2026 NCAA Tournament

[Kentuckysucks]

13 minutes ago, Class of '66 Old Fart said:

You get an invitation.  You get an invitation.  Everybody gets an invitation.

Woody would've been 4-4 and gotten a lifetime contract from QB.

[AZ Hoosier]

20 minutes ago, Kentuckysucks said:

Woody would've been 4-4 and gotten a lifetime contract from QB.

Timing is everything in life. Thank God and Greyhound, he's gone.

[str8baller]

1 hour ago, Kentuckysucks said:

 

 

Puke

 

 

[WayneFleekHoosier]

It’s a money grab, but I don’t hate it like most people.  I think over time it’ll add a bit on intrigue. 

[BtownStrength]

4 hours ago, Kentuckysucks said:

 

 

Pathetic

[Pagoda]

10 hours ago, BtownStrength said:

Pathetic

Yea.  I mean what's the TV value of eight additional games with crap to mid teams that can't make the field of 68?  It's very little and not moving the needle on the NCAA tourney media rights deal.

None of the teams they're adding have any chance to win the title, which at the end of the day is the sporting purpose of a tournament.

This isn't the end of the world, but it is unnecessary.  I didn't like going from 64 to 68, but I'll admit Dayton play-in works because Dayton is bball crazy and embraces the event.  One more site will be added, finding another place like Dayton would help.  Maybe Wichita or something I don't know.

Anyways, thumbs down from me.  Given enough time they'll probably expand even more.  Bleh.  I'm all for evolving and growing stuff almost all of the time, but it's also nice when people fight to protect things that are already optimized and work extremely well.

[Stuhoo]

Just let all 361 teams in - old fashioned Indiana high school style.

TV gets their extra games, high seeds get two straight cupcakes, fans get unimaginable upsets every now and then.

[Class of '66 Old Fart]

What they're doing is like death by a thousand cuts.  Just open it up to every D1 team and be done with it.

[Jeff Flabjohns]

DDv would have made a field of 76 this year, that’s a win! 

[RoadRage]

1 hour ago, Jeff Flabjohns said:

DDv would have made a field of 76 this year, that’s a win! 

I got the feeling this year that the committee, really wanted Indiana in the field. They basically would have made it had they beat Northwestern, OSU, or even had they beat Northwestern in the BTT I think they wanted them in! So maybe this 76 rule  is designed to finally get Indiana back in the tournament! LOL!

[Uspshoosier]

1 hour ago, Jeff Flabjohns said:

DDv would have made a field of 76 this year, that’s a win! 

He and Woody would have made it in the year before also.   Is woody “retiring” if he would of made the tourney 3 out of 4 years?

[str8baller]

3 hours ago, Stuhoo said:

Just let all 361 teams in - old fashioned Indiana high school style.

TV gets their extra games, high seeds get two straight cupcakes, fans get unimaginable upsets every now and then.

I’d actually prefer that. Get rid of stupid conf tournaments. Let the big conferences go to a true round robin schedule eliminating most non-cons. 

[Stuhoo]

10 minutes ago, str8baller said:

I’d actually prefer that. Get rid of stupid conf tournaments. Let the big conferences go to a true round robin schedule eliminating most non-cons. 

Then teams are playing for a seed all season long and you can play two games in home gyms.

[AZ Hoosier]

5 hours ago, Stuhoo said:

Just let all 361 teams in - old fashioned Indiana high school style.

TV gets their extra games, high seeds get two straight cupcakes, fans get unimaginable upsets every now and then.

All 361 teams ARE ALREADY IN.

All conferences play conference tournaments... so if you keep winning, you move on - win the conference tournament and then you're on to the next level - the NCAA tournament.... keep winning and you move on. Lose at any point, you go home.

It's not rocket science.

[WayneFleekHoosier]

1 hour ago, Stuhoo said:

Then teams are playing for a seed all season long and you can play two games in home gyms.

Get on a committee Stu.  I like this.  

[AZ Hoosier]

1 hour ago, Uspshoosier said:

He and Woody would have made it in the year before also.   Is woody “retiring” if he would of made the tourney 3 out of 4 years?

The Mediocre One did not retire by any stretch of the imagination. He was canned with a golden parachute. "Retiring" implies that it was Woodson's choice to move on. It was not.

[Uspshoosier]

34 minutes ago, AZ Hoosier said:

All conferences play conference tournaments... so if you keep winning, you move on - win the conference tournament and then you're on to the next level - the NCAA tournament.... keep winning and you move on. Lose at any point, you go home.

Some conferences do not include every member.  Some teams don’t make the conference tourneys 

[moyemayhem]

Did anyone watch any of IU’s bubble teams the last 3 years and think:

1. This team deserves to be in the tournament.

2. This team can compete for a title.

3. Including this team will make the tournament more compelling.

4. Watching this team play in the tournament will give me joy.

[RaceToTheTop]

20 hours ago, WayneFleekHoosier said:

It’s a money grab, but I don’t hate it like most people.  I think over time it’ll add a bit on intrigue. 

Agree.  To me, people who are against the expansion the simple solution is to not watch the play in games.

edit:  I didn’t mean to like my own lol but I can’t seem to change it

[RaceToTheTop]

33 minutes ago, moyemayhem said:

Did anyone watch any of IU’s bubble teams the last 3 years and think:

1. This team deserves to be in the tournament.

2. This team can compete for a title.

3. Including this team will make the tournament more compelling.

4. Watching this team play in the tournament will give me joy.

If you asked me if IU deserved to be in the tournament my answer would depend on the number of teams that are in.  This is nothing magical about 64, 68 or 76 teams  Is the 64 or 68 team tournament worse than when it was 32 teams?