NCAA basketball tournaments vote to expand, solving problem that does not exist

The change no one but sagging high-major teams wanted is here. The NCAA men's and women's basketball tournaments are set for their biggest expansion since the 1980s.

NCAA committees voted Thursday to approve plans that will bump 68-team fields up to 76, doubling the number of play-in games played on Tuesday and Wednesday for the men's side of the bracket. It's a change that, in theory, would add more potential Cinderellas to the mix. In reality, it will likely mean more SEC and ACC teams hovering just over .500 finding their way into your pick'em pool.

While the change isn't yet official, it will be after full ratification, which is expected soon.

Expanding the 2026 men's tournament to 76 teams wouldn't have meant more room for teams from the Horizon League and MAC to create chaos as lovable underdogs. A look into that projected bracket means the headliners would be a 17-16 Auburn squad (that, in fairness, did win the NIT), 19-15 Oklahoma, 18-14 Indiana and 22-11 San Diego State. Only three of the eight prospective invitees last year, per The Athletic, would have come from conferences outside college basketball's five high-majors -- SDSU, Tulsa and New Mexico.

The expansion is bad news for the champions from low-major conferences who earned their place in the bracket. Instead of four teams vying for two 16-seed slots, there will now be 12 vying for six slots -- two 15-seeds and each of the 16s. Maybe that will breed a better version of these mega-underdogs. Or maybe it will tire them out, limiting the scope of these rare-but-memorable upsets that serve to both uplift small schools and serve as a mark of shame for the powers who have their seasons ended by them.

Either way, March Madness has sated the concerns of its most powerful members by inviting them to wallow a bit more plainly in mediocrity. Some teams will rise above this muck and play their way into the Sweet 16, giving some anecdotal evidence of a successful plan. But mostly we'll get some forgettable weeknight games to serve as an appetizer for the actual madness while continuing to largely make life tougher for the schools not powerful or fortunate enough to play in a major conference.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: NCAA tournament expansion: Committees approve 76-team field, pleasing no one