NCAA Expands Tournaments to 76 Teams Adds Opening Round
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- NCAA expands men's and women's basketball tournaments to 76 teams, adding eight slots for the upcoming season.
- Pac-12 returns as a conference champion, restoring an automatic bid and bringing the tournament to 44 at‑large and 32 automatic slots.
- Opening Round replaces the First Four, with 24 lowest‑seeded teams (12 automatic qualifiers and 12 at‑large) playing 12 games to fill the 64‑team bracket.
- Opening Round schedule places men’s games Tuesday‑Wednesday after Selection Sunday in Dayton and a second western‑time‑zone city, while women’s games occur Wednesday‑Thursday across 12 designated campus sites.
- Power conferences stand to gain the most, as the larger field widens the bubble and creates extra at‑large opportunities for mid‑tier programs.
Why it matters: Power conferences gain extra at‑large slots, boosting their tournament revenue and exposure, while mid‑tier programs see a wider bubble but still face tougher competition for the new Opening Round spots.
