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A lot of sports fans are wondering why the NCAA tournament really did expand to 76 teams. It’s the advertising revenue, some say. It’s about job security for coaches, others say. It’s about more television inventory, some say. It’s about the wishes of the conference commissioners, others say.
All those reasons might contain some truth, but writer Morgan Wick makes a very compelling case for a different reason, the one that might actually be the central driving force behind expansion to 76 teams. You can — and should — read the article for yourself, but we’ll hit some of the key points and offer our analysis:
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College Basketball Crown
The College Basketball Crown is a Fox-televised made-for-TV postseason tournament. It happens to have eight teams. The NCAA Tournament expanded by eight teams, from 68 to 76. Start there… but don’t end there. Morgan Wick has more to say about this specific point.
Why 76 and not 80?
One of Wick’s really persuasive points is why the number was 76 and not 80 teams. Having 80 would be cleaner and neater, given that a 64-team bracket has 16 teams in four regions. An 80-team bracket means there would be four play-in teams in each of the four regions, creating a cleaner and more balanced bracket. A 76-team field means three bubble play-in games, not four. It’s an odd fit with 76, a very even and smooth fit with 80.
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What fits and what doesn’t
Wick’s point is that since 80 offers a much smoother and more even bracketing process and structure than 76, the refusal to go to 80 makes it really hard to assign any motive other than trying to kneecap Fox by taking away the eight bubble teams which would otherwise have gone to the College Basketball Crown in a 68-team field. The reality of 76 being a curious number is a very important point to make.
High majors versus mid-majors
We all agree that expansion to 76 is designed to serve the high majors, not the mid-majors. We don’t like this, but we recognize what’s going on. That very point…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/writer-says-ncaa-tournament-expanded-174229212.html
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Publish date : 2026-05-08 17:42:00
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