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Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti in favor of NCAA Tournament expansion: 'More access is better'

Untitled design (2)by: Sam Gillenwater10/09/25samdg_33
Big Ten Tournament
G Fiume | Maryland Terrapins | Getty Images

Last week, Ross Dellenger reported that the NCAA Tournament could soon be expanding to a bracket of 76 teams. With that, Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti was asked for his thoughts on that proposal for the future of the sport’s postseason, as well as the league’s.

At Big Ten Media Days this afternoon in Chicago, Tony Petitti said that the Big Ten is generally in support of tournament expansion in March Madness. Their league does have questions of the seeding and how that looks in the field, but, overall, those around their conference are for it considering the access it would allow to their programs.

“Yeah, I think we’ve been supportive. I think there’s a couple pieces of it,” Petitti said. “You know, the first is, when something like that gets talked about, our process is we want to know what our coaches think and we want to know what the (athletic directors) think. So, like, when we sit back in the conference office is to represent relevant groups on the topic. And so, we talked to coaches and clearly? You know, I think part of the motivation from the NCAA is recognition with larger conferences. You’re going to force teams closer to .500 records. What access do they have?

“And so, I think, with the system we have now, with larger conferences, more access is better. That’s the first piece, and we’re very supportive of that…The second piece of it is, once you expand the field, what are you doing in terms of how you seed it? What’s the right way to absorb those additional teams, right? Are we straight seeding? Who plays in the play-in rounds? And so, I think we have some opinions that might be slightly different. I think, obviously, we’re biased. We think our teams will be seeded higher as the field goes in.

“I understand, the system we have now? It’ll probably continue, is my understanding. So, you weigh all of it and you say, okay, maybe the seeding isn’t perfect in the way we would design it, but it’s still providing more access…Access is important. And, you know, I just believe as many teams competing, you know, for as long as possible for the right reward is the best place to be. So, we’re generally supportive.”

As reported by Dellenger, amidst ongoing negotiations, the NCAA is looking at expanding the tournament from 68 teams to 76 teams as early as the 2027 NCAA Tournament. That would result in a dozen games being played in the opening round of the tournament on Tuesday and Wednesday rather than just the current format with two per night on those days – known as the First Four in Dayton.

Those play-in matchups would feature 12 lower-seeded automatic qualifiers and then 12 at-large selections, which is similar to the current format of the First Four. The NCAA is viewing it this way as a way to make the field more accessible to those at-large teams that miss the tournament from the bubble come Selection Sunday.

In the first season of their expansion, the Big Ten saw eight of its 18 teams make the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Michigan State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Maryland, Michigan, Oregon, Illinois, and UCLA made it in, with the Spartans reaching the Elite Eight. The Boilermakers, Terrapins, and Wolverines also reached the Sweet 16. The Big Ten then had two of the biggest snubs on the bubble, with Indiana and Ohio State just missing out on at-large berths.

Nothing has been approved yet as far as this proposed expansion of the NCAA Tournament. But, pending the style of seeding and how that would look or impact that opening round for their conference, Petitti sounds as though they in the Big Ten would be for this projected change to March Madness.