how many march madness games are there

March Madness has 67 games total in the standard men’s NCAA tournament, plus 4 First Four play-in games for a full 71-game event. The main bracket itself is 63 games after the play-ins, which is why you’ll often see both numbers used depending on whether the First Four is included.

Breakdown

• First Four: 4 games

• First round: 32 games

• Second round: 16 games

• Sweet 16: 8 games

• Elite Eight: 4 games

• Final Four: 2 games

• Championship: 1 game

Why people count it differently

Some people say 67 because they mean the tournament after the bracket is set, ending with the title game. Others say 71 because they include the four First Four play-in games at the start.