It doesn't matter whether you're a college basketball fan or you're just trying to win the office pool with your bracket selections, March Madness is fun for all. There are big upsets, dramatic last-second shots, and the jubilation of victory or the agony of defeat as teams compete for the ultimate prize.
There's one looming challenge that accompanies the annual 68-team NCAA Division I basketball tournament - keeping up on all of the action, not just in terms of how your favorite school is performing, but in how your bracket is looking. This is all the more difficult during the first week of the tournament, as the field is narrowed from 68 to 32 and eventually to 16 teams starting with the mid-week, First Four play-in games. Needless to say, that's a lot of games to track. Thanks to mobile technology, staying up on how your bracket is faring is easier than ever with some handy apps.
Here's a closer look at some must-have apps to have for this year's March Madness:
- NCAA March Madness Live: This app is definitely a must-have for all college hoops fans. Not only does it permit users to stream every single game (via login with their cable provider), it also enables users to watch game highlights from previously played games, set alert notifications, and even listen to the radio broadcasts of every game. The app made its introduction for the 2011 tournament and is currently on version 6.0.2.
- Thuuz: If you're like a lot of college basketball fans, you like to root for the underdog. And while a 16 seed has never upset a 1 seed in the history of the tournament, there are usually exciting upsets in other seed pairings. When it comes to productivity however, you likely don't want to tune in for the whole game of that 5 seed versus 12 seed to see if it comes down to the wire. That's where Thuuz comes into play. The app ranks games on watchability and will send an alert when games are coming down to the wire. After getting the alert, you can either head to a TV or fire up the NCAA March Madness Live app to tune in.
- FanCake: Perhaps you're one of the many college hoops fans who takes time off work during the first week of the tournament, which features a bevy of day games on Thursday and Friday. If that's you, download FanCake. You'll select the game you're watching and then be prompted to answer occasional questions based on what's going on for points. You can then redeem your points for rewards.
- ESPN Tournament Challenge: It's CBS, not ESPN, that owns the TV rights to March Madness, but that doesn't mean the worldwide leader in sports doesn't get in on things too. Check out its Bracket Challenge app for information on every team playing and highlights from every game that's been played.
- WatchESPN: Although CBS has the TV rights to March Madness, ESPN provides analysis and coverage on its family of networks, and fans tend to prefer ESPN's analysts over CBS'. It makes this app worth downloading for the sole purpose of tuning in to ESPN's tournament shows from your phone or tablet if you can't be next to a TV.