New NCAA president embraces 68 teams, but withholds judgment over additional expansion

New NCAA president embraces tourney proposal

INDIANAPOLIS — The new NCAA president says he embraces the plan to expand the men’s basketball tournament.

Mark Emmert won’t say whether there should be more than 68 teams playing in the future — or whether academics should help determine which teams are eligible to compete in the tourney.

But he likes the plan to go from 65 teams to 68. The NCAA executive committee is expected to approve the proposal Thursday, along with a new $10.8 billion TV deal for March Madness.

Emmert is the president at the University of Washington and will take over the NCAA job on Nov. 1. He says university presidents need to determine the fate of a college football playoff — and that financial constraints may be the toughest challenge universities face in the near future.