March Madness parties are approaching, and it’s time to start planning. If your husband, wife, or friends love March Madness like my husband, you might expect a crowd at your house. We have put together some tips to save you money and time and make it less stressful to host the big tournament watch party. With these tips, your March Madness party will surely be a slam dunk!
Here is how to take the “Madness” out of hosting March Madness:
- Make Cleanup Easy
- Cover your table with kraft paper or wrapping paper. Use what you have or go to the Dollar Store.
- Make it a Potluck
- Instead of providing all the food, ask everyone to bring one snack. Wings, chips, sliders, or desserts all work great. It keeps costs low, and you’ll end up with way more variety.
- Use Pizza or Wing Deals
- March Madness is prime time for restaurant specials. Ordering a couple of pizza bundles or wing deals is often cheaper than cooking a full meal.
- Use One Crockpot to Serve 2 Dips!
- That’s right, all you need is heavy-duty aluminum foil to form a wall and create 2 areas for dips in your crockpot. Make sure to use crockpot liners if you do this. You are using foil to cut your crockpot in half. This makes it easier to serve 2 foods at once, saves room on your table, and makes cleaning easier.
- Don’t put your Chips into Bowls.
- Make the chip bag into a bowl by rolling the top and poking the bottom corners, so it stands up on its own. This will save on cleanup and dishes.
- See How to Watch March Madness for Free!
- Come up with some fun halftime entertainment:
- Play Left Right Center
- Corn Hole or any games you might already have at home
- Best Places to Buy Your Alcohol:
- Grove Retail Liquor at 9983 E. Kellogg Ave. Wichita, KS 67207. They have some of the best prices in Wichita.
- R & J Discount Liquor at 301 East Douglas
- Total Wine at 2762 N Greenwich Ct, Wichita, KS 67226
- Serve Stadium Food! These foods are usually less expensive and easy to serve. Make your gathering authentic, like you are in the stands.
- Hot Dogs
- Popcorn
- Hot wings
- Nachos
- Sliders
- March Madness Snacks. Suppose you don’t want to provide hearty food and more snacks. Aldi Wichita has the best dips, chips, and snacks for the best prices.
- 8011 E. Kellogg Ave
- 2826 S Seneca St.
- 2323 N Amidon
- 765 N Maize Rd.
- 6835 E 21 St N.
- 1719 N Rock Road, Derby
- Have basketball-looking foods:
- Buy a non-toxic Sharpie to turn oranges or cuties into little basketballs. Just draw on the black “stitching” lines onto the oranges. Super cute and easy!
- Buy Cheese balls. They look like mini basketballs.
- Create a basketball-themed playlist from your favorite music app.
- Play March Madness Would You Rather?
- Go to the game or watch it at home?
- Be a coach or a referee?
- Have KU, KSU, or WSU in the Final Four?
- Would you rather your team win by 20 or have it be a close, exciting game but still win?
- Can you dunk or be the best 3-point shooter on the team?
- Do you like to watch College basketball or NBA?
- Eat nachos or popcorn?
- Play offense or defense?
- Be the mascot or a cheerleader?
- Impress your guests with these Fun Facts:
- Only one bottom seed has ever unseated a top seed in the first round.
- The lowest-seeded team ever to win the tournament was #8, Villanova.
- 2008 was the only year in which all four #1 seeds made it to the Final Four.
- 1939 was the inaugural year of the NCAA tournament. Eight teams competed for the title.
- The oldest coach to win a national title was Connecticut’s Jim Calhoun in 2011 at the age of 68.
- Only one coach has ever won both championships in the NCAA and NBA—Larry Brown as coach of the Kansas Jayhawks in 1988 (NCAA) and the Detroit Pistons in 2004 (NBA)
- In 1997, the NCAA made it a requirement that the Final Four must be held in a dome stadium with a seating capacity of at least 40,000. In 2009, the minimum capacity was raised to 70,000
March Madness Food Deals & Where to Watch
This is my ultimate guide to March Madness, with everything you need in one place food deals, where to watch the games, how to watch for free, and a few helpful tips along the way. I pulled this together to make it easy to plan your game days without having to search all over the internet.
