Why are there no NBA games today? NCAA Tournament championship takes Monday spotlight

Why are there no NBA games today? NCAA Tournament championship takes Monday spotlight

With the NBA season winding down, we’ve come to expect games every night as playoff seedings in both the Eastern and Western Conference are still not completely locked in. Interestingly enough, there are no NBA games on Monday, April 4. 

So, why are there no NBA games today? What makes this Monday different from any other night in the NBA regular season?

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The answer is pretty straightforward — the championship game of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament will take place on Monday, April 4.

Why are there no NBA games on Monday?

With all eyes focused on the culmination of NCAA March Madness, the NBA gives the NCAA the national television stage and lets the championship game be the focus for all hardcore basketball fans. 

On Monday, the NCAA championship game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Kansas Jayhawks will take place at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. 

What time does the NCAA Tournament championship start?

  • Tipoff: 9:20 p.m. ET | 6:20 p.m. PT

Tip off for the national title game between UNC and Kansas is 9:20 p.m. ET on Monday, April 4. The time, while a bit later in the evening on the East Coast, is the customary tipoff time for the game to start.

What channel is UNC vs. Kansas on?

  • TV channel: TBS
  • Live stream: Sling TV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, DirecTV Stream, March Madness Live

Unlike recent years, the March Madness final will air on TNT and TBS, as opposed to CBS. There will be familiar voices on the call, however: Jim Nantz will be on the play-by-play mic, with Bill Raftery and Grant Hill filling out the broadcast booth. Tracy Wolfson will work the sidelines.

For those looking to live stream the NCAA Tournament final, there are several options, including YouTube TV, Hulu+ Live TV and DirecTV Stream.

Sling TV’s Blue package offers the cheapest solution, at $24.99 for the first month:

  Sling Blue YouTube TV fuboTV Hulu + Live DirecTV Stream
TBS Yes Yes No Yes Yes
Price $24.99 (first month) $64.99 $64.99 $69.99 $69.99

UNC NCAA Tournament 2022 record

Date Round Opponent Result
Thursday, March 17 First round Marquette (No. 9, East Region) 95-63, W
Saturday, March 19 Second round Baylor (No. 1, East Region) 93-86, W (OT)
Friday, March 25 Sweet 16 UCLA (No. 4, East Region) 73-66, W
Sunday, March 27 Elite Eight Saint Peter’s (No. 15, East Region) 69-49, W
Saturday, April 2 Final Four Duke (No. 2, West Region) 81-77, W

Kansas NCAA Tournament 2022 record

Date Round Opponent Result
Thursday, March 17 First round Texas Southern (No. 16, Midwest Region 83-56, W
Saturday, March 19 Second round Creighton (No. 9, Midwest Region) 79-72, W
Friday, March 25 Sweet 16 Providence (No. 4, Midwest Region) 66-61, W
Sunday, March 27 Elite Eight Miami (No. 10, Midwest Region) 76-50
Saturday, April 2 Final Four Villanova (No. 2, Midwest Region) 81-65

Where is the NCAA Tournament championship in 2022?

  • Location: Caesars Superdome

The Caesars Superdome — formerly known as the Mercedes-Benz Superdome — hosts the Kansas vs. UNC showdown.

This is the first time since 2012 that the final game of the March Madness tournament will be in New Orleans, La.

Kansas lost to Kentucky 67-59 in 2012 in New Orleans.

Who won the national championship in 2021?

The Baylor Bears were the sole survivors of the 2021 March Madness tournament, holding off Gonzaga to win their first hoops championship. 

School National titles Most recent Runner-up finishes
UCLA 11 1995 2
Kentucky 8 2012 4
North Carolina 6 2017 5
Duke 5 2015 6
Indiana 5 1987 1
Connecticut 4 2014 0
Kansas 3 2008 6
Villanova 3 2018 1
Cincinnati 2 1962 1
Florida 2 2007 1
Louisville 2 1986 0
Michigan State 2 2000 1
North Carolina State 2 1983 0
Oklahoma State 2 1946 0
San Francisco 2 1956 0
Arizona 1 1997 1
Arkansas 1 1994 1
Baylor 1 2021 1
California 1 1959 1
City College of New York 1 1950 0
Georgetown 1 1984 3
Holy Cross 1 1947 0
La Salle 1 1954 0
Loyola (Ill.) 1 1963 0
Marquette 1 1977 1
Maryland 1 2002 0
Ohio State 1 1960 4
Oregon 1 1939 0
Stanford 1 1942 0
Syracuse 1 2003 2
UNLV 1 1990 0
Utah 1 1944 1
UTEP 1 1966 0
Virginia 1 2019 0
Wisconsin 1 1941 1
Wyoming 1 1943 0

What the SEC tournament would look like today (7 games left)

Auburn finally dropped an SEC game — and now the race is on at the top, with the Tigers only one game ahead of Kentucky for the lead in the conference.

It took overtime and the largest crowd in Arkansas basketball history for Auburn’s 19-game winning streak to end in Fayetteville, 80-76. Auburn shot just 47{cfdf3f5372635aeb15fd3e2aecc7cb5d7150695e02bd72e0a44f1581164ad809} from the free throw line, turned the ball over 19 times and was without starting point guard Zep Jasper for the second straight game.

Bruce Pearl said it best after the game: Auburn’s margin for error has grown slimmer, with Kentucky looking like one of the best teams in the country, and Arkansas and Tennessee both two games back thanks to impressive turnarounds from the start of SEC play. And Auburn still has a trio of road games remaining against three of the current top-six seeds in the conference: Florida, Mississippi State and Tennessee.

“We know we don’t have much margin for error,” Pearl said. “We don’t see Kentucky — we don’t see them losing much. We know the position that we’re in.”

The 2022 SEC tournament, which Auburn did not compete in last season due to its self-imposed postseason ban, shifts venues for a pitstop in Tampa, before it returns to Nashville in 2023 for the foreseeable future. The first round is set to tip off March 9 at Amalie Arena.

With seven games remaining, here’s how that bracket would look if the five-day tournament began today.

DAY 1 (first round)

Game 1: No. 12 Missouri vs. No. 13 Ole Miss

Game 2: No. 11 South Carolina vs. No. 14 Georgia

DAY 2 (second round)

Game 3: No. 8 Vanderbilt vs. No. 9 Alabama

Game 4: No. 5 Florida vs. Game 1 winner

Game 5: No. 7 LSU vs. No. 10 Texas A&M

Game 6: No. 6 Mississippi State vs. Game 2 winner

DAY 3 (quarterfinals)

Game 7: No. 1 Auburn vs. Game 3 winner

Game 8: No. 4 Tennessee vs. Game 4 winner

Game 9: No. 2 Kentucky vs. Game 5 winner

Game 10: No. 3 Arkansas vs. Game 6 winner

DAY 4 (semifinals)

Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner

Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner

DAY 5 (championship)

Game 13: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner

ESPN BPI PROJECTED END-OF-YEAR STANDINGS

1. Auburn (15-3)

2. Kentucky (14-4)

3. Tennessee (13-5)

4. Arkansas (11-7)

5. LSU (10-8)

6. Mississippi State (9-9)

7. Florida (9-9)

8. Alabama (9-9)

9. Vanderbilt (7-11)

10. Texas A&M (7-11)

11. South Carolina (7-11)

12. Ole Miss (6-12)

13. Missouri (5-13)

14. Georgia (2-16)

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