How many quarters in college basketball? (2024)

Basketball fans may be used to seeing action split into four quarters but that’s not how it works in the world of men’s college basketball.

The NCAA Tournament does a great job of bringing eyes to the sport of college basketball each year.

The excitement of filling out a bracket and watching it go bust is universal, regardless of if you’re a super fan or someone who just loves the madness.

For fans who are used to watching pro basketball or seeing it played in other forms, it can be slightly strange to catch a college game and see 20 minute periods on the clock.

In fact, there are no quarters in men's college basketball. There are only two halves.

Each half is 20 minutes long and separated by halftime.

Within those 20-minute halves, there are some regular stoppages for games shown on television. Media timeouts are called at prearranged intervals depending on the agreement with the broadcaster.

So if you see a “2nd” on the score bug while watching the NCAA Tournament, don’t get tricked into thinking the game is still in the early stages. The “2nd” means “2nd half” and the game is actually almost over.

How many quarters are in women's college basketball?

Unlike the men's game, there are four quarters in a women's college basketball game. The quarters are 10-minute periods throughout the game, which means that the games are the same length as they are in the men's college hoops arena, but just divided up differently.

This can get a bit confusing during a time like March Madness if you're switching between watching men's and women's college basketball games, but the big key difference to remember is that there won't be a third or fourth quarter when the men are playing, though there will be when it's the women taking over the hardwood.

For more NCAA basketball news, analysis, opinion and features, check out more from the FanSided college basketball section to stay on top of the latest action.