INDIANAPOLIS, April 1 (UPI) -- NCAA officials said if they expand their Division I men's basketball tournament, they would add 31 teams, creating a 96-team tournament.
Stressing that a decision on expansion hasn't been reached -- any change would need approval from the Men's Basketball Committee and the board of directors -- a three-person committee said it would suggest growing the tournament field by about one-third.
The committee said under the 96-team format, the top 32 seeded teams would be given first-round byes. The 32 games with the rest of the field would be played Thursday and Friday the first week of the tournament, with the highly seeded teams entering play Saturday and Sunday.
Teams that won Saturday games would play third-round games Tuesday with Sunday's winners playing Wednesday. Those winners would advance to regional semifinals Thursday and Friday, as under the current schedule.
The committee noted that teams that don't receive byes would have to win seven games to win the tournament. Only the current play-in teams would face a seven-game tournament but none has ever won a first-round game. The present format calls for a team to win six games for the championship.
The NCAA adopted its current 65-team format in 2001, opting for a Tuesday play-in by two No. 16 seeds, with the winner advancing to a first-round game against a No. 1 seed. The tournament went to 64 teams in 1985.
