March Madness always has to include a little bit of madness, doesn’t it? And what would madness be without a good overtime period here and there.
We should expect a lot of that this year in the women’s NCAA tournament. There are great teams all around with lots of talent across loaded rosters. We’re going to be treated to plenty of close games. There’s a good chance a lot of those close games go into overtime.
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With that in mind, now is a good time to review the overtime rules for the women’s NCAA tournament. It’s always good to know exactly what you’re watching.
Here’s how OT works:
— Overtime is initiated when there’s a tie at the end of regulation through four quarters.
— Like in the regular season, each overtime period lasts five minutes.
— There can be an unlimited number of overtime periods played until there is a break in the score and one team wins.
— Overtime is an extension of the fourth quarter. All fouls carry over. If a team is in the bonus at the end of regulation, it will remain so for overtime.
— Each team receives an additional 30-second timeout during the overtime period.
There you have it, folks. It’s that simple. That’s how OT works in the tournament. Happy March. Bring on the chaos.
