Expanding the NCAA Tournament honors college sports' tradition of fixing what's not broken

Yahoo Sports3h ago23 min readOriginal source →

TL;DR

The NCAA has voted to expand the Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments from 68 to 76 teams. This decision was made unanimously by the basketball committees, although further administrative steps are required.

Key points

NCAA voted to expand tournaments from 68 to 76 teams
Decision made unanimously by basketball committees
Further administrative hurdles remain
Expansion honors college sports tradition
Enhances postseason experience

Expanding the NCAA Tournament honors college sports' tradition of fixing what's not broken

BLOOMINGTON — Nothing so adequately fixes what isn’t broken as college sports.

On Thursday afternoon, the NCAA’s Division I men’s and women’s basketball committees voted in favor of expanding their respective postseason tournaments from 68 to 76 teams.

Unanimously, in fact, according to a report from CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander. There are more bureaucratic and administrative hurdles to clear, but this was the one that counts, and it came without apparent dissent.

The news is and should not be surprising. Charlie Baker, the association’s president, has been pushing for tournament expansion for months, at least. The topic has gained traction in some fashion seemingly annually for more than a decade. Still, it’s happening — this expansion will be the most substantial since the tournament moved to 64 teams in 1985 — whether we like it or not.

Auburn Tigers compete against Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Sunday, April 5, 2026, during the NIT men's basketball championship game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Matthew Valich of Los Angeles plays a game Saturday, April 4, 2026, during the 2026 NCAA Men’s Final Four Fan Fest at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis.