Basketball Party Idea: March Maddness Themed Food & Mini Basketball Party Favors (2024)

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Who’s excited about the Big College Basketball Tournament? We are! March is finally here and we couldn’t be more excited!

I’ve always loved basketball, it was my favorite sport growing up (even more than football). I loved it so much my Dad even put in a mini court for me when I was young.Mind you, this was before the portable hoops oftoday so he had cement poured for my court and installed a permanent freestanding hoopso I couldshoot hoops every day after school. Those were the days!The family isgetting excited too, we don’t have a basketball court but wedo have a fun little over the door basketball hoop and we have mini tourneys all the time. 🙂 So to get everyone ready and excited, I decided to set up a fun Munch Madness Basketball Party with food, our favorite drinks, a few decorations, food and more food!

How to Plan a Munch Madness Basketball Party

The Decorations:

Every party needs decorations! Starting with a backdrop is always a good idea and it helps set the tone for the party. I used our little basketball hoop as the main focal point, it fit nicely over my chalk board frame. To keep the ball in place, I simply weaved a bit of twine at the bottom of the net to keep it closed.

Next, decide on your colors! Maybe you want to support your favorite teamorjustpick neutral colors instead. I chose to focus on the sport, not a specific team so Icollected all my orange and black party supplies plus my TEAM marquee letters for the table. I created fun basketball cupcake toppers and added a few basketballs to the favor cups. I also topped orange mason jars with black foam fingers and made a matching banner with felt and more foam fingers.

The Food:

You can’t have a Munch Madness party without lots of munchies! When deciding on your menu, be sure to have a large variety foryour guests and plenty of food to go around. No one wants to leave a party hungry!

After I decided on my menu, my first stop was at Sam’s Club to stock up on munchies, Sprite and Coca-Cola. I was able to find all the fixings I neededto make our favorite game day food! I filled color coordinated party cups with all of our favorites. I served Carrots with Ranch Dip, Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, Crab Macaroni Salad, Pineapple BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches (recipe below), Sliders, popcorn, cupcakes and cookies. We washed it all down withour favorite sodas, Sprite and Coca-Cola. To carry on the theme and make the food even more festive,I used black and orange cupcake wrappers and topped my cupcakes with orange sprinkles. I also added fun orange and black burst picks to my Sliders and Pulled Pork Sandwiches.I added a little bit of black and white ribbon to orange drink holders and added black and white straws to our Sprite bottles.

Party Favors:

Party favors can be simple! Mini basketballs and foam fingers are all you need for a a fun Basketball party!

Brackets:

Don’t forget the brackets! One of the best things about the Big Game Tournament is picking who you think will win. Download my free Bracket to get started! Print as many as you like for your guests.

Pineapple BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches Recipe

My family loves finger foods on game day and my Pineapple BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches are always the first to be eaten. Not only are they delicious, but super easy to prepare in the crock pot.

What you will need: (feeds a party of 10-12)

4-5 lbs Boneless Pork Spareribs

1 onion quartered

20 ounce jar of pineapple chunks

1 cup Sprite

3 cups bbq sauce of your choice

Small Dinner Rolls

Directions:

Start by placing the onion on the bottom of the crock pot. Next lay the spare ribs on top of the onions and pour the whole jar of pineapple chunks on top.

Then pour Sprite on top and set to cook on low for 6 hours.

Once cooked, with a large spoon remove all the juice and discard.

Next, with two large forks shred the pork.

Next, add BBQ and stir.

Cut rolls in half and add the yummy shredded pork!

And that’s it! Simple and delicious Pineapple BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches, YUM!

Don’t forget to stock up on Sprite and Coca-Cola at Sam’s Club! You can find the 4 pack 2 liter cases of Sprite in the soda aisle. While you are there, be sure to pick up everything else you need to host an awesome Munch Madness Basketball Bracket Party!

Happy Bracketing!