Adding four or eight more teams to the NCAA Tournament is “not as simple as drawing in a few more lines"Getty Images
College basketball insiders are “prepping for an expanded field in the very near future,” and a 72- or 76-team field "seems the most likely outcome,” according to Dana O’Neil of THE ATHLETIC. Exactly what expansion looks like needs to be "carved out in various committee meetings," but one college administrator said there is “no appetite for 96 teams, or really even 80.” Expansion may be the “only realistic way to keep the tournament alive,” as college basketball administrators "fear that, if the tourney is left untouched, it will inspire power conference schools to at least consider their own postseason.” But adding four or eight more teams is “not as simple as drawing in a few more lines.” Where those teams "are inserted has to be considered," and there also are "financial implications to consider." Adding more teams means “more schools get a cut of the CBS/Turner TV money.” However, if more money "isn't added to the pot, more teams divided by the same dollars equals less money per school." Some are “fearing an Armageddon scenario” and worry that will lead power-conference commissioners to “push for a restructuring of the automatic bid process.” But such a dramatic change would “require a full membership vote” (THE ATHLETIC, 3/4).
