Gavitt: NCAA to be ‘forward-looking’ on tourney

• Myron Medcalf, ESPN Staff WriterNov 14, 2023, 12:24 AM ET

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  • Covers college basketball
  • Signed up with ESPN.com in 2011
  • Graduate of Minnesota State University, Mankato

WEST LAFAYETTE, Indiana– Dan Gavitt, the NCAA’s vice president of men’s basketball, said postseason expansion is “not always” inescapable however the event’s officials have to consider the impact of the rapidly evolving environment in collegiate sports.The Division I males’s basketball committee is presently weighing suggestions from the Division I change committee that could broaden the NCAA tournament to approximately 90 groups. Gavitt stated there are no warranties the guys’s basketball competition will broaden from the current field of 68 teams however he said the event needs to stay “contemporary.” “[ The Department I Men’s Basketball Committee

] is doing their due diligence to think about every perspective and every angle,”said Gavitt, who participated in No. 2 Purdue’s 83-71 win over Xavier on Monday.”It’s the championship game, right? You have to make sure the competition is special as it’s constantly been and yet, you need to consider the modifications and the important things that are going on in the business– conference realignment– that might have some effect and require to be considered. The positive method, instead of looking in reverse. “College sports continues to progress and it is essential to keep it contemporary.”The NCAA just recently announced modifications to the NIT, which will now guarantee 12 areas from teams in the power conferences. Mid-major coaches and commissioners have actually been singing in their criticism of the move.Gavitt stated he’s heard their”disappointment “however repeated that the viability of the occasion, which could deal with competitors from a new basketball postseason occasion as early as 2025, demanded those changes.He likewise stated he’s not worried about Power 5 power brokers making an effort to shift the NCAA competition in their favor or produce their own event.”No issue from the committee’s point of view on that,” Gavitt said.

“That specific angle hasn’t been an issue or thought about in the process.” Purdue and Xavier faced in the Gavitt Games, which were produced to honor the late Dave Gavitt, the first Big East commissioner and Gavitt’s dad. Per reports, this year’s Gavitt Games might be the final installation of the series

, which began in 2015.”You’ve got terrific programs, traditional programs, in unbelievable structures like this, “Gavitt said.”To have games in November that matter this much, to offer out a location and keep customs like this going, is great for college basketball and crucial.”