14) UNCW | truTV | |
| Friday, March 21 | 12:15 p.m. | (8) Mississippi St. vs. (9) Baylor | CBS |
| 12:40 p.m. | (2) Alabama vs. (15) Robert Morris | truTV | |
| 1:30 p.m. | (3) Iowa St. vs. (14) Lipscomb | TNT | |
| 2:00 p.m. | (5) Memphis vs. (12) Colorado State | TBS | |
| 2:50 p.m. | (1) Duke vs. (16) Mount St. Mary’s | CBS | |
| 3:15 p.m. | (7) Saint Mary’s (CA) vs. (10) Vanderbilt | truTV | |
| 4:05 p.m. | (6) Ole Miss vs. (11) North Carolina | TNT | |
| 4:35 p.m. | (4) Maryland vs. (13) Grand Canyon | TBS | |
| 6:50 p.m. | (1) Florida vs. (16) Norfolk State | TNT | |
| 7:10 p.m. | (3) Kentucky vs. (14) Troy | CBS | |
| 7:25 p.m. | (7) Marquette vs. (10) New Mexico | TBS | |
| 7:35 p.m. | (4) Arizona vs. (13) Akron | truTV | |
| 9:25 p.m. | (8) UConn vs. (9) Oklahoma | TNT | |
| 9:45 p.m. | (6) Illinois vs. (11) Xavier | CBS | |
| 10:00 p.m. | (2) Michigan St. vs. (15) Bryant | TBS | |
| 10:10 p.m. | (5) Oregon vs. (12) Liberty | truTV |
Second Round Schedule
The second round of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament will take place on Saturday, March 22 and Sunday, March 23. Specific game times and broadcast channels will be announced once the first-round winners are determined. However, teams that played their first-round games on Thursday, March 20 will play on Saturday; and those that played on Friday, March 21 will meet on Sunday.
Sweet 16 Schedule
The Sweet 16 will take place on Thursday, March 27 and Friday, March 28. Broadcast times and channels will be announced following the completion of the second round.
Elite 8 Schedule
The Elite 8, also known as the regional finals, will take place on Saturday, March 29 and Sunday, March 30. The winners of the Sweet 16 games on Thursday, March 27 will meet on Saturday; while the Friday night winners will face off on Sunday.
Final 4 Schedule
| Date | Time (ET) | Matchup | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, April 5 | 6:09 p.m. | To Be Determined | CBS |
| 8:49 p.m. | To Be Determined | CBS |
National Title Game Schedule
| Date | Time (ET) | Matchup | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday, April 7 | 8:50 p.m. | To Be Determined | CBS |
How to watch the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament from anywhere
If you’ll be away from home and can’t watch the tournament as you normally would, you can still catch all of the action no matter where you are in the world with a VPN. A VPN can be used on your phone, tablet, or computer and make you appear to be back home — even when you’re not — making sure you feel at home no matter where you are. A VPN is a safe and secure way to stay protected online while streaming your favorite sports, movies, and shows on the go. Keep in mind that you will still need to be subscribed to a live TV streaming like Sling TV in order to stream the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament with a VPN.
NordVPN is one of the best providers around, at one of the best prices. Currently, you can get two full years of protection for just $3.59 per month — plus you’ll get three extra months FREE. A high-speed VPN with best-in-class security that can be used on up to 10 devices at once — what more could you ask for? Simply sign up, install the software on your device of choice, and start streaming just as you would back home. It couldn’t be easier!
While NordVPN is our recommendation for the best VPN to use while you are traveling, there are a number of other high-quality options available depending on what you are looking for.
- Best Features: ExpressVPN | Starting at $5 per month
- Best Budget Option: Surfshark | Starting at $2.50 per month
- Best Free Option: Proton VPN | Free plan available
