The NCAA Tournament is regarded as one of the top sports tournaments and events in all of sports. The event is filled with upsets, tears, joy, and emotions that words cannot fully convey.
There have been many debates recently about whether the Big Dance deserves or needs expansion, and while many fans and experts are speaking out against it, the NCAA appears not to care. On3 Sports reported that NCAA President Charlie Baker is moving closer to an expansion than experts even thought, and the NCAA Tournament might see a drastic change as soon as next season.
NCAA eyes a colossal mistake and college basketball fans are already fuming
March Madness is one of the most-watched events in the world, as the 2025 NCAA Tournament received a record-breaking 9.4 million views in just the first two rounds. Somethings don't need change, and March Madness is one of them.
Baker strongly disagrees with the fans as it is now reported that the Big Dance might see an increase in the number of teams participating in March Madness from 68 to possibly 72 or 76. When will the NCAA consider making this expansion? Excellent question.
They are in talks of trying to expand it to 72 or 76 teams as early as the 2025-26 season. Yes, next season.
"That would be the goal, to try and do this for next year, Baker stated to Front Office Sports' David Rumsey. "We've been talking about 72 and 76,"
It doesn't make much sense to go against all of the fans and experts and to change the best event in sports. College Basketball fans are outraged by Baker's decision if he does make the change, and it appears he will.
The transition to 72 or 76 teams in the NCAA Tournament will only cause chaos among the fans. The best way to compare this is like Disney remaking those classic movies that we all grew up watching. Did Aladdin, Lion King, Dumbo, and others really need to be made into a live-action movie? Or is Disney running out of ideas?
Does the NCAA really need to change and add teams to the best event in all of sports that we all grew up watching? Or are they forcing a change and just running out of ideas? It seems odd to make a change, especially after breaking TV records from last March Madness.
The report stating that the change can be made as early as the upcoming 2025-26 season makes it clear that the NCAA is rushing and forcing this decision.
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