Today the NCAA’s Division I Transformation Committee - co-chaired by SEC commissioner Greg Sankey and... our very own Julie Cromer - issued a 39-page report that included a recommendation for 25% of active Division I members in the NCAA tournament.

This would include both the men's and women's NCAA tournaments and expand both fields. Each tournament currently invites 68 teams. There are 358 Division I men's basketball programs and 350 women's programs. A field of 25% would break down to roughly 90 teams for each tournament, assuming the NCAA would seek to keep both fields the same size.

Tuesday's recommendation is strictly that — a recommendation. It will go to the Division I board of directors for consideration at next week's NCAA convention. Expansion would also require approval of each sport's governing body. The committee called for final recommendations to be made by January 2024 in time to be implemented for the 2024-25 seasons.

This would be great for mid-majors as most solid P5 teams already make the tournament. An additional 22 teams would give the MAC a far greater chance to get in 2 or more teams.

https://sports.yahoo.com/ncaa-committee-recommendation-wo...

You're not wrong.

I suppose it'd be too much to hope for nods for reg season + conf champs in G5.

I'm opposed to watering down the tournament. This may lead to the demise of conference tournaments.

Someone else mentioned it, but from the small tidbits I've seen, I believe the thinking is basically expanding the "play-in" games, not necessarily making the #1 seed play the #90 seed.

*edit*
Also, having Julie in the room - I can't imagine shes advocating for OU and other MAC schools to become watered down. I have to think shes being the voice for mid-majors here.

I can't even name many teams that were in the Sweet 16 last season, but I do remember the run Saint Peters made. More chances to replicate that I have to think is the entire angle.

It sort of makes sense. The tourney moved to 68 teams in the mid-1980s when there were only about 250 D1 teams. Now some 35 years later there are about 350 teams, around a 50% increase. A move to 96 keeps pace with the times. The NIT would be the big loser because more big-name schools would be included in the Dance. The other tourneys would have even less interest, but they currently get so little typical fan interest already that they might not notice it.

I don't really see too many benefits with expanding to 90 teams as I believe it could reduce the prestige of the NCAA tourney, as I could see more sub 500 P5 teams slip through the cracks. But, I can also see the mid majors being more fairly represented for example auto bids to conference tournament winner and regular season champ, or auto bid to second place team if a team won both regular season and tourney.

To make it at all fair when expanding to 96 teams regular season conference champs should be let in with conference tournament winners.

I read the decision on tournament expansion will be made within a year and in place for 2024-25.

I’m old fashioned, I could do without conference championship tournaments. But I know it’s all about the money. If no tourney, games during the season mean so much more.

Why not add teams to NCAA tourney, keep conference tourneys, and keep season total games played by eliminating several DII, DIII, and/or other non NCAA team games from early season schedules?

Chicago State is a D1 team. Many P5 team fans say the same about playing ASun, MAC, MEAC, and other lower-tier teams. Are you implying that we should not lower ourselves to playing Low Majors? You do realize they are ranked above others on our schedule Northern Illinois, Eastern Michigan, and Eastern Illinois. Personally, I would prefer to tilt at P5 schools but after upsetting UVA, Georgetown, Michigan, and others in the past decade I imagine it is hard to get teams to play us and impossible to get them to come to play us here.