NCAA Tournament Adds 12-Game Opening Round to Expand Field to 76

The NCAA will expand its basketball tournament field to 76 teams starting with the 2026-27 season. This marks the most substantial structural change to the event since the field grew from 48 to 64 teams in 1985. The college basketball schedule kicks off this Sunday night with Notre Dame playing Villanova in Rome.

The new format replaces the previous First Four with a 12-game Opening Round. Dayton, Ohio, and Wichita, Kansas, will each host six of these games on the Tuesday and Wednesday following Selection Sunday. The first round on Thursday and Friday will still feature 64 teams, but the composition shifts. Previously, 60 teams entered the tournament in the first round. Now, only 52 teams will start there, while 12 will earn their spot by winning an Opening Round game.

The projected field distribution shows the SEC with 13 teams, the Big Ten with 10, and both the Big 12 and ACC with 9. The Big East is projected to send 5 teams, the Pac-12 3, and the Atlantic 10 2. Colorado State, West Virginia, LSU, and Baylor are the last four teams to make the cut, while Xavier, Ole Miss, San Diego State, and Creighton are projected to miss out.

CBS Sports ranks Duke as the No. 1 overall seed in its preseason Bracketology. The Blue Devils return four key rotation players from a 35-3 team and have added the nation's No. 2 freshman class and No. 11 transfer group. Newcomers include Wisconsin transfer John Blackwell and 17-year-old Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje. Duke beat Tennessee 103-64 in the preseason and won 90-84 at Kansas. The outlet places Duke ahead of Florida primarily due to conference strength, noting that the ACC offers a less demanding schedule than the SEC.

The expansion is expected to impact teams from smaller conferences. The Pac-12 returns as the 32nd Division I conference, increasing automatic bids from 31 to 32. At least seven leagues typically send multiple teams, and eight did so last year. If eight leagues send multiple teams again, 24 leagues would be left with a single bid each. Projections suggest about 12 of those single-bid teams would land in the Opening Round.

Last season, only four single-bid teams played in the First Four, meaning 29 of 31 automatic qualifiers reached the first round alongside 35 at-large teams. This year, 26 automatic qualifiers are projected to be in the first round on Thursday, joined by 38 at-large teams. Most of these at-large selections come from high-major conferences.

Mid-major programs gain a statistical advantage in winning tournament games under the new structure. However, those victories would occur during the Opening Round against other mid-major opponents rather than in the primary first-round action.