Image via Complex Original
Birds are chirping, we have an extra hour of daylight, and you can actually consider a pickup game outside. It must be springtime. Which means that the National Collegiate Athletic Association and its countless horde of fans are lost in the thick of the 2014 Division 1 Championships. As we make wild guesses about the outcomes of this year’s March Madness, our excitement for the playoffs can only be paralleled by our anticipation of what will most definitely be a time-consuming, nail-biting effort to keep up with our favorite team’s standing—[team name redacted for our own safety]—while avoiding our girlfriends’ moderate frustration with our mildly obsessive college ball fanaticism.
Aside from the experts and fellow fans on Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit, there are plenty of killer apps out there vying to help you keep up with the Madness, while minimizing your own madness. So without further ado, let’s take a look at the best apps to keep you updated on March Madness this year.
March Madness Live
Platform: iOS, Android, Windows 8, Kindle Fire; Free
The official app of the NCAA March Madness, this app’s been updated for the 2014 playoffs. Our Windows 8 device-toting buddies should be pumped as the app is now available to them, joining the lineup on iOS and Android devices. It has a fresh, redesigned bracket layout, with the added ability to zoom in on a specific matchup, and to check out live coverage. It also now features the official Bracket Challenge game, a social “arena,” and TV schedule. The app still has the old stand-by features like real-time scores, bracket updates, and customizable alerts, too.
Team Stream by Bleacher Report
Platform: iOS, Android, Kindle Fire, Blackberry; Free
This fan favorite, by the dudes at Bleacher Report allows users to track their favorite teams, while receiving up-to-the-second updates on scores, team stats, videos, and news. Plus, a super handy social features integrates related blog and Twitter posts, rounding out Team Stream as one of our go-to apps for March Madness. It’s simple and intuitive yet robust, and hey, 4.5 stars in the App Store don’t lie.
ESPN Tournament Challenge
ESPN’s Tournament Challenge is the classic bracket game in app form, the twist being you can compete your way towards a id="mce_marker"0,000 prize. Invite friends to join a new bracket group or just restart with your 2013 group in one tap and compete to win. With a clean layout it’s easy to track your group’s brackets as well as live stats and the overall leaderboard so you can scope your competition. Since Tournament Challenge is free, there’s really no reason not to get a bracket going on this app.
Thuuz
We all love a great upset, but it’s hard to anticipate when a Cinderella team is actually going to the ball. And if you’re already tuned in to another game, it can be hard to figure out if it’s worth sacrificing time towards a potentially unexciting game. Thankfully, Thuuz (free for iOS and Android) is designed to solve just that problem. Using a set of algorithms to determine a game’s watchability, it notifies you when it’s worth it to tune it. A simple, incredibly useful idea for any sports fan.
College Basketball by StatSheet
If you’re a stat nut, and let’s face it, every group needs at least one to keep us on our toes, StatSheet’s College Basketball app is the one for you. This free app takes advantage of StatSheet’s immense statistical database giving you team and player rankings, team schedules, related articles, and analysis all season long. And the piece de resistance—the StatSmack feature that lets you send statistically-supported trash talk to your buddies about why your team rules (and why theirs rules not as much).
NCAA Sports
Platform: iOS; Free
The NCAA Sports app, recently redesigned, brings back all our favorite features, helping us follow all the NCAA teams we need to (and none of those we don’t). The standout feature of this app, though, is its exclusive video content for over 65 championship events. Alongside plenty of great footage at a moment’s notice, you have your standard stat tracking plus team hubs for all the team-specific info and convos you need.
Yahoo Sports
Platform: iOS, Android; Free
We must say that for all the flack occasionally tossed in Yahoo’s direction, they have a very solid array of apps working for them. Aside from their awesome weather app, Yahoo Sports is one of the best apps around for any sports fan. The app has all the standard scores, news, and stats (on both teams and individual players) that you need, found within a customizable main feed. The app can send you alerts on game times and scores, which is always a plus, and you can make a loop of your favorite game time clip right in the app itself.
CBS Sports
Platform: iOS, Android, Windows 8, Blackberry; Free
If you’re not sold on Yahoo Sports, you’ll definitely want to check out CBS Sports as a worthwhile alternative. This app offers the same standard scores, stats, news, tweets, and customizable notifications for March Madness (as well as any other major sport you want to follow). But with the CBS Sports app you also get live streaming of NCAA games and live CBS sports radio, built into the app itself. If you want a go-to sports app and aren’t sure about the Yahoo design (plus want some built in sports radio), CBS Sports is your app.
Sports Bar Finder
Whether your roommates are busy gaming, or you don’t yet own that sweet high-def plasma flatscreen, sports bars are a great place to meet up with buddies, catch a game, and get some grub while you’re at it. The Sports Bar Finder, as its name might suggest, helps you find sports bars in your area that carry Direct TV sports programming based on proximity. However, you can also filter results by which games and conferences are available to watch at which bars. After you find the perfect spot, you can send an invite from the app to your crew with meet up info. Sweet.
Real Basketball
If you need to peel yourself away from the harsh reality of a defeat, or really just can’t get enough basketball in your life, Real Basketball is one of the best B-Ball games around. This 3-D game has several different game modes—tournament, arcade, time-attack, and single ball—for plenty of variety. You can also compete against other people around the world and link up with Facebook to play your friends. Real Basketball is also a great distraction during a less-than-satisfying commercial break.
