Players Era tournament expansion serves only 1 group

TL;DR

The Players Era tournament will expand from 18 to 24 teams in 2026, with games aired exclusively on ESPN. However, the expansion primarily benefits power conference schools, with only two mid-major programs expected to participate.

Key points

Players Era tournament expands to 24 teams in 2026
Games will be aired exclusively on ESPN
Only two mid-major programs expected to participate
Expansion primarily benefits power conference schools
Gonzaga, San Diego State, and UNLV are the notable teams

Players Era tournamentGonzagaSan Diego StateUNLV

It seems like everything in college basketball is expanding. The NCAA tournament is expanding to 76 teams starting next spring, and the Players Era tournament will also be getting bigger.

Last year's edition of the Players Era tournament featured 18 teams, while the 2026 versionof the tournament will have 24 teams. The expanded field will feature two sets of games in back-to-back weeks that will exclusively be aired by ESPN.

The Players Era expansion does nothing to dispel the concern that many coaches and fans have about the expanded NCAA tournament field; it will only help schools in power conferences.

Out of the 24 schools slated to participate in next year's Players Era tournament, only three programs can be considered to come from mid-major conferences. Gonzaga is one of those three, but can hardly be considered a Cinderella at this point, which narrows it down to two: San Diego State (who will be part of the reworked Pac-12 come this summer), and UNLV out of the Mountain West.

It reinforces the narrative that college basketball's ballooning business only helps the rich get richer.

Additionally, when March rolls around and strength of schedule discussions take place, the power schools in this tournament stand to have an even greater leg up, considering they will have played one another early in the calendar. That stands to box out mid-majors even more, regardless of the eight additional NCAA tournament spots.

It'll be interesting to see if anything can or will be done to raise the profile of mid-majors in the coming years.

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Q&A

What is the format of the 2026 Players Era tournament?

The 2026 Players Era tournament will feature 24 teams competing in two sets of games over back-to-back weeks.

Which teams from mid-major conferences will participate in the 2026 Players Era tournament?

Only two mid-major programs, San Diego State and UNLV, are expected to participate in the 2026 Players Era tournament.

How does the Players Era tournament expansion affect power conference schools?

The expansion is seen as favoring power conference schools, as it does little to address concerns about the NCAA tournament's accessibility for mid-major teams.