For college basketball fans, March is the most exciting time of the year. For everyone else? Not so much.
If this is your year to get into the game, then you’ve landed on the right page. Consider this your college basketball onboarding. Follow our guide and you just might know what you’re talking about.
Game time
First things first. You need to know when exactly the games are playing. This is the key to appearing like you know what’s going on.
Brush up on the lingo
The best way to keep up with the game is to research the lingo. Phrases such as “pick and pop,” “cross-over” and “posterized” will earn you major brownie points.
Keep track with an app
Several college basketball apps out there will keep you up to date on every development. One example: the March Madness Live app, which provides real-time updates. Don’t want to watch all the games? An app called Thuuz will alert you when a particularly interesting game is on. Let’s face it — these are the only games anyone talks about anyway. If you have DISH, you can use the Game Finder app to find a specific game.
Fill out a bracket
It’s important to fill out a bracket if you want to seem knowledgeable. But be careful because the reputation you hope for is surely on the line.
The good news: Filling out a solid bracket is actually really difficult, even for the experts. Because of the statistical improbability, most fans are bound to trip up early in their brackets. That being said, it’s pretty obvious when you just put random teams down on your bracket after Selection Sunday.
Our advice: Don’t screw up your bracket in these 10 different ways. Your favorite mascots, the most scandalous players and the coolest states are just a few examples of how you should not decide which teams to pick.
Remember, you don’t need to know everything about every team — nobody really does.
The power of an upset
If someone questions your support of a team, simply say you see an “upset” in the making. The more confidently you deliver this line, the quicker you’ll get off that person’s radar.
Prepare with basketball movies
Researching the game and the makeup of a team can be a drag. Take a cue from your high school days. Why study the sport when you can learn everything you need to know from a movie? Coach Carter, Teen Wolf and Space Jam are great examples.
