They can go all the way to 112 and keep the first 4 seeds at 6 games.
Let's not start assuming that 76 means more than 112 eventually.
NCAA looking into expanding tournament
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Let's not start assuming that 76 means more than 112 eventually.
You think people ever thought the tournament was going to expand to 68 when they only had 16 teams in it?
Illini2010-11
- Sugar Grove
I am confused why so many people think that an expansion must mean they are going to expand eventually to 112 or more. The tournament bracket, by and large, has remained relatively unchanged for the last 40 years or so (expansion to 64 teams took place in 1985). I mean the tournament started with 8 teams in 1939 and expanded a few times until we hit the 64 mark. I highly doubt anybody thought March Madness would be what it has become when created. Back then the NIT was the premier tournament. The reality is that D1 basketball has expanded greatly from when the field was 8 or 16, heck even 32 teams. Mix in the fact that there are 32 automatic qualifiers now. It is not like the field has so many at-large bids. A few more at-large teams is not going to dilute the quality of the tournament, especially if the primary changes are a few more teams being required to play in the play-in games. The best teams are not going to be impacted much at all.
Fighter of the Nightman
- Chicago, IL
I know this is 95%+ about money, but I cannot discount the tendency I have seen over and over again in my (admittedly young) career as another possible factor at play. I work in Consulting, and I think a very powerful motivator people in leadership positions (especially "mid-level/managerial" positions) feel is to not feel like they're being "worthless" ... even if maintaining the status quo is the best path forward for everyone involved, many feel this twitch to shake up SOMETHING and will try to reinvent the wheel so they can "put their stamp" on some pointless initiative.
Govoner Vaugn Fan
- New Orleans
Take it all the way to 128 teams. Then make it a double elimination tournament. We can watch CBB until the end of May every year.
Battle89
- Cary-Grove, the better Trojan team
1000 likes. I am near the end of my career (also in professional services) and it does not get any better. Total under appreciation of what it takes to keep the lights on, and anything new is automatically better than anything old. Change for change’s sake and the success decks are written before the project even starts.
illini80
- Forgottonia
One of the most true things I’ve ever read. This post sums up corporate management to a T! I’ve seen people screw things up disastrously only to be promoted. The NCAA fits that model perfectly.
SuperMetroid
- Evanston
I'm a web/graphic designer and I'll never work in an agency setting ever again because of this exact dynamic. I can't even count the number of terrible requests i've gotten from clients at all levels of management who know less than nothing about design.
As someone who does cloud IT consulting, this is 100% AI right now in my field. A lot of businesses coming our way asking for AI, with no understanding what it actually does, and us trying to pump the brakes a bit. It's almost dot com level hype and no business is seeing a return on it, but every manager, director, and C-Suite wants everything to be "smart" or powered by AI. So now they spend 100s of thousands or millions of dollars for something that isn't a whole lot different than what they already had. But hey, it's powered by AI.
Drop it back to 64. Period.
This is truer (can something be more true than true) in government than anything that has to show a profit. Bad decisions accumulate with no incentive to correct them. Worse, new programs acquire a constituency who pressure the bad decision to be continued.
Adding new departments, agencies, administrations, offices, services and whatever are all part of empire building. The more sub-chiefs a chief has, the more power he (or she, or whatever) has.
Of course, there’s the rule to never stay too long in one position (I forget how many years) because the changes you made may come back to bite you. Move on and fix problems left behind by someone else who is moving on to fix problems left by some other someone else.
Then take all this and stir in political appointments at the top…and my oh my, what an evil stew it makes.
Adding new departments, agencies, administrations, offices, services and whatever are all part of empire building. The more sub-chiefs a chief has, the more power he (or she, or whatever) has.
Of course, there’s the rule to never stay too long in one position (I forget how many years) because the changes you made may come back to bite you. Move on and fix problems left behind by someone else who is moving on to fix problems left by some other someone else.
Then take all this and stir in political appointments at the top…and my oh my, what an evil stew it makes.
splitter
- and not Nebraska
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. But sadly, it's true. Some joe schmo who wants to leave their imprint does something that screws things up more than improves on a process
NIT.
Illini2010-11
- Sugar Grove
If the new 16-team Vegas tourney takes off (I believe called the College Basketball Crown), then the NIT might become the third-tier tournament. However, that tournament will be held very late (end of March/first week of April)...makes me wonder if schools would simply opt out of that tourney to prepare for offseason. I do not see a long-term path forward for that tournament, unless they start drawing teams from big name schools that lose in the tourney. Even then, I can't see that tourney taking off. More than anything else, I think the NCAA is eying this slight tournament expansion plan to try to suffocate this new tournament from getting life. The NCAA runs both the NCAA tournament and NIT, whereas I do not believe they have a stake in this new tournament.
RabidDawgClassic
- Los Angeles, CA
Rather than a sixteen team also-ran and/or losers tournament, I’d rather see a similar format to start the season. The post season NIT is crap, but the preseason NIT was always an event.
I know. But, it makes way more sense.That is not going to happen.
I can see that. “Coach (insert name) led his team to the ncaa tournament x times”. Plus, are there contractual incentives for coaches to make the tournament? I think there are.
If they want more money, how about back to 64 and then a consolation bracket for all teams that lost in the first round. Increase the number of overall games. I’d be interested in that
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More games you say? Just make it double elimination!
Once played in a tournament with 812 teams...called the IHSA State Basketball Championship. Actually played in it four times but only once was I aware of the number of entries. It was a bit more difficult to make the All-State teams back then.
Not certain how I would feel about going to 112 teams, but then no one is going to ask me to do exactly what is best in that situation, so I don't need to be concerned, and I will not be. But I will watch and enjoy if I am still around.
Watching the Cobden Appleknockers play Pekin for the '64 title was simply a blessing as about 14000 fans packed into the Assembly Hall were pulling for Cobden. And yet, though the Appleknockers played well, none left without respect for Dave Golden and the Pekin Chinks who were a truly great team with no weaknesses.
Not certain how I would feel about going to 112 teams, but then no one is going to ask me to do exactly what is best in that situation, so I don't need to be concerned, and I will not be. But I will watch and enjoy if I am still around.
Watching the Cobden Appleknockers play Pekin for the '64 title was simply a blessing as about 14000 fans packed into the Assembly Hall were pulling for Cobden. And yet, though the Appleknockers played well, none left without respect for Dave Golden and the Pekin Chinks who were a truly great team with no weaknesses.
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Or we can go BASEketball rules and mix in round robins and have it last for 4 years! That’ll keep the kids in school. Problem solved for one and dones and all this transferring.
LadyLoyalty
- Indian Wells, CA
I don’t get the fuss. They’re considering adding some more **play-in** games. Big whoop. If the teams aren’t deserving or “worthy”, then they won’t advance into the tournament anyway. Silly outrage.
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