Tip-off for the opening round of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament is Thursday. And if you need some last minute inspiration for your bracket, there is a giant March Madness bracket set up outside the convention center in downtown San Antonio.
San Antonio has been preparing to play host to the 2018 Final Four since the NCAA announced its selection in 2014. By the end of the month, college basketball will take center stage in the Alamodome.
At the corner of Alamo and Market streets is a large-scale model of a bracket, complete with over 60 teams split up by their divisions. It’s 16 feet tall and spans about 25 feet in diameter.
Robert Bridge moved to San Antonio with his family three months ago, and they’re ready to experience the Final Four in their new home.
“It’s pretty cool. We come from North Carolina so it’s big basketball country,” he said. “We’re pretty excited that it's coming here.”
He plans to support last year’s champions, the University of North Carolina Tar Heels.
“That’s where my brother and sister both went to college,” he said. “It’s just the team I’ve always rooted for.”
The art piece caught the attention of spring break visitors like Mark Gottschall, who is visiting the city with his wife Portia.
“We just happened to come by here on accident and see the bracket. She saw it first and it’s like it was something that was meant to be because we’re so into March Madness,” he said.
Although Gottshall is a University of Texas grad, he plans to support the Kansas Jayhawks.
“I worked at the University of Kansas for 10 years,” he said. “I’ve been in Allen Fieldhouse; I’ve seen the Jawhawks play.
“… There’s no team like the Jayhawks; I don’t care who it is.”
The model bracket will be updated as teams move closer to the Final Four, which start on March 31. There are seven teams from Texas, including No. 3 Texas Tech; No. 6 Houston; No. 6 Texas Christian University; No. 7 Texas A&M; No. 10 Texas; No. 14 Stephen F. Austin; and No. 16 Texas Southern.
Joey Palacios can be reached at Joey@TPR.org and on Twitter at @Joeycules
