The 2019 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 68 teams playing in a
single-elimination tournament
A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, ...
to determine the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
(NCAA)
Division I men's
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
national champion for the
2018–19 season. The 81st annual edition of the
tournament
A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses:
# One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...
began on March 19, 2019, and concluded with the
championship game on April 8, at
U.S. Bank Stadium in
Minneapolis
Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
,
Minnesota
Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...
, between the
Texas Tech Red Raiders and the
Virginia Cavaliers
The Virginia Cavaliers, also known as Wahoos or Hoos, are the athletic teams representing the University of Virginia, located in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers compete at the NCAA Division I level ( FBS for football), in the Atlantic Coast C ...
, with Virginia winning 85–77 in overtime.
Two schools made their first appearances in the tournament:
Big South champion
Gardner–Webb and
Southland champion
Abilene Christian.
For the first time since
2001
The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
(also hosted in Minneapolis), no #8 seed survived the first round of the tournament. This was also the first time since the
First Four was established in
2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
that no team in the First Four advanced past the first round of the tournament. This was the first Final Four since 2012 that did not include at least one team seeded #7 or lower.
This tournament marked the first time that the
Auburn Tigers
The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...
of the
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...
and the
Texas Tech Red Raiders of the
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida ...
made the Final Four. This also marked the third Final Four appearance for the
Virginia Cavaliers
The Virginia Cavaliers, also known as Wahoos or Hoos, are the athletic teams representing the University of Virginia, located in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers compete at the NCAA Division I level ( FBS for football), in the Atlantic Coast C ...
of the
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...
, but their first
since 1984
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
.
The championship game was the first time since
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
to see two first-time participants playing in the championship, and the first since
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
to have a first-time national champion. As a result of a worldwide
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
that started in late 2019 and subsequently forced the cancellation of the
2020 tournament, this would be the last tournament held until
2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
, and this would be also the last tournament held across the United States until
2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
.
Carsen Edwards of
Purdue
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donat ...
was the leading scorer, with 139 points in only 4 games—producing an average of 34.8 points per game. Edwards also set the record for most made
three-point shots in a tournament, with 28. The previous record holder,
Glen Rice of
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
in
1989
1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
, made 27, but did so in 6 games.
In the previous year's tournament,
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
had
infamously become the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 seed. At the conclusion of this year's title game, CBS announcer
Jim Nantz dubbed Virginia's win the "all-time turnaround title."
Tournament procedure
A total of 68 teams entered the 2019 tournament. Thirty-two automatic bids were awarded to each program that won their
conference
A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject, or to bring together people who have a common interest. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always d ...
's tournament. The remaining 36 bids were "at-large", with selections extended by the NCAA Selection Committee.
Eight teams (the four lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers and the four lowest-seeded at-large teams) played in the First Four (the successor to what had been popularly known as "
play-in games" through the 2010 tournament). The winners of these games advanced to the main draw of the tournament.
The
Selection Committee seeded the entire field from 1 to 68.
The selections and seedings were completed and revealed on Sunday, March 17.
Schedule and venues
The following are the sites that were selected to host each round of the 2019 tournament:
First Four
*March 19 and 20
**
University of Dayton Arena
University of Dayton Arena (commonly known as UD Arena) is a 13,409-seat multi-purpose arena located in Dayton, Ohio. The arena opened in 1969. It is home to the University of Dayton Flyers basketball teams. From 2001 to 2010, the facility hoste ...
,
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...
(Host:
University of Dayton
The University of Dayton (UD) is a Private university, private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary (Marianists), Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the U ...
)
First and second rounds (Subregionals)
*March 21 and 23
**
XL Center
The PeoplesBank Arena, (originally known as the Hartford Civic Center and formerly as the XL Center) is a multi-purpose arena and convention center located in downtown Hartford, Connecticut. Owned by the City of Hartford, it is managed by the qu ...
,
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
(Host:
University of Connecticut
The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...
)
**
Wells Fargo Arena,
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...
(Host:
Drake University
Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. The University offers over 140 undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, education, Legal education, law, and pharmacy. Drake U ...
)
**
VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena,
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...
(Host:
Jacksonville University)
**
Vivint Smart Home Arena,
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Salt ...
(Host:
University of Utah
The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...
)
*March 22 and 24
**
Colonial Life Arena,
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-mo ...
(Host:
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina (USC, SC, or Carolina) is a Public university, public research university in Columbia, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1801 as South Carolina College, It is the flagship of the University of South Car ...
)
**
Nationwide Arena
Nationwide Arena is a multi-purpose arena in the Arena District of Columbus, Ohio, United States. Since completion in 2000, the arena has served as the home of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is one of two faci ...
,
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...
(Host:
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...
)
**
BOK Center
BOK Center, or Bank of Oklahoma Center, is a 19,199-seat multi-purpose arena and a primary indoor sports and event venue in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States. The two current permanent tenants are the Tulsa Oilers of the ECHL and the Tulsa Oiler ...
,
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa ( ) is the List of municipalities in Oklahoma, second-most-populous city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the List of United States cities by population, 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The po ...
(Host:
University of Tulsa
The University of Tulsa (TU) is a Private university, private research university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It has a historic affiliation with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Presbyterian Church, although it is now nondenominational, and the campus ...
)
**
SAP Center,
San Jose, California
San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...
(Host:
West Coast Conference
The West Coast Conference (WCC) — known as the California Basketball Association from 1952 to 1956 and then as the West Coast Athletic Conference until 1989 — is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I consisting o ...
)
Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight)
*March 28 and 30
**West Regional,
Honda Center,
Anaheim, California
Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orang ...
(Host:
Big West Conference
The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's NCAA Division I, Division I. The conference was origina ...
)
**South Regional,
KFC Yum! Center,
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...
(Host:
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...
)
*March 29 and 31
**East Regional,
Capital One Arena,
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
(Host:
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...
)
**Midwest Regional,
Sprint Center
Sprint may refer to:
Aerospace
* Spring WS202 Sprint, a Canadian aircraft design
* Sprint (missile), an anti-ballistic missile
Automobiles
* Alfa Romeo Sprint, automobile produced by Alfa Romeo between 1976 and 1989
* Chevrolet Sprint, a rebadge ...
,
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...
(Host:
Missouri Valley Conference
The Missouri Valley Conference (also called MVC or simply "The Valley") is the fourth-oldest collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. The conference's members are primarily located in the Midwestern Unite ...
)
National semifinals and championship (Final Four and championship)
*April 6 and 8
**
U.S. Bank Stadium,
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
(Host:
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...
)
U.S. Bank Stadium became the 40th venue to host the Final Four. This was the first hosting of the event at the facility, built on the former site of the
Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, a two-time host in
1992
1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General.
* January 6
** The Republ ...
and
2001
The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
. The tournament returned to Hartford's XL Center for the first time since 1998. For the first time since 1970, the tournament returned to Columbia, South Carolina, with games played at the Colonial Life Arena.
Qualification and selection
Four teams, out of 353 in Division I, were ineligible to participate in the 2019 tournament;
Alabama A&M and
Florida A&M failed to meet
APR requirements, while
California Baptist and
North Alabama are amidst reclassification from
Division II.
Automatic qualifiers
Tournament seeds
The tournament seeds and regions were determined through the
NCAA basketball tournament selection process
The selection process for college basketball's NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments determine which teams (68 men's and 68 women's) will enter the tournaments (the centerpieces of the basketball championship frenzy known as ...
.
*See
First Four
Tournament bracket
First Four –
Dayton, OH
Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...
The
First Four games involved eight teams: the four overall lowest-ranked teams, and the four lowest-ranked at-large teams.
East Regional –
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
East Regional Final
East Regional all-tournament team
*
Cassius Winston, Michigan State
*
Xavier Tillman, Michigan State
*
Zion Williamson, Duke
*
RJ Barrett, Duke
*
Kerry Blackshear Jr., Virginia Tech
West Regional – Anaheim, CA
West Regional Final
West Regional all-tournament team
*
Jarrett Culver, Texas Tech
*
Matt Mooney, Texas Tech
*
Rui Hachimura, Gonzaga
*
Brandon Clarke, Gonzaga
*
Trent Forrest, Florida State
South Regional – Louisville, KY
South Regional Final
South Regional all-tournament team
*
Carsen Edwards, Purdue
*
Kyle Guy, Virginia
*
Mamadi Diakite, Virginia
*Ty Jerome, Virginia
*Ryan Cline, Purdue
Midwest Regional – Sprint Center, Kansas City, MO
Midwest Regional Final
Midwest Regional all-tournament team
*Jared Harper, Auburn
*Bryce Brown (basketball), Bryce Brown, Auburn
*Chuma Okeke, Auburn
*P. J. Washington, Kentucky
*Tyler Herro, Kentucky
Final Four – U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, MN
National semifinals
National Championship
Final Four all-tournament team
*
Kyle Guy (Jr, Virginia) – NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player, Final Four Most Outstanding Player
*
Jarrett Culver (So, Texas Tech)
[
* Matt Mooney (Gr, Texas Tech)][
* De'Andre Hunter (So, Virginia)][
* Ty Jerome (Jr, Virginia)][
]
Game summaries and tournament notes
Upsets
Per the NCAA, "Upsets are defined as when the winner of the game was seeded five or more places lower than the team it defeated." There were five upsets during the whole tournament, and all of them were in the first round.
Record by conference
*The R64, R32, S16, E8, F4, CG, and NC columns indicate how many teams from each conference were in the round of 64 (first round), round of 32 (second round), Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four, championship game, and national champion, respectively.
*The "Record" column includes wins in the First Four for the NEC, Ohio Valley, Pac-12, and Summit conferences and losses in the First Four for the American and Big East conference.
*The SWAC and MEAC each had one representative, eliminated in the First Four with a record of 0–1.
*The America East, Big Sky, Big South, Colonial, C-USA, Horizon, MAAC, Missouri Valley, Patriot, Southland, Sun Belt, WAC, and Ivy League each had one representative, eliminated in the Round of 64 with a record of 0–1.
Media coverage
Television
CBS Sports and Turner Sports (via TBS (American TV channel), TBS, TNT (American TV network), TNT, and truTV) had U.S. television rights to the tournament. As part of a cycle than began in 2016, CBS televised the 2019 Final Four and championship game.
In response to criticism over TBS's handling of the selection show in 2018 (which featured an unconventional two-hour format where all the qualifying teams were first revealed in alphabetical order before the matchups were actually unveiled, and had viewership fall by 52% partly due to it also being aired on cable rather than CBS), it was announced that CBS's selection show would revert to an hour-long format, and prioritize unveiling the bracket. CNN president Jeff Zucker, who had also become head of WarnerMedia's sports properties after a reorganization, explained that "it's a sign of understanding when things don't necessarily go as well as you would hope you change it. So there's no shame in that. At the end of the day, you have to give the fans what they want." The show attracted its highest viewership since 2014 and averaged a 4.0 share on Nielsen overnight ratings.
Television channels
*First Four – truTV
*First and second rounds – CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV
*Regional semifinals and finals (Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight) – CBS and TBS
*National semifinals (Final Four) and championship – CBS
Studio hosts
* Greg Gumbel (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
* Ernie Johnson Jr., Ernie Johnson (New York City, Atlanta, and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regional Semi-Finals, Final Four and National Championship Game
* Casey Stern (Atlanta) – First Four, first round and second round
* Adam Zucker (New York) – First round and second round (game breaks)
Studio analysts
* Charles Barkley (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
* Mike Brey (Atlanta) – Regional Semi-Finals
* Jeff Capel III, Jeff Capel (Atlanta) – First round
* Seth Davis (Atlanta and Minneapolis) – First Four, first round, second round, Regional Semi-Finals, Final Four and National Championship Game
* Brendan Haywood (Atlanta) – First Four, first round, second round and Regional semi-finals
* Clark Kellogg (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
* Porter Moser (Atlanta) – Second round
* Candace Parker (Atlanta and Minneapolis) – First Four, first round, second round, Regional Semi-Finals and Final Four
* Kenny Smith (New York City and Minneapolis) – First round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
* Gene Steratore (New York City and Minneapolis) (Rules Analyst) – First Four, first round, second round, Regionals, Final Four and National Championship Game
* Wally Szczerbiak (New York City and Minneapolis) – Second round and Final Four
* Jay Wright (basketball), Jay Wright (Minneapolis) – Final Four
Commentary teams
* Jim Nantz/Bill Raftery/Grant Hill/Tracy Wolfson – First and second rounds at Columbia, South Carolina; East Regional at Washington, D.C.; Final Four and National Championship at Minneapolis, Minnesota
* Brian Anderson (broadcaster), Brian Anderson/Chris Webber/Allie LaForce – First and second rounds at Columbus, Ohio; South Regional at Louisville, Kentucky
* Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel/Jamie Erdahl – First and second rounds at Jacksonville, Florida; Midwest Regional at Kansas City, Missouri
* Kevin Harlan/Reggie Miller/Dan Bonner/Dana Jacobson – First Four at Dayton, Ohio (Tuesday); first and second rounds at Des Moines, Iowa; West Regional at Anaheim, California
* Brad Nessler/Steve Lavin/Jim Jackson (basketball), Jim Jackson/Evan Washburn – First and second rounds at Tulsa, Oklahoma
* Spero Dedes/Steve Smith (basketball), Steve Smith/Len Elmore or Jim Jackson (basketball), Jim Jackson/Rosalyn Gold-Onwude – First Four at Dayton, Ohio (Wednesday); first and second rounds at San Jose, California
** Jackson called the First Four (Wednesday) with Elmore doing the first and second rounds with Dedes, Smith and Gold-Onwude.
* Andrew Catalon/Steve Lappas/Lisa Byington – First and second rounds at Salt Lake City, Utah
* Carter Blackburn/Debbie Antonelli/John Schriffen – First and second rounds at Hartford, Connecticut
ESPN International had international rights to the tournament. Coverage uses CBS/Turner play-by-play teams until the Final Four.
* Sean McDonough, Jay Bilas (Texas Tech vs. Michigan State), Dick Vitale (Virginia vs. Auburn, National Championship Game)
Radio
Westwood One (current), Westwood One had exclusive radio rights to the entire tournament.
First Four
*Ted Emrich and Austin Croshere – at Dayton, Ohio
First and second rounds
*Scott Graham and Donny Marshall – Hartford, Connecticut
*Kevin Kugler and Robbie Hummel – Des Moines, Iowa
*Tom McCarthy (sportscaster), Tom McCarthy and Jon Crispin – Jacksonville, Florida
*John Sadak and Dan Dickau – Salt Lake City, Utah
*Brandon Gaudin and John Thompson (basketball), John Thompson – Columbia, South Carolina
*Craig Way and Will Perdue – Columbus, Ohio
*Ryan Radtke and P. J. Carlesimo – Tulsa, Oklahoma
*Chris Carrino and Mike Montgomery (basketball), Mike Montgomery – San Jose, California
Regionals
*Kevin Kugler and John Thompson – East Regional at Washington, D.C.
*Scott Graham and P. J. Carlesimo – Midwest Regional at Kansas City, Missouri
*Brandon Gaudin and Will Perdue – South Regional at Louisville, Kentucky
*Ryan Radtke and Jim Jackson – West Regional at Anaheim, California
Final Four
*Kevin Kugler, John Thompson, Clark Kellogg, and Jim Gray (sportscaster), Jim Gray – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Internet
Video
Live video of games was available for streaming through the following means:
Audio
Live audio of games was available for streaming through the following means:
* NCAA March Madness Live (website and app)
* Westwood One Sports website
* TuneIn (website and app)
* Websites and apps of Westwood One Sports affiliates
Film
#16 seed Gardner–Webb Runnin' Bulldogs men's basketball, Gardner–Webb's season and appearance in the tournament became the subject of a documentary titled ''The Dancin' Bulldogs'', released on October 16, 2020.
See also
* 2019 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament
* 2019 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament
* 2019 NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament
* 2019 NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament
Footnotes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:2019 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Ncaa tournament
NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
College basketball tournaments in Minnesota
2019 in sports in Minnesota, NCAA Division I Men's Basketball
2010s in Minneapolis
March 2019 sports events in the United States, NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament
April 2019 sports events in the United States, NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament