The Florida Gators during the Final Four game of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on April 5, 2025, in San Antonio, Texas ; J’Wan Roberts of the Houston Cougars celebrates in the Final Four game of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on April 5, 2025, in San Antonio, Texas. Photo:
Brett Wilhelm/NCAA Photos via Getty ; Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty
The end of March Madness is near!
After weeks of bracket predictions and fan excitement, March Madness comes to a close on April 7 with the highly anticipated men’s NCAA championship game. The college basketball tournament — which officially kicked off on March 20 — will see the final two teams, the University of Houston Cougars and the University of Florida Gators, go head-to-head in San Antonio, Texas, for a chance at the title.
For both teams, the championship game marks the first time many of the athletes have made it this far into the tournament, including star players J’wan Roberts (Houston) and Walter Clayton Jr. (Florida).
Ahead of the game, Roberts told CBS Sports his message to his teammates as they head into the final round of the tournament: “We made it far, we made it to April. One last game, why not win it?”
Meanwhile, when Clayton Jr. was asked during a post-Final Four interview how he felt heading into the championship, he replied, “Ready.”
From when it begins to how to stream the big game, here’s everything to know about tuning into the men’s NCAA championship.
Walter Clayton Jr. of the Florida Gators in the Elite Eight round of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on March 29, 2025, in San Francisco ; J’Wan Roberts of the Houston Cougars during the Final Four game of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on April 5, 2025, in San Antonio, Texas. Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty ; Jamie Squire/Getty
March Madness will come to a head when No. 1 seed Houston faces No. 1 seed Florida in the national championship game Monday night.
Both teams made it to the end after dramatic victories in the Final Four: Florida won by 6 points at the end of their game against Auburn University, while Houston overcame a 14-point deficit to defeat Duke University.
If the Gators take the title, it will mark their first championship since winning back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007. But if the Cougars beat Florida, it will be their first national championship win ever.
As for the announcers, Ian Eagle, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill and Tracy Wolfson will call the championship game for the second year in a row, per the NCAA.
Walter Clayton Jr. #1 of the Florida Gators during the West Regional Elite Eight round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on March 29, 2025, in San Francisco. Ezra Shaw/Getty
The national championship will kick off at 8:50 p.m. EST.
While there is no set run time, per NCAA, games take place for a total of 40 minutes of playing time, split into two 20-minute halves, with overtime periods being five minutes. However, this does not account for stoppages and commercial breaks.
L.J. Cryer of the Houston Cougars drives against Carter Bryant of the Arizona Wildcats in the championship game of the Big 12 men’s basketball tournament on March 15, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. Ed Zurga/Getty
While some previous games have aired on truTV, TNT and TBS, fans will need to tune into CBS to watch the final March Madness game on cable.
According to Sports Media Watch, CBS and TBS alternate coverage of the Final Four each year. CBS has been one of the home networks for well over a decade, thanks to a deal signed with the NCAA in 2010, per the site. While the deal was originally set to expire in 2024, it has since been extended through 2032.
Houston Cougars players during the Elite Eight round of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on March 30, 2025, in Indianapolis. Joe Robbins/NCAA Photos/NCAA Photos via Getty
No cable? No worries! There are still plenty of ways to catch the dramatic conclusion of March Madness.
The men’s NCAA championship game will be available through the March Madness Live app, as well as several streaming platforms, including Paramount+, YouTube TV and Fubo.
