NCAA women’s basketball committee discusses possible expansion of 68-team field, nothing imminent #NCAA #womens #basketball #committee #discusses #expansion #68team #field #imminent

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The NCAA is exploring ways to promote the growth of women’s college basketball, including possible expansion of the 68-team tournament that determines the sport’s national champion each season.

While there are no imminent plans to increase the number of schools included in March Madness, the Division I women’s basketball committee does want to build on the success of the tournament, which is growing in popularity.

Talks this week during the committee’s summer meeting in Savannah, Georgia, follow the announcement in January of the creation of a 32-team postseason invitation tournament for women’s basketball starting in 2024.

FILE - Kentucky head coach John Calipari shouts to his players during the second half of a first-round college basketball game against Providence in the NCAA Tournament on Friday, March 17, 2023, in Greensboro, N.C. Relief has replaced anxiety among Kentucky's fan base as Wildcats coach John Calipari has assembled a full roster, albeit later than expected. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)

Relief has replaced anxiety among Kentucky’s fan base: Wildcats coach John Calipari has assembled a full roster, albeit later than expected.

FILE - West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins watches from the bench during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Iowa State, Monday, Feb. 27, 2023, in Ames, Iowa. Huggins has been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, Friday, June 16, a month after the university suspended him for three games for using an anti-gay slur while also denigrating Catholics during a radio interview. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

Bob Huggins says he never resigned as West Virginia’s basketball coach following a drunken-driving arrest and wants his job back.

West Virginia athletic director Wren Baker, left, and interim NCAA college basketball coach Josh Eilert, right, answer questions during a news conference, Monday, June 26, 2023, in Morgantown, W.Va. (AP Photo/Kathleen Batten)

West Virginia athletic director Wren Baker has been on the job only seven months, yet he’s done a lot.

FILE - New Mexico State coach Greg Heiar watches players during a game Nov. 2, 2022, in Las Cruces, N.M. Heiar has been hired as the head coach at Mineral Area College, a junior college in central Missouri. Heiar was dismissed from New Mexico State in February in the wake of hazing allegations within the team that shut down the program for the season. (Meg Potter/The Las Cruces Sun News via AP, File)

Former New Mexico State basketball coach Greg Heiar has been hired to coach Mineral Area College, a junior college in Missouri, four months after he was fired in the wake of the Aggies’ hazing scandal.

The new event will increase the number of NCAA-funded postseason opportunities for women’s basketball teams from 68 to 100 — same as for men’s basketball, which has the 68-team NCAA tournament and 32-team National Invitation Tournament.

“The committee and staff will continue to study options, meet with stakeholders and review the many championship models to make an informed decision that’s in the best interests of the championship, though we are not there currently in regard to expanding the NCAA tournament field beyond 68 teams,” Lynn Holzman, NCAA vice president of women’s basketball, said.

The women’s NCAA tournament last expanded in 2022, going from 64 to 68 teams.

The men’s Division I basketball program has also discussed the possibility of expanding its field, however nothing is imminent.

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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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