With only days remaining in February, March Madness for men's and women's college basketball is right around the corner.
Well, not exactly. Even though it'll be March before you know it, the actual 68-team tournaments don't start until halfway through the month.
Here's when the men's and women's basketball tournaments will be held and the outlook of Iowa schools making the cut.
March Madness unofficially begins on Sunday, March 16 for both the men's and women's tournaments this season with Selection Sunday, when the 68 teams participating in the tournament and their seeding are announced throughout the day.
There are two ways that a team can earn a bid to the NCAA tournament. The 31 Division I conferences all receive an automatic bid, which is awarded to the winner of the postseason conference tournament. Second, teams can earn an invitation as an at-large bid.
The NCAA's selection committee -- comprised of school and conference administrators -- hands out 37 at-large bids to teams that did not win their conference tournament but "impressed the committee enough to earn a trip to the tournament," according to the NCAA.
The 2025 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament begins on Tuesday, March 18 in Dayton, Ohio at UD Arena with the First Four. The first day of first-round games is two days later on Thursday, March 20.
Here is the full schedule breakdown for the men's NCAA tournament:
The 2025 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament begins on Wednesday, March 19, with the first set of First Four games. First-round games begin two days later on Friday, March 21.
Here is the full schedule breakdown for the women's NCAA tournament:
At least one Iowa school will be represented in March Madness this year, while several other teams' chances remain uncertain.
The only seemingly guaranteed team is the No. 9 Iowa State men's squad, which has all but claimed a tournament invite with a 21-6 record and multiple wins over top 10 competition. The Cyclones have the seventh-best odds of winning the National Championship, according to ESPN.
More: Iowa State basketball: Where do Cyclone men stand in latest NCAA Tournament bracketology?
As for the Iowa State women's team, Bill Fennelly's squad enters the final week of its regular season still fighting for a spot in the NCAA Tournament. The Cyclones must finish their season on a strong note and perform well in the Big 12 tournament, as the consensus from most is that the Cyclones remain on the bubble to earn an at-large bid to the big dance.
More: Iowa State women's basketball: The latest NCAA bracketology projections for the Cyclones
As far as their in-state rivals, the women's team currently has a better chance of making it to the NCAA Tournament.
Despite losing to No. 8 Ohio State and No. 3 UCLA in their last two games, Jan Jensen's squad is still projected to make the tournament. ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme elevated Iowa to a No. 7 seed in his latest projection, released Tuesday morning, and CBS Sports had Iowa as a No. 7 seed before Sunday's loss to UCLA.
More: March Madness: Iowa women's basketball climbing seeds in bracketology with recent play
The Iowa Hawkeye men's team is not so fortunate.
The men's squad is on the outside looking in when it comes to making the NCAA Tournament after losing eight of their last 11 games and having just one Quad I win.
Like the Iowa State women's team, the Hawkeyes want an impressive performance in their conference tournament to sway the minds of the selection committee.
The Drake Bulldogs men's basketball team is projected to make the NCAA Tournament as a No. 12 seed, according to ESPN's Bracketology. The Bulldogs remain on top of the Missouri Valley Conference with a 25-3 record and have won 13 of their last 14 games.
The Drake women's and Northern Iowa men's basketball teams are tied for second in their respective conferences. While both are not currently projected to make the NCAA Tournament, this can change depending on how they close out their seasons and their performances during the MVC conference tournaments.
The 14-13 Northern Iowa women's basketball team is fourth in the MVC and is not projected to make the NCAA Tournament.
Register sports reporters Tyler Tachman and Dargan Southard contributed to this report.
Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.