There are some things that you would think are perfect as they currently exist and don’t need changing. Granted in today’s world virtually everything has changed, but there remain a handful of things that should be left alone.
One would seem to be the NCAA Tournament, otherwise known as March Madness. Now granted it has already expanded twice over the years and now is at 68 teams.
But despite some tremendous early round games and the usual surprise upsets (Kentucky being the biggest), reports are circulating in multiple places that the Tournament will expand soon. The only question seems to be how many teams will be added.
The major conferences are lobbying to get even more teams into the field. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey has already complained about too many automatic bids going to lower conference teams keeping worthy larger conference teams out. Never mind that his conference got eight teams in this year and five lost in the first round to lower seeds. No, he wants more 16-14 and 15-13 teams from what will soon be 18 team super conferences clogging the field.
Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo, shilling for the Big 10, was even quoted saying he wasn’t sure that Cinderella type upsets of big schools by lower seeds was “good for college basketball.” In truth, that’s been the beauty of the event, that an Ivy league school like Yale can knock out an SEC power like Auburn.
The SEC and Big 10 want basketball to be like football, where only a handful of teams control things, and no one cares about the smaller conferences.
None power Conferences for the most part are shut out of the college football playoffs. The SEC and Big 10 just cut a deal to take 60 percent of the take from the new contract that ESPN negotiated to carry the expanded playoffs.
Unfortunately the NCAA is going to capitulate because they fear what might happen if they don’t, namely the superconferences literally taking their ball away and establishing their own event.
With this year’s Tournament carried on four networks and earning billions, the NCAA is willing to do whatever to keep their current structure in place.
Plans now call for expansion to anywhere from 72-76 teams somewhere in the near future.
How they will be added, how that changes the payouts and a host of other things remain to be determined.
But the bottom line is enjoy this edition of March Madness because it’s soon going to be different. Only time will tell whether these changes will make it better.
Copyright TNTRIBUNE 2024. All rights reserved.
