NCAA Tournament Is Going To Expand, Unfortunately. Just What We Need, More Teams
Does March Madness really need to expand? Sure, for the money.
Talks of expanding the NCAA Tournament have been ongoing for more than three years. After punting on expansion for this season, the change is now expected to arrive in 2026–27.
Just what college basketball needs, right? More teams — many of which aren’t worthy of being in the marquee postseason — getting bids because television networks and the NCAA can’t resist another money grab.
But, here we are, and talks within the NCAA shifted to the following season, which you knew was coming down the pipeline.
As we've reported for the past six months, the tournament was going to expand. That was a given. But, it was how many teams would make the postseason that lingered.
According to Ross Dellenger, that number looks like it could settle at 76 teams.
The current format stands, the ‘first four’ will still be played in Dayton, Ohio to open the tournament. Now, the entries will be expanded by sixteen teams, adding eight games to what was previously four games over Tuesday and Wednesday.
Oh, this will be fun, without a doubt. But having 24 teams playing in 12 games over a two-day period, just to see who makes the ‘official’ 64-team tournament is just one big money grab.
Everyone Likes Money, Right? College Basketball Is Fine
Guess who that benefits? The massive television deal for CBS, along with the NCAA pocketing more ticket money, along with additional media rights cash in the process. We will still get the lower-seeded automatic qualifiers playing against 12 at-large squads, though that is just one plan currently being discussed.
Can we agree that the current format is enough for college basketball? I know that the television networks and the NCAA are looking for more ways to make money, based on the fact that this is truly the one event that can bring in enormous amounts of revenue for the organization.
Possible NCAA Tournament Expansion Plan Is Incredibly Stupid
But this feels like too much, at a time when everything seems to be expanding. Heck, let's go ahead and make the college football playoff in a 26-team postseason while we're at it.
Don't worry, we'll get that over the next ten years likely, given that conference commissioners cannot stay away from an opportunity to pad their wallets.
Sometimes, the product is perfectly fine with how it is.