March Madness Expansion Would Mean Big Changes to First Four

Will the First Four eventually become the First 12?

With March Madness expansion looming, the NCAA tournament’s opening round of play-in games could look quite different as soon as next year.

The men’s First Four tips off Tuesday night as UMBC and Howard play for a No. 16 seed while Texas and N.C. State battle for a No. 11 seed. Wednesday will bring a Prairie View–Leheigh 16-seed matchup and a Miami (Ohio)–SMU 11-seed showdown.

If NCAA president Charlie Baker’s push for March Madness expansion from 68 teams to 72 (or even 76) ultimately gets greenlit, the tournament’s play-in round would grow from four games between eight teams to either eight games with 16 teams, or 12 games with 24 teams.

March Maneuvering

That would bring significant changes to several areas of the opening days of March Madness.

Dayton’s 13,000-seat UD Arena has annually hosted the men’s First Four since its inception in 2011, with a pair of back-to-back games on Tuesday and Wednesday before the full slate of first-round games on Thursday and Friday.

While Dayton could potentially host additional play-in games earlier in the afternoons, March Madness expansion would likely mean the addition of one or two more host sites for those matchups. That would be on top of each year’s selection of 13 other cities that host games throughout the tournament.

An expanded First Eight or First 12 would also bring additional TV windows. TruTV currently airs the entirety of the First Four, but the NCAA has held various discussions with media-rights holders CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery about what expansion would mean.

CBS and WBD are collectively paying more than $1 billion annually for March Madness rights—with games broadcast across CBS, TNT, TBS, and TruTV—but the NCAA has been asking for more should the tournament expand.

Last year, TruTV had its most-watched First Four on record with 7.4 million gross viewers, boosted by an audience of 2.2 million for UNC–San Diego State, which marked the Tar Heels’ first time playing in the First Four.

March Madness expansion would mean more bubble teams playing in the tournament. 

This year, the “first four out” on Selection Sunday were Oklahoma, Auburn, San Diego State, and Indiana. Other teams that have been mentioned as snubs include Cincinnati, Stanford, Belmont, and Seton Hall.