The NCAA has not finalized expansion plans for the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments and a decision is unlikely soon, NCAA senior vice president of basketball Dan Gavitt said in a CBS Sports interview.
Both tournaments currently have 68 teams. There has been talk of increasing the fields to 72 or 76 teams.
Gavitt said he doesn’t expect a vote in the near future, though a late-spring vote could theoretically make a change possible in 2026. He said changes in game operation and travel are among the many things that would need to be accounted for.
“It’s not taken in a lighthearted way at all because of the success of the tournaments and how important they are to college basketball overall,” Gavitt said. “Expansion, even in a modest level, is complex, more complex than, I think, than has been recognized and reported, because it is expensive.”
This year’s March Madness will be the 40th men’s bracket since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1985. The women’s bracket increased to 64 teams in 1994.
Gavitt said he isn’t sure whether the field should expand but is more positive about the possibility than he was a few years ago. NIL deals, conference realignment and the transfer portal have changed the dynamics. He said men’s basketball, in particular, might be suited to handle it.
“There’s no sport that is deeper overall and has more parity than men’s college basketball,” he said. “There’s great basketball played at every level in men’s basketball right now. So I think it’s important to keep the tournament contemporary and relevant, based on what is going on in college athletics.”
