PITTSBURGH – Count Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari among the growing group of outspoken critics against the expansion of the NCAA tournament.
Speaking Wednesday from Pittsburgh ahead of his No. 3-seeded Wildcats' first-round matchup against No. 14-seeded Oakland, Calipari urged officials to prevent the tournament from expanding beyond its current 68-round format. equipment.
Sources told ESPN's Pete Thamel last week that there are ongoing discussions about expanding the men's tournament to one that includes no more than 80 teams.
“I hope he stays where he is,” Calipari said. “You know, I know people get angry. They get angry at the committee. You wouldn't believe it. I've been angry at that committee a few times. But you might be angry about your seed or where they've gone.” “I sent you to… But it doesn't matter who the committee is. We're all going to be upset.”
Calipari addressed the newly expanded format for the College Football Playoffs and how more teams entering will also mean more teams will be upset about being left out.
“This is a business trip for me,” Calipari said. “And I would tell everyone who is in this that they would say the same thing: Keep it where it is. Don't mess with something that's great.”
Oakland coach Greg Kampe, who is in his 40th season with the Golden Grizzlies, echoed Calipari in rejecting the possibility of a tournament with up to 80 teams.
“This is the holy grail for mid-majors, right? It is,” Kampe said. “And I've said it many times over the last week. The NCAA basketball tournament… please don't change it, please don't change it. But it's one of the three biggest sporting events in the world.”
Thamel reported that one consequence of expanding the field and revamping the qualification and candidacy process could be that fewer mid-major teams make it to the tournament's main draw. The inclusion of more Power 5 programs could mean that teams from smaller, single-bid conferences have to work their way into the top bracket through play-in games similar to the tournament's current First Four format, reducing the likelihood of May Cinderella's teams go far in the tournament. .
In making his argument, Kampe talked about the magic of the underdog and cited Jimmy Chitwood, the fictional character from the movie “Hoosiers.” Chitwood's character was inspired by Bobby Plump, the real-life player who hit the game-winning shot to lead Milan High School to an improbable Indiana state high school basketball championship in 1954.
Kampe said he would support expanding the tournament if it helps smaller programs like Oakland get into the field.
“If that's the only way to stay in this, then I'm for it,” he said. “What I'm saying is don't leave us out. You know, we're the ones making this tournament: the little guy. Why does everyone love 'Hoosiers,' right? The best movie. Why? Because the little guy boy… That's what college basketball is. That's why it's one of the three biggest sporting events in the world… Don't take that away from us.”
NC State coach Kevin Keatts disagreed with his fellow coaches. For Keatts, expanding the tournament would benefit players from programs of all sizes. Like Calipari, he used college football to make his case, citing the bowl system as a way for athletes to gain postseason experience.
“I totally disagree with them,” Keatts said. “And not just because I want to disagree with them. I think there should be some expansion. I just think there are too many student-athletes who don't have the opportunity to play in the postseason. When you look at football, I don't have that problem. Now you can bowl a game under .500, and the experience of… you know, we talked about the student-athlete experience, and the only thing that really, in my opinion, hasn't changed is expanding the tournament. And I don't have a number. I don't know what it should be. But I do think that we should give more schools opportunities to be able to participate in the tournament.
“All of our conferences, all of our Power 5 conferences are going to 17, 18 teams. The ACC, which I don't think is fair, we'll get 5 out of 15. If we get 7 out of 18, it's not a pretty number.”
Before taking over at NC State in 2017, Keatts spent three seasons at UNC-Wilmington, leading the school to two NCAA Tournament appearances. He said his time with the Seahawks affected his vision of an expanded tournament.
“When I was in the middle of a race, I thought I should have a chance,” he said. “I was at UNCW, we had won 28 games, and if I didn't win that championship game, no matter what I did, I wouldn't have a chance to play in the tournament. So somehow we have to figure it out. “And I'm not saying that you have to fill it with high-level equipment. “I'm saying that more student-athletes, in my opinion, should have the opportunity to play in the best postseason tournament in college.”
