TVSquad

The title March to Madness is almost too clever for it's own good. How did it take this many years for someone to come up with that one? I love the pitch for this one, too: "a corrupt college basketball program ... cheats its way to the 'March Madness' NCAA basketball tournament." If it's on FX, of course it has corruption.

March to Madness and FX are a match made in heaven. Nobody does the darker side of humanity better than FX. The Shield, Rescue Me, Sons of Anarchy ... even It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia tackles the lowest forms of people. It's a beautiful combination of amazing writing and gut-wrenching acting that make these dirtbag characters teem with life and humanity.

And what a great subject to tackle. There's so much at stake with the NCAA Tournament for the kids and the schools, the drama practically writes itself. The story, we're told, will be from the point of view of an idealistic coach who's struggling with the compromises he makes with his own integrity to get his team where he needs to be. Too bad Don Cheadle's only executive producing, I'd love to see him tackle that role.

• At 6, GSN has the series premiere of The Newlywed Game.
• 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, followed by the series premiere of Surviving Suburbia and a new Castle.
• NBC has a new Chuck at 8, then new episodes of Heroes and Medium.
• FOX has new episodes of House and 24.
• PBS has a new Antiques Roadshow at 8.
• ABC Family has a new Greek at 8, followed by a new Roommates.
• TLC has two new episodes of Little People, Big World at 8.
• Nickelodeon has a new Penguins of Madagascar at 8.
• At 8:30, Food Network has a new Will Work For Food, then a new Unwrapped.
• At 9, CBS has the NCAA Tournament Final.
• There's a new Monday Night RAW on USA at 9.
• ESPN has the Oakland A's vs. the Los Angeles Angels at 9.
• At 9:30, HBO has two new episodes of In Treatment.
• At 10, TNT has a new Saving Grace.
• Food Network has a new Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives at 10.
• MTV has the season premiere of The Hills at 10 (two episodes).
• Also at 10: A&E has a new Paranormal State.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• CBS has March Madness all night.
• TV Land has an Andy Griffith Show marathon all night.
• At 8, NBC reruns the ER finale, if you missed it.
• TCM has Take the Money and Run at 8.
• At 9, FOX has a new America's Most Wanted.
• Lifetime has the movie Nora Roberts' High Noon at 9.
• Hallmark has the movie Love Takes Wing at 9.
• Also at 9: FUSE has the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.
• At 10, History Channel has a new Ax Men.
• At 11:30, NBC has a new Saturday Night Live, with Seth Rogen.
• At 1AM, Cartoon Network has a new Bleach.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• CBS has March Madness all night.
• TV Land has a Third Rock From The Sun marathon.
• At 8, ABC has a new Wife Swap, followed by new episodes of Supernanny and 20/20.
• NBC has a new Howie Do It at 8.
• FOX has new episodes of The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Dollhouse.
• The CW has a new Everybody Hates Chris at 8, followed by a new episode of The Game.
• PBS has a new Washington Week at 8, then new episodes of NOW and Bill Moyers Journal.
• There's a new Smackdown! on MyNetwork TV at 8.
• At 9, NBC has a new Friday Night Lights, then a new Dateline.
• BBC America has a new Mistresses at 9.
• Also at 9: Cartoon Network has a new Ben 10: Alien Force.
• At 10, E! has a new episode of The Soup.
• HBO has a new Real Time with Bill Maher at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• CBS has March Madness all night.
• Sci-Fi has a Star Trek: Enterprise marathon all night.
• At 8, ABC has the series premiere of In The Motherhood, then new episodes of Samantha Who?, Grey's Anatomy, and Private Practice.
• NBC has a new My Name Is Earl at 8.
• FOX has new episodes of American Idol and Hell's Kitchen.
• The CW has a new Smallville at 8, followed by a new Supernatural.
• At 9, NBC has a new Office, then new episodes of 30 Rock and ER.
• There's a new TNA Impact on Spike at 9.
• At 10, A&E has a new episode of The Beast.
• Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes at 10.
• Discovery has a new Treasure Quest at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

• TV Land has an Andy Griffith Show marathon all night.
• At 8, CBS has March Madness, followed by a new 48 Hours Mystery.
• NBC has a new, two-hour Celebrity Apprentice (with unseen footage, that is) at 8.
• FOX has two new episodes of Cops starting at 8.
• HGTV has a new Divine Design at 8, then new episodes of Design on a Dime and Color Splash.
• There's a new iCarly on Nickelodeon at 8, followed by a new True Jackson, VIP.
• At 9, Lifetime has the movie Nora Roberts' Northern Lights.
• ESPN has World Baseball Classic semifinal coverage at 9.
• Also at 9: CNBC has a new Suze Orman Show.
• At 10, BBC America has a new Graham Norton Show.
• At 11, FOX has a new Mad TV, then a new Talk Show with Spike Feresten.
• At 1am, Cartoon Network has a new Bleach.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• CBS has College Basketball all night.
• At 8, ABC has a new Ugly Betty, followed by new episodes of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice.
• NBC has a new My Name Is Earl at 8.
• FOX has new episodes of Bones and Hell's Kitchen.
• The CW has a new Smallville at 8, then a new Supernatural.
• At 9, NBC has a new episode of The Office, followed by new episodes of 30 Rock and ER.
• Spike has a new TNA Impact at 9.
• ESPN has more coverage of the World Baseball Classic at 9.
• Also at 9: Hallmark has the movie The Nanny Express.
  
• At 10, A&E has a new episode of The Beast.
• Discovery has a new Treasure Quest at 10.
• There's a new Ace of Cakes on Food Network at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

After the jump, the late night talk shows.

Here we are in the middle of the March sweeps period (March this year instead of February, because we were supposed to switch to digital TV on February 17 and Nielsen was worried that would screw up the numbers) and The Mentalist is a repeat tonight. Not only that, but it's the third week in a row where the show has been a repeat.

Hmmm...I wonder why CBS has made this decision?

Here are the weekly TV ratings, by number of viewers.

Even though the picture is from Two and a Half Men (for a change), American Idol got the first two slots this week again. Dancing with the Stars got the third and fifth slots, sandwiching a new CSI. It's really amazing how many shows that CBS has in the top 20 every single week. This week they have 12 shows, and that's not counting the basketball specials. That's wild.

1. American Idol - Tues (FOX)
2. American Idol - Weds (FOX)

• At 8, ABC has a new Dancing with the Stars, then new episodes of Samantha Who? and The Bachelor.
• NBC has a new My Dad Is Better Than Your Dad, followed by new episodes of Deal Or No Deal and Medium.
• PBS has a new Antiques Roadshow at 8.
• TLC has two new episodes of Little People, Big World at 8.
• There's a new Greek on ABC Family at 8, then a new America's Prom Queen.
• Also at 8: TCM has the original King Kong.
• At 9, CBS has the NCAA Basketball Final.
• USA has a new Monday Night RAW at 9.
• FOX has a new New Amsterdam at 9.
• Food Network has a new Chefography at 9, featuring Julia Child. It's followed by a new Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.
• At 10, E! has a new episode of The Soup Presents.
• MTV has two new episodes of The Hills starting at 10.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• CBS has more March Madness all night.
• NBC has a new Amnesia at 8, followed by a new, two hour Dateline.
• The CW has a new Smackdown at 8.
• There's a new NOW on PBS at 8, then new episodes of Washington Week and Bill Moyers Journal.
• At 9, FOX has a new Canterbury's Law.
• ABC has two new episodes of 20/20 at 9.
• Lifetime has a new Your Mama Don't Dance at 9.
• At 9:30, HBO has the season (series?) finale of In Treatment.
• At 10, Comedy Central has two new episodes of Comedy Central Presents, with Dan Mintz and Brian Posehn.
• Sci-Fi has the Battlestar Galactica: Revealed special at 10, followed by Battlestar Galactica: The Phenomenon.
• At 11, HBO has a new Real Time with Bill Maher, with guests Robert Klein, Tavis Smiley, Robin Wright, and Amy Holmes.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• CBS has March Madness all night.
• At 8, ABC has two new episodes of Miss Guided.
• NBC has a new Deal Or No Deal at 8, followed by the finale of Celebrity Apprentice.
• FOX has a new Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader? at 8, then a new Don't Forget The Lyrics.
• The CW has new episodes of Smallville and Reaper.
• AMC has Letters From Iwo Jima at 8.
• At 9, HGTV has a new Divine Design.
• At 9:30, HBO has a new In Treatment.
• At 10, ABC has a new Eli Stone.
• Spike has a new TNA Impact at 10.
• At 10:30, Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes.
• Also at 10:30: Comedy Central has a new Lil' Bush.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• CBS has more March Madness coverage all night.
• Sci-Fi is showing a Jericho marathon.
• At 8, NBC has a new Amnesia, followed by two new episodes of Dateline.
• The CW has a new Smackdown! at 8.
• PBS has a new NOW at 8, then new episodes of Washington Week and Bill Moyers Journal.
• TCM has The Wizard of Oz at 8.
• At 8:30, FOX has a new Return of Jezebel James.
• At 9, ABC has two new episodes of 20/20.
• IFC has Swingers at 9.
• At 9:30, HBO has a new In Treatment.
• At 10, Comedy Central has two new episodes of Comedy Central Presents, with Chad Daniels and Kirk Fox.
• There's a new episode of The Soup at 10 on E!
• At 11, HBO has a new Real Time with Bill Maher, with guests Jon Hamm, P.J. O'Rouke, Rep. Barney Frank, and Richard Dawkins.

Check your local TV listings for more.

• CBS has March Madness coverage all night. Ugh.
• At 8, ABC has two new episodes of Miss Guided, followed by new episodes of Lost and Eli Stone.
• NBC has a new Deal Or No Deal at 8, then new episodes of Celebrity Apprentice and Lipstick Jungle.
• The CW has new episodes of Smallville and Reaper.
• There's a new Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader? at 8, then a new Don't Forget The Lyrics.
• PBS has a new Live From Lincoln Center at 8.
• At 9, TLC has a new American Chopper.
• VH-1 has the premiere of I Know My Kid's A Star (with Danny Bonaduce) at 9.
• At 9:30, HBO has a new In Treatment (how many episodes of this show are there, anyway?)
• At 10:30, Food Network has a new Ace of Cakes.
• Also at 10:30: Comedy Central has a new episode of Lil' Bush.

Check your local TV listings for more.

Here are the weekly TV ratings, by number of viewers.

1. American Idol - Tues (FOX)
2. American Idol - Weds (FOX)
3. CSI (CBS)
4. House (FOX)
5. NCAA Basketball Championship (CBS)
6. Dancing with the Stars (ABC)
7. Desperate Housewives (ABC)
8. Shark (CBS)
9. Dancing with the Stars - Results (ABC)
10. Without A Trace (CBS)
11. 'Til Death (FOX)
12. NCIS (CBS)
13. Survivovr (CBS)
14. 60 Minutes (CBS)
15. Extreme Makeover (ABC)
16. Prelude to a Championship (CBS)
17. Lost (ABC)
18. Deal Or No Deal (NBC)
19. Cold Case (CBS)
20. Law and Order: SVU (NBC)