UNC’s Controversial First Four Debut Should Help Play-In Ratings

March Madness officially tips off Tuesday night with two matchups of the men’s First Four, which has become a popular tradition in its own right—both locally at annual host site Dayton and on national TV.

The big draw this year is North Carolina, which is more used to being a No. 1 seed and awaiting a No. 16 seed that comes from the play-in round, as the Tar Heels are making their debut in the First Four. UNC plays San Diego State for a No. 11 seed, with the winner set to face Ole Miss in the first round Thursday. The Tar Heels’ inclusion despite an underwhelming season has drawn considerable ire on social media, as well as from analysts like Jon Rothstein. North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham is the chair of the selection committee.

Having a blueblood college hoops program should help First Four TV ratings, which averaged a combined 6.18 million viewers on truTV (1.54 million per game) last year. That was up 14% over viewership in 2023. The First Four is annually a nice boost for truTV, which has been incorporating more TNT Sports programming over the past year.

SDSU-UNC is scheduled for tip-off at 9:10 p.m. ET on Tuesday, following Alabama State–Saint Francis at 6:40 p.m. ET. On Wednesday night, American University and Mount St. Mary’s will battle for a No. 16 seed before another matchup for a No. 11 seed between Xavier and Texas, one of the record 14 SEC teams to earn a March Madness berth.

First Four Frenzy

The First Four typically has no problem filling up the roughly 13,000-seat University of Dayton Arena for two nights. Last year, more than 24,000 fans attended the four games that included at-large matchups featuring Colorado–Boise State and Colorado State–Virginia.

Dayton has hosted every First Four game outside of the COVID-19-impacted 2021 tournament dating back to 2011, and its current contract with the NCAA runs through 2028.