The NCAA has announced they will be expanding the teams from 68 to 76 in the NCAA basketball tournament also known as March Madness.
Although this expansion has given schools a better chance to compete on the big stage, it has also started debates among fans. Some believe that with more teams it will create more opportunities for smaller programs to compete,while others argue that the tournament could lose the intensity and excitement that has made March Madness one of the most successful and popular sporting events in America.
So you may be asking yourself, what is changing? An article from NCAA.com explains it perfectly:“The simplest way to understand the new format: The field grows from 68 teams to 76 teams, and the First Four becomes the larger Opening Round.”
For the men’s tournament, the Opening Round will include 12 games played the Tuesday and Wednesday after Selection Sunday. Instead of two games each night in Dayton, Ohio, the expanded format will feature tripleheaders each day in Dayton and a second host city to be determined.
After those 12 games, the tournament will move into the 64-team First Round on Thursday and Friday. The rest of the tournament schedule remains unchanged, including the Second Round, regionals and Men’s Final Four.
For the women’s tournament, the Opening Round also will include 12 games. Six games will be played on both Wednesday and Thursday across 12 of the campus sites designated as First Round and Second Round hosts.
The games will continue to lead into the 64-team First Round, with First Round and Second Round games played at campus sites. The rest of the women’s championship calendar remains unchanged, including regional play and the Women’s Final Four.
The Opening Round will include 24 teams in each tournament. Half of those games will feature the 12 lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers on the committee’s overall seed list. The other half will feature the 12 lowest-seeded at-large teams selected to the field.
That means automatic qualifiers remain a central part of the tournament. Every conference will continue to have a path into March Madness through its automatic bid. Now, more teams will have the opportunity to compete in the championship.
Because Opening Round teams will generally be paired against teams closest to them on the overall seed list, while respecting bracketing principles, the format is designed to create competitive matchups immediately after Selection Sunday.”
| Format | 68-team Tournament | 76-team Tournament |
| Total teams | 68 | 76 |
| Opening games | 4 First Four games | 12 Opening Round games |
| Teams in opening games | 8 | 24 |
| Teams after opening games | 64 | 64 |
| First Round | 64 teams | 64 teams |
| Men’s opening schedule | Tuesday-Wednesday | Tuesday-Wednesday |
| Women’s opening schedule | Wednesday-Thursday | Wednesday-Thursday |
Seniors Sam Beaton and Peyton Way expressed their thoughts on this new expansion.
First question, As for the reason NCAA did this expansion was to have more games which would mean more money, but do you think this expansion is better or worse for viewership in coming years?
Way replied saying, “I think this is good for viewership because not only will it bring in more money, it will give the fans more basketball to watch. In which they have been begging for a long time.”
Peyton believes that this is definitely a positive for fans of college basketball.
Beaton says, “I think the effect of more games will have a positive outcome, but may start to fade later on.”
Sam points out that this new expansion could have a lasting effect on viewership later on in the future.
Next question, As a fan of this tournament, are you going to be more excited and eager for selection Sunday or not?
Way states, “One hundred percent, due to now more teams will have a shot at the tournament. Which means more chances for underdog schools to have a chance.”
Beaton exclaimed, “As a lifetime fan, I’ll most likely be less eager for Selection Sunday to come. Due to the amount of bigger schools having shots of making the 64 team tournament leaving underdog schools to less likely have a chance to even win a game. But at the end of the day, it’s still March madness.”
Beaton points out something Way didn’t address, lower conference schools not being able to dance as easily as the more wealthy schools.
So I addressed this topic towards my next question, Will the expansion affect how the committee evaluates teams, especially mid-majors vs. power-conference bubble teams?
Way states, “I think the extra teams in the tournament could mean more opportunities for mid-majors to be Cinderellas.”
Beaton believes, “Yes it most definitely will, the age of Cinderella runs being common per tournament may not even occur anymore.”
