NCAA Tournament 2019: TV Schedule and Picks for 1st-Round Contests

Hopefully you've called out of work on Thursday and Friday, because a bunch of college basketball is on the way.

This is one of the best annual four-day stretches in all of sports, as the NCAA tournament gets underway with 16 first-round matchups over the next two days, followed by eight second-round games on both Saturday and Sunday.

The field stands at 64 teams after the First Four round, which took place Tuesday and Wednesday nights.

To make sure you don't miss any of the opening-round excitement, here's everything you need to know heading into the first round of March Madness, along with picks to help with any last-minute bracket decisions.

Bracket

TV Schedule and Picks (Predicted Winners in Bold, All Times ET)

Thursday

No. 10 Minnesota vs. No. 7 Louisville, 12:15 p.m., CBS

No. 14 Yale vs. No. 3 LSU, 12:40 p.m., truTV

No. 12 New Mexico State vs. No. 5 Auburn, 1:30 p.m., TNT

No. 13 Vermont vs. No. 4 Florida State, 2 p.m., TBS

No. 15 Bradley vs. No. 2 Michigan State, 2:45 p.m., CBS

No. 11 Belmont vs. No. 6 Maryland, 3:10 p.m., truTV

No. 13 Northeastern vs. No. 4 Kansas, 4 p.m., TNT

No. 12 Murray State vs. No. 5 Marquette, 4:30 p.m., TBS

No. 10 Florida vs. No. 7 Nevada, 6:50 p.m., TNT

No. 15 Abilene Christian vs. No. 2 Kentucky, 7:10 p.m., CBS

No. 11 Saint Mary's vs. No. 6 Villanova, 7:20 p.m., TBS

No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson vs. No. 1 Gonzaga, 7:27 p.m., truTV

No. 15 Montana vs. No. 2 Michigan, 9:20 p.m., TNT

No. 10 Seton Hall vs. No. 7 Wofford, 9:40 p.m., CBS

No. 14 Old Dominion vs. No. 3 Purdue, 9:50 p.m., TBS

No. 9 Baylor vs. No. 8 Syracuse, 9:57 p.m., truTV

Friday

No. 10 Iowa vs. No. 7 Cincinnati, 12:15 p.m., CBS

No. 9 Oklahoma vs. No. 8 Ole Miss, 12:40 p.m., truTV

No. 14 Northern Kentucky vs. No. 3 Texas Tech, 1:30 p.m., TNT

No. 13 UC Irvine vs. No. 4 Kansas State, 2 p.m., TBS

No. 15 Colgate vs. No. 2 Tennessee, 2:45 p.m., CBS

No. 16 Gardner-Webb vs. No. 1 Virginia, 3:10 p.m., truTV

No. 11 Arizona State vs. No. 6 Buffalo, 4 p.m., TNT

No. 12 Oregon vs. No. 5 Wisconsin, 4:30 p.m., TBS

No. 9 Washington vs. No. 8 Utah State, 6:50 p.m., TNT

No. 16 North Dakota State vs. No. 1 Duke, 7:10 p.m., CBS

No. 14 Georgia State vs. No. 3 Houston, 7:20 p.m., TBS

No. 12 Liberty vs. No. 5 Mississippi State, 7:27 p.m., truTV

No. 16 Iona vs. No. 1 North Carolina, 9:20 p.m., TNT

No. 9 UCF vs. No. 8 VCU, 9:40 p.m., CBS

No. 11 Ohio State vs. No. 6 Iowa State, 9:50 p.m., TBS

No. 13 Saint Louis vs. No. 4 Virginia Tech, 9:57 p.m., truTV

Preview

It's always tough for Nos. 15 and 16 seeds to notch wins in the NCAA tournament, but this year, that should be especially true. The Nos. 1 and 2 seeds all appear poised for solid tourney runs, and it would be quite surprising to see any upset in the first round.

However, there's always a chance for a major upset during March Madness, which is part of what makes the event so entertaining.

Take last year, for example. Virginia lost to UMBC in the first round, becoming the first No. 1 seed to ever lose to a No. 16 seed. Nobody saw that coming, but sure enough, that's what happened in the opening round of the tournament.

That should have this year's No. 1 seeds (Duke, Virginia, North Carolina and Gonzaga) aware of the possibility and motivated to prevent another No. 16 seed victory.

"I have watched enough over the years that, you know, I think probably reinforces the hope and the belief of the team that's in that 16 slot," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said during Wednesday's availability in Salt Lake City. "Those of us that have been in the 1 slot have fully understood that it could definitely happen and, obviously, it did happen."

Although there may not be a No. 16 seed winning again this year, there should be some upsets over the two days of first-round action.

No. 11 Belmont and No. 12 Murray State are prime candidates to pull off shocks on Thursday, and one of those schools could also be the Cinderella team for this year's tournament.

Belmont, which beat Temple in the First Four round, plays Maryland, while Murray State opens tournament play against Marquette.