Time For a 96 Team NCAA Tourney...

[xusandy]

Unless every team gets in, there will always be a bubble, and always be fans wanting to expand the field further. The only things I find "unfair" at present is that is that teams who improve greatly during the season, and who really are a top 50 team or better by the end of the season, often don't get bids because of their pre-conference records way back in December. Two possible ways to fix it: (1) weight early season games less than late season games (I have no clue what an appropriate formula would be, but one obvious effect would be to expand the number of bubble teams), or (2)) turn the NIT into a play-in event, where the top 40 or 50 or even 60 teams don't play in it.

[stever20]

Unless every team gets in, there will always be a bubble, and always be fans wanting to expand the field further. The only things I find "unfair" at present is that is that teams who improve greatly during the season, and who really are a top 50 team or better by the end of the season, often don't get bids because of their pre-conference records way back in December. Two possible ways to fix it: (1) weight early season games less than late season games (I have no clue what an appropriate formula would be, but one obvious effect would be to expand the number of bubble teams), or (2)) turn the NIT into a play-in event, where the top 40 or 50 or even 60 teams don't play in it.

problem with your #1 is you totally then devalue the OOC play. How are you going to set where the conferences are w/o that? OOC play needs to matter.

#2 not really doable as it would take 1-2 weeks to play that while the top 40 teams or whatever aren't playing. that's not good.

[kayako]

Adding another round risks creating tournament fatigue, imo. 4 play-in games works fine as an appetizer, but I'm not even sure if I want more of that. 60 teams are guaranteed spots in the main bracket, and that'd go down to 56 if the field is expanded to 72.

[billyjack]

By resisting the idea of expanding to 96 teams, we are slitting out own throats. I've read the reasoning behind not supporting 96, but i dont agree with tourney fatigue being a problem, nor with teams under 500 getting bids, which is mathematically impossible. We have 9 excellent teams who would make it with 96.

There are 32 conferences, so 32 of the 68 are hogged by Sacred Heart and Rio Grande Valley. Leaves 36 at-larges out of 330 schools (after tourney champs are subtracted out). Postseason for 14 of 30 MLB teams, 16 NHL, 16 NBA, 14 NFL... but the NCAA's have 22%, with more that a third of those hogged by conferences with Elon and the Toledo Rockets. There is nothing fun about all but one of Villanova, PC, St Johns, Xavier, Butler, or Seton Hall sitting home in 8 days.

[adoraz]

I really dislike the idea of further expansion, it'd diminish the regular season. It'd also in a way be worse for a lot of teams with mediocre coaches. All they'd have to do is basically be the 80th ranked team each year, sneak into the Tournament, and it'd buy them a lot of extra time.

I was against this idea when we had Anderson as coach and am still against it.

[billyjack]

I really dislike the idea of further expansion, it'd diminish the regular season. It'd also in a way be worse for a lot of teams with mediocre coaches. All they'd have to do is basically be the 80th ranked team each year, sneak into the Tournament, and it'd buy them a lot of extra time.

I was against this idea when we had Anderson as coach and am still against it.

That's cool Adoraz. I like the responses from everyone, totally fine with the many degrees of revulsion at this idea-- ranging from not supporting this, or disliking it, or hating it, or absolutely being repulsed by it.

Final pitch: these won't change anyone's mind of course, but they are factors to consider in the coming years when weirdness happens.

- it guards us against conferences gaming the system in any given year.

- it guards us against the ESPN/ ACC/ B1G/ etc PR propaganda machine.

- The BE regularly has 8 or 9 teams in the Top 100... say 90% of us. It's a buffer against 4 of our excellent teams going NIT this year.

- it protects us against ratings systems that have a secret sauce baked into them-- NET is really still a mystery, right?

- back in the day, jumping from 48 to 64 teams removed the bye for the top 4-seeds. That was considered unfair back in 1985. This re-introduces a bye for those top seeds.

- it fills in the boring downtime between Sundays and Thursdays. Seriously, after the first weekend ends, we sit around on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays doing nothing but watching re-runs of "ALF" and "Who's The Boss" and "Baa Baa Black Sheep", instead of the chance to watch NCAA hoops. I will design the brackets when i get a chance, and guarantee you that they will be intriguing. But to not use Mon-Tues-Wed night games is a huge missed opportunity, especially when people have sh-t to do on Saturdays and Sundays. And Friday nights are really not a good time to watch NCAA hoops... only like the MAAC and the Ivy play on Fridays during the year, except NCAA time... its unnatural.

- it guards us against weirdness such as us scratching our heads for so much love for Wake Forest, Pitt, New Mexico, Colorado, etc.

[stever20]

uh, even with 96, Xavier wouldn't be going. Heck, Butler would be right up against the cutline I think- I know on the bracketology that I use here- they aren't in the 1st 16 teams out. That takes you to 84. Only 12 teams left after that.

[ecasadoSBU]

I'm all in for expansion. But I would like some guarantees for the little guys (probably an unpopular opinion here). I would not accept that the mid-major / low majors are all relegated to bottom seeds. AQ teams should have a floor seed no worse than a 16 seed. Even the current set up of the first four bothers me as it takes a few AQs out of the main tournament. Every expansion has made tilt the competitive balance towards the Power-6 conferences

[xusandy]

Money drives this bus. No Surprise! If the networks come up with a formula that generates more money for the NCAA, more money for leagues and individual teams, and more profit for themselves, we'll go to 72 or 96 or 128 or even 256 teams eventually. NCAA Bball is now a professional sport. RIP amateurism.

[stever20]

I don't think we go to 96, but have got to think with how strong this bubble is this year will spark expansion.