Ackerman Recommends Women's Basketball Reforms To NCAA

The NCAA today made public a report on women's college basketball that former WNBA President Val Ackerman submitted to the organization last week. Her ideas are "aimed at boosting attendance and some of them could be implemented" by '14. Ackerman "advised moving the Final Four back to a Friday-Sunday format, exploring a two-site super regional ... and returning to a format in which the top 16 host the first two rounds." She also proposed that "eight-team super regionals would be awarded to sites for three years at a time."

A "longer term idea that Ackerman advocates for, if the NCAA decides to keep the women's Final Four separate from the men is to establish a multi-year site for the championship similar to the college baseball world series in Omaha" (AP, 6/17).