Hallmark Channel to Premiere Inaugural Tourney MEOW MADNESS This April

Every spring, America thrills to the Men's college basketball championship, wherein 64 college teams play in a single-elimination setup representing four regional brackets: East, South, Midwest and West. The thrilling tourney routinely produces a Cinderella story or two and unpredictable outcomes. But as exciting as the action is, there has always been something missing. And we can all agree that something is kittens!

This minor oversight finally gets rectified on Monday, April 3 (8 p.m. ET/PT) when, for the first time, the country will thrill to cat-letes from all paws of life playing in the inaugural kitten basketball championship, MEOW MADNESS.

However, no basketball competition (human or kitten) is complete without a bracketological system for determining winners. And in the same spirit of drama and excitement that enlivens "Selection Sunday," Hallmark CHANNEL has created its very own customized brackets which pair a kitten basketball star to one of 64 Hallmark Original Christmas movie titles.

Here's how it all works: The 64 kitten athletes represent four "brack-cats" of 16 competitors apiece. There's the University of Cinci-catty Wildcats featuring kittens like Sweet Potato and Lamb Chop; the University of Fish-igan Catfish with Floppy and Meow Ming; the University of North Cat-alina Micemen that includes Bugsy and Michael Jor-cat; and finally the University of Wis-cat-son Panthers with Kevin Purr-ant and Steffan Furry. Each kitten is then paired with a Hallmark original Christmas movie title in the biggest bracket challenge of them all.

For holiday fans of Hallmark CHANNEL and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, "Meow Madness" and a customized bracket of original Christmas movie titles is pure syn-cron-ni-kitty!

REGION ONE: Hallmark CHANNEL CLASSICS BRACKET
"A Boyfriend for Christmas"
"A Bride for Christmas"
"A Cookie Cutter Christmas"
"A Princess for Christmas"
"A Royal Christmas"
"A Very Merry Mix Up"
"Christmas Under Wraps"
"Fir Crazy"
"Let it Snow"
"Help For the Holidays"
"The Nine Lives of Christmas"
"Meet the Santas"
"Moonlight & Mistletoe"
"Northpole"
"Snow Bride"
"Window Wonderland"

REGION TWO: Hallmark CHANNEL 2016 BRACKET
"A Heavenly Christmas" (Hallmark Hall of Fame)
"Christmas Cookies"
"When Calls The Heart Christmas"
"A December Bride"
"A Dream of Christmas"
"A Rose for Christmas"
"A Wish for Christmas"
"Christmas Cookies"
"Christmas in Homestead"
"Christmas List"
"Every Christmas Has a Story"
"Looks Like Christmas"
"Love You Like Christmas"
"My Christmas Dream"
"Sleigh Bells Ring"
"The Mistletoe Promise"

REGION THREE: Hallmark CHANNEL 2015 BRACKET
"12 Gifts of Christmas"
"Charming Christmas"
"A Christmas Detour"
"A Christmas Melody"
"Angel of Christmas"
"Christmas Incorporated"
"Christmas Land"
"Crown for Christmas"
"Ice Sculpture Christmas"
"I'm Not Ready for Christmas"
"Northpole: Open for Christmas"
"On the 12th Day of Christmas"
"Once Upon a Holiday"
"Tis the Season for Love"
"Just in Time for Christmas"
"Merry Matrimony"

REGION FOUR: HALLMARK MOVIES & MYSTERIES BRACKET
"The Christmas Card"
"Journey Back to Christmas"
"A Christmas to Remember"
"A Christmas Wish"
"A Nutcracker Christmas"
"Debbie Macomber's Dashing Through the Snow"
"Finding Father Christmas"
"Hearts of Christmas"
"I'll Be Home for Christmas"
"Journey Back to Christmas"
"Magic Stocking"
"Operation Christmas"
"Our First Christmas"
"Sounds of Christmas"
"The Christmas Note"
"The Christmas Ornament"
"The Christmas Secret"

The "Meow Madness Christmas Bracket" sweepstakes which goes live "Selection Sunday," March 12 (just as will college basketball's) invites viewers to create their own holiday title brack-cat and choose their favorite Hallmark Christmas movie for a chance to win up to $10,000.

So talk about something to meow about! Hallmark CHANNEL is bringing cats, college basketball, Christmas and original films under a single banner - and all in the name of helping adorable kittens get adopted.

Kittens, it's the Final Fur. Let's do this thing!

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