Should the field be expanded? Many NCAA basketball enthusiasts are calling for an expansion from 65 to 96 teams to include more “tournament-worthy” teams. Proponents say a larger field will lead to better competition.
I think this expansions is a bad idea. If a team doesn’t finish in the top 65 teams in the regular season, then, I’m sorry, but you just don’t deserve a chance. hello NIT. Also, one of the greatest parts of the weeks leading up to the tournament is the constant focuss on the teams in the “bubble”. ESPN dedicates an article updated bi-weekly called “bubble watch.” It focusses on the teams from each conference that have the potential to earn an at-large bid based on record, RPI ranking, schedule strength etc. But conversation about most of these bubble teams would cease if the field were expanded. They’d be assumed to be in. The “bubble watch” would then center on teams that played sub-par seasons and barely winning records. The quality of the tournament would fall substantially.
So say no to expansion and keep the tournament high quality and competitive.
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Totally agree. This year is a perfect example. If you can’t finish .500 in your conference and lose more than 12 games, you’re not and should not be a tournament team. Simple as that. It’s like giving all the losers participation ribbons on field day.
I feel like the NCAA has a great Tourney with 64 teams, any more added teams would end up being a JOKE. Also, you would start comparing it to College Bowl season, and giant bowls such as the Emerald Holiday Season Nut Bowl or whatever it is called. The tournament is so widely popular even non-basketball fans will watch, you start adding more teams to it the fun and excitement I feel would die off. It is perfect, you have 64 games, 4 on at a time throughout the whole day during the 1, 2, 3, 4th rounds. Perfect viewing experience, have you ever tried to watch more than 4 games at once? (It is tough and the screens are so small it is hard to see anything.
The biggest thing I have an argument with the NCAA and hope they chance is if you have a upset in the Conference Tourney and a team that wasn’t getting in wins the Championship, instead of crushing a mid-majors dream of playing on the Big Stage, take the last team away in that conference away.
(Example)
Say Duke loses today against Miami, and Miami somehow wins the ACC Tournament, instead of taking away an invite from another team from the Missouri Valley or Mountain West team, (which I think Clearly deserve to have a few teams in the Big Dance) take away the invite you were going to give the last team in the ACC.
whoops I meant 4games on at a time for the 1st and 2nd rounds……then they start falling off after that
So take a bid away from Miami for winning the ACC tournament?
no they won the tourney, so they get in…take away from the last team in the conference that is invited like GT or FSU which ever would be the last one