The entire 2021 NCAA men’s basketball tournament will be played in Indiana, with teams staying in Indianapolis and playing in nearby venues, the NCAA announced on Monday.
The Indiana Convention Center, which is home to the NFL Combine, will serve as a practice facility and the hub for the event, with teams staying in nearby hotels that are connected to the conversion center.
Games will be played on courts inside Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Indianapolis Colts, at Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Indiana Pacers), Hinkle Fieldhouse (Butler) and Indiana Farmers Coliseum (IUPUI) in Indianapolis, along with Mackey Arena on Purdue’s Campus in West Lafayette and Indiana’s Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall in Bloomington.
“This is a historic moment for NCAA members and the state of Indiana,” NCAA president Mark Emmert said in a press release. “We have worked tirelessly to reimagine a tournament structure that maintains our unique championship opportunity for college athletes. The reality of today’s announcement was possible thanks to the tremendous leadership of our membership, local authorities and staff.”
Ball State, Butler, Indiana, IUPUI, Purdue and the Horizon League will jointly host the event, which will feature all 67 games of the tournament. The 2021 Final Four had already been scheduled to be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in the Indianapolis. The NCAA did not announce what will come of contracts to play earlier-round games in other locations. The NCAA had already announced that the entire 2021 women’s basketball tournament will be played in San Antonio, Texas.
“This is going to be complicated and difficult; there’s no question about that,” NCAA vice president Dan Gavitt said. “We appreciate the collaboration among the Men’s Basketball Committee and staff, our hosts and local organizers, the staffs at each practice and competition venue, and our broadcast and corporate partners. We will all pull together and stage a terrific national championship.”
Selection Sunday will be on March 14 and the tournament is scheduled to finish with Final Four games on April 3 and the national championship on April 5. Specific dates for the earlier-round games have not yet been announced. All games will be broadcast as usually by Turner Sports and CBS.
