For college basketball purists, Wednesday brought good news: New NCAA basketball chairman and Ohio State AD Gene Smith put to rest any fears that the NCAA was looking into expanding the NCAA Tournament to 96 teams, saying: “There are no plans for further expansion, it isn’t even on our radar screen.”
NCAA Basketball Tournament Won’t Expand Futher, According To Charmian Gene Smith
This is surprising given the events of this past summer.
When the NCAA announced back in July that it had decided to expand the NCAA Tournament from 65 teams to 68, it was to the relief of many who feared that the financial lure of a 96-team bracket would be too much to resist. Even after the announcement, many suspected that this was merely a stepping stone for an eventual larger expansion.
The current plan expands on the previous 65-team field, with four play-in games taking place in Dayton, Ohio. While before the play-in game was only a match-up between two lower tier conference champions playing for a 16-seed, this new field will also feature two games between at-large teams, likely playing for a 12 or 13 seed.
One has to wonder though, if this first year of the new 68 team field, including a shared broadcast deal with CBS and TBS, is a financial success, if this wont bring a 96-team field “onto their radar screen.”
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