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The 68-team field is complete as the men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments begin this week.
While sports fans are excited for this year’s games, there are those who remember their time on that March Madness court. Thrills, flashbacks and more return once a year, especially for those who were able to do the race every kid dreams of in March.
New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson is one of those players.
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Jalen Brunson is not only an All-Star with the New York Knicks, but a two-time March Madness winner with Villanova. (GETTY)
“Yeah. I mean, it was one of the most intense moments of my life,” he told Pak Gazette Digital when asked what he thinks about this time of year, while discussing his association with BODYARMOR. “Any time you make the playoffs in any area (high school, college and now the pro level) everything changes a little bit. Even though everyone says, ‘It’s still just another game. Try to keep that mentality,’ there’s something different about it.
“Those times in college and those championships, they were some of my favorite moments.”
JALEN BRUNSON ‘ABSOLUTELY’ HAS OLYMPIC DREAMS WITH THE GAMES RETURN TO THE: ‘I WOULD BE HONORED AND GRATEFUL’
It’s hard for Brunson not to think about those times playing for the Villanova Wildcats, where he not only won one NCAA title — he had two in his three college seasons before leaving for the 2018 NBA Draft.
So for those players about to embark on what they hope will be a long tournament career, Brunson is the perfect person to ask the sacred question: What does it take to be great in March?
Jalen Brunson of the Villanova Wildcats cuts down the net after defeating the Michigan Wolverines during the 2018 NCAA Men’s Final Four National Championship game at the Alamodome on April 2, 2018 in San Antonio, Texas. (Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
“I think the most important thing, even if it’s not, is that you have to prepare and treat it like just another game,” Brunson said after a quick reflection. “If anything, treat it like your last one, because it could be. I think the most important thing is not to deviate from your routine. Yes, it may not be just another game, but your preparation and everything it entails is very similar.
“Anything that’s not in your normal routine, subconsciously things can be different. Just try to keep it the same as possible and do your best to prepare.”
Of course, Brunson’s advice is easier said than done. The stakes are higher, possessions are more tense, and the atmosphere can be overwhelming. But Brunson and his Wildcats teammates, which include Knicks teammates Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges, ignored all the noise and did their best to treat everything like just another game at the end of the day.
As the tournament begins with the First Four on Tuesday night to narrow the field to 64 teams, Brunson knows locker room conversations will begin to heat up about the tournament. He has every right to brag about ‘Nova considering his history, but he doesn’t.
New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson takes the ball up court during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Orlando Magic, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/John Munson)
However, that doesn’t mean he and his fellow Wildcats aren’t listening.
“No, we don’t talk about Nova much, but every time someone says, ‘Oh, my team in college was this,’ we just look and smile,” Brunson said, smiling. “They tell me, ‘Okay, you’re out of this conversation.’ They always attack us, but needless to say, we have an advantage over everyone else.”
