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The NCAA is reportedly looking to expand the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments to 76 teams, and UConn head coach Dan Hurley harbors some concerns about the expansion.
No teams have been added since three more were added in 2011, and the format of the tournament would change, but that’s not what Hurley is worried about. The 53-year-old coach does not want the regular season to lose meaning.
“I think what makes the tournament special is the seeding,” Hurley told CBS Sports. “We don’t want the regular season to lose meaning and take away from November, December, January and February. The qualifying process makes the regular season intense and full of pressure.”
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UConn head coach Dan Hurley stands on the sidelines during the first half of an NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game against Illinois in the Final Four in Indianapolis on April 4, 2026. (Michael Conroy/AP)
“It should be a privilege to play in the tournament, not a right, and obviously if it gets too big and you don’t have to have a very good season to do it, that would detract from the tournament. Does it get too big?”
Hurley said he loved the tournament because it was difficult to qualify.
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UConn head coach Dan Hurley talks to a referee during the first half of the NCAA Elite Eight tournament against Duke in Washington on March 29, 2026. (Stephanie Scarbrough/AP)
“I love watching 1/16 games, 8/9 games, Dayton games. But I also love the fact that when it was 64, it was very difficult to get in,” said the two-time national champion. “You want to make it difficult to get in. The most important thing also is that you still have to win six games, right?”
In the new expanded tournament, the first two days of the tournament would be drastically different. That Tuesday and Wednesday, 12 games would be played between 24 teams due to the eight added at-large bids. The games would be played at two different sites.
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UConn head coach Dan Hurley speaks during a news conference before the NCAA college basketball tournament national semifinal against Illinois in the Final Four in Indianapolis on April 2, 2026. (Abbie Parr/AP)
The traditional group of 64 teams would begin Thursday after the opening games. Teams that have to play on Tuesday and Wednesday must win seven games instead of six to win it all.
