12 hours, 4 games, 1 unavoidable truth: There is nothing better than the first day of March Madness
Chase Johnston of the High Point Panthers celebrates his three-point basket against the Wisconsin Badgers during the second half in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Moda Center on March 19, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images) - Soobum Im/Getty Images The thing that always gets me on the first day of the NCAA Tournament are the school buses, the ones chugging along stuffed with kids. Because it is, of course, Thursday morning and this is what ordinary people do on a Thursday morning.
Kids go to school. Grown-ups go to work or pick up their laundry or go to the grocery store. Not everyone, apparently, is spending the day in a 12-hour marathon of hoops.
What a pity for them. Because while the final day of the NCAA Tournament is the most exciting, the best day is the first. No matter where you are, no matter how the games play out, it is a glorious timeout from reality.
Not a 30-second one, either. A full beautiful timeout Presumably people here in Buffalo went about the business of their day. It is impossible to know.
The first day of the tournament is also sort of like going on a casino bender. No windows. No way to know what’s happening outside for 12 hours.
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