Men's vs. Women’s College Basketball Tournament Format Differences, Explained

March is one of the most exciting times of the year for college basketball fans, with the men's and women's national tournaments taking place.

The two tournaments may follow the same general format, but they aren't carbon copies.

Here are the differences between the men's and women's college basketball tournaments.

Men's vs. Women's College Tournament Differences

Game Structure

The first thing you'll notice if you switch between a men's and women's college basketball tournament game is how the games are structured.

Both games still consist of 40 total minutes of game action, but the men's and women's tournaments have different ways of getting there.

The women's tournament uses the 4-quarter system most associated with basketball worldwide. Each quarter is 10 minutes long. There are media timeouts at the first dead-ball under the 5-minute mark of each quarter, and right after the 1st and 3rd quarters.

Men's college basketball still uses the half system. There are two 20-minute halves, with media timeouts following the first dead-ball after 16, 12, 8, and 4-minute marks.

Fouls and Free Throws

Because the women's side uses quarters and the men's side uses halves, they have different rules relating to fouls.

On the women's side, teams are allowed four team fouls before the opposing team enters the bonus. From the fifth team foul of the quarter onward, the team that got fouled will shoot two free throws even on non-shooting fouls. Team foul counts reset to zero at the beginning of each quarter.

The men's side is a bit more complicated. At the seventh foul of the half, the opposing team will enter the bonus. But the standard bonus in men's college basketball is only a one-and-one; for non-shooting fouls, the opposing team will have to make the first free throw to be awarded a try at a second free throw.

This continues until the 10th team foul of the half, at which point the opposing team enters the double bonus where they attempt two free throws like the women's standard bonus. Team foul counts reset to zero at the beginning of the second half.

Minor Rule Changes

The men's and women's tournaments both follow standard basketball protocol, with two notable differences aside from the game format and foul rules.

You likely won't notice it on TV, but the women's tournament uses a slightly smaller ball than the men's. Both are smaller than the standard NBA basketball.

In terms of rules, the biggest difference to be aware of is the lack of a 10-second violation in the women's game. For the men, teams only have 10 seconds to cross the ball past half-court at the change of a possession, beginning the second the ball is possessed in the backcourt by the offense.

If the offense is unable to get the ball past half-court in 10 seconds, the other team takes possession of the ball.

That is not present in the women's tournament. Teams can use as much time as they want to cross half-court.

Host Sites

Something that you'll notice on the brackets themselves are the host site names. Where games are played differs quite a bit between the men's and women's sides.

For the women, the first two rounds are hosted by the four highest-seeded teams in each region.

So, the 1,8,9, and 16 seeds will play their first and second round games at the home site of the 1 seed. The 2 seed will host the 7,10, and 15 seeds. The 3 seed will host the 6, 11, and 14 seeds. The 4 seed will host the 5, 12, and 13 seeds.

Then, round of 16 and round of 8 games are split into two sites. In 2025, Birmingham and Spokane host the regional games.

The semifinals and championship are held at the same site; this year, it's in Tampa, Florida.

For the men's tournament, first and second round games are played at pre-determined sites.

Then, each region heads to a separate site for the Round of 16 and Round of 8.

The men's semifinals and championship will take place in San Antonio, Texas this year.

Which bets stand out to you across the nation tonight? Check out FanDuel Sportsbook's latest college basketball betting odds to see the full menu of options.

Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook and FanDuel Daily Fantasy today!

The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.