The First March Madness Tournament

The First March Madness Tournament was a little over 9 decades ago and it was nothing like it is today. Some of the biggest differences were that the 3-point line wasn't yet invented and implemented in the NCAA. According to "The History of The 3-Pointer", the 3-point line wasn't implemented in the NCAA until 1979. So without the ability to score 3 points off one shot, it made a huge difference in the scoring. For example, the Oregon Ducks defeated Ohio State Buckeye 46-33 for the first national title of the NCAA Tournament in 1939. Fast forward to 2019, Virginia defeated Texas Tech 85-77. Secondly, instead of having 68 teams included in the tournament, the First March Madness Tournament included 8 teams. Of course, the teams didn't go immediately to 68, it took some time. According to "When did March Madness expand to 68 games", "In 1951, the field doubled to 16, and kept expanding sporadically over the next few decades until 1985, when the modern format of a 64-team tournament began. In 2011, to flesh out that first set of games and deepen the field, three more at-large bids were added, and with them, three more games to round out the First Four. That brought us to the current number of 68 teams."So as you can see the tournament has cultivated into one of the biggest sporting events of all-time. Knowing where it came from to where it now makes you appreciated it a lot more.

-Nelson Jordan II