76 NCAA Tournament Teams in 2026?
- Thread starter Franisdaman
- Start date
BirdistheWord
HB Legend
Dumb.
Go back to a nice even 64
Go back to a nice even 64
Let every team play in their conference tournaments and use those as the beginning of the big dance. One rep from each conference, seed out the champions. Am I serious? Not really. But it makes more sense than adding an arbitrary number of teams.
Yes. 64 was perfect.
No need for a "first four", play in games, or whatever you want to call it. I really don't want to water it down with even more teams.
There was a time, way back in the day, when only conference champions qualified for the NCAA Tournament. For example, in 1968 I think it was, Iowa lost its last game of the season by a point or two to Michigan, dropping it into a tie for the Big Ten title with Ohio State. Iowa had to play @ OSU to determine which team would make the NCAA tournament. Iowa, of course, lost and so it didn't make the NCAA.
In 1970 Iowa did make the NCAA tourney by going 14-0 and winning the Big Ten outright.
Now you can finish 10th in the 18-team BIG and, theoretically, win the NCAA Tourney. And maybe next year you'll be able to finish 12th and make it. At that point, why not just let everyone in?
In 1970 Iowa did make the NCAA tourney by going 14-0 and winning the Big Ten outright.
Now you can finish 10th in the 18-team BIG and, theoretically, win the NCAA Tourney. And maybe next year you'll be able to finish 12th and make it. At that point, why not just let everyone in?
My wife, Margaret, is ok with as many teams that are needed to get Iowa in.
The history of the NCAA Tournament:
8 teams: 1939-1950
16 teams: 1951-1974
32 teams: 1975-1978
40 teams: 1979
48 teams: 1980-1984 (no limit on the # of teams/conference)
64 teams: 1985-2010
68 teams: 2011 to present
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Yes, let’s create even more blow outs and less upsets in the first 2 rounds. This is a bad idea.
I was going by the graphic in the video in the orig post and this, from the linked article:
- The first NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament was played in 1939.
- It had eight teams.
- Oregon is the first NCAA tournament champion, beating Ohio State for the title.
- The NCAA tournament field grew to 16 teams in 1951, doubled to 32 in 1975 and expanded to its current size of 64 teams in 1985.
- An opening-round game was introduced in 2001. Three more games were added to that round in 2011 for the inaugural First Four to take the tournament to its current size of 68 teams
March Madness history: A comprehensive guide to the men's tournament
A guide to the NCAA DI men's basketball tournament, including a history of March Madness, select individual, team and coaching records.
www.ncaa.com
from the story linked:
The NCAA expanded the field to forty in 1979, then to forty-eight in 1980 (with no limit on the number of teams per conference), then to sixty-four in 1985, and finally to sixty-eight in 2011.
OAH | March Went Mad Gradually and Inadvertently
www.oah.org
Whoever wrote the article didn't do a very good job on the research.I was going by the graphic in the video in the orig post and this, from the linked article:
- The first NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament was played in 1939.
- It had eight teams.
- Oregon is the first NCAA tournament champion, beating Ohio State for the title.
- The NCAA tournament field grew to 16 teams in 1951, doubled to 32 in 1975 and expanded to its current size of 64 teams in 1985.
- An opening-round game was introduced in 2001. Three more games were added to that round in 2011 for the inaugural First Four to take the tournament to its current size of 68 teams
March Madness history: A comprehensive guide to the men's tournament
A guide to the NCAA DI men's basketball tournament, including a history of March Madness, select individual, team and coaching records.
It looks like this is the actual history of the NCAA Tournament:
8 teams: 1939-1950
16 teams: 1951-1974
32 teams: 1975-1978
40 teams: 1979
48 teams: 1980-1984 (no limit on the # of teams/conference)
64 teams: 1985-2010
68 teams: 2011 to present
Honestly wouldn’t bother me if it allowed teams like San Francisco and Bradley opportunities to get in instead of more 18-14 P4 teams.
But that won’t happen.
But that won’t happen.
We do need some more ‘NCAA Tournament Participant’ banners to counterbalance the ‘NIT Participant’ banners in CHA…😎
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