By Travis Bremner
Staff Writer

The NCAA is looking into yet again possibly expanding the men’s basketball tournament, though discussion is still ongoing and nothing concrete, the idea is out there.

As it stands now, 65 teams make it to the big dance, 65 out of 347 or 18 percent. A number that protects the prestige of the tournament but also lends itself to modification given what the other major sports allow into their postseason – NFL (37 percent), NCAA Football (56 percent), NBA and NHL (37 percent), MLB (26 percent).

Another argument in favor of adding teams to the tournament would be that it would give mid major schools more opportunities to get bids, similar to what anti-BCS lobbyists point out when attempting to get a playoff system in college football.

If the NCAA is to expand the tournament field, it will first have to deal with the television aspect of it, and entrance requirements would have to be altered. For instance having the conference regular season and tournament champion get automatic bids, this would reward consistency throughout the season as well as a team on a late hot streak.

An inflation of the just doesn’t make any sense to me. Not because I wouldn’t like to see more teams and players have the chance to play in the NCAA tournament, but the system simply isn’t broke. The money, the fan interaction with brackets and the champion is determined on the playing surface, it’s perfect.
Adding a few more mediocre, 13 seeds if you will, wouldn’t enhance the quality of the postseason. Hey, that’s why there’s the NIT.