Dawn Staley reacts to NCAA Tournament expansion. And here’s what it means for USC
The NCAA Tournament will look a bit different in 2027.
Last month, the NCAA approved to expand the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments from 68 to 76 teams.
It’s the first expansion for the men’s tournament since 2011 and the first on the women’s side since 2022. Both tournaments grew to 68 teams in those years. The increase means there will be 32 automatic bids and 44 at-large bids in 2027.
The addition of eight teams alters the general format of the tournament a bit. Gone are the days of the First Four, going forward the tournament will start with 12 games that pit 24 teams against each other in the “Opening Round.” Winners of those games will advance to the Round of 64, so it’s easiest to think of the Opening Round as an expanded First Four.
Reaction from Dawn Staley and others
Tournament expansion has received mixed reviews on both sides of the sport, from fans and coaches alike.
South Carolina head women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley seemed somewhat split on tournament expansion when The State asked her about it late May at SEC Spring Meetings in Miramar Beach, Florida.
“I don’t think it’s competitive enough to handle adding more teams,” Staley told The State. “But it creates more opportunities for student-athletes to get an experience of playing in the NCAA Tournament, and I value that.”
There’s some validity to Staley’s first point. Last year’s tournament saw the same four teams make the Final Four for the second-straight season (all of which were No. 1 seeds). Plus, the 2026 tournament was relatively chalk. There were only six upsets in the first two rounds (48 games). That being said, there were some fun upset storylines, including No. 10 seed Virginia’s run from the First Four to the Sweet 16.
Staley’s latter point is certainly fair, albeit one of the more contested points of expansion. More spots mean more teams getting national spotlight during a time when women’s basketball is constantly growing in popularity.
Plus, more teams have an opportunity to earn units (payouts from the NCAA’s March Madness revenue) with a win that can only benefit their program. Georgia Tech coach Karen Blair and Mississippi State coach Sam Purcell, for example, both told USA Today they like how expansion gives more teams opportunities to make the tournament.
Some hope that additional spots in the tournament will lead to more mid-major teams making the NCAA Tournament. But some coaches, like UConn’s Geno Auriemma, believe the extra spots will wind up going to more middling Power 4 teams who otherwise wouldn’t have made the tournament.
“To me, this is strictly a money grab for the Power 4 conferences to get teams that finish 6-10 in their conference to get into the tournament,” Auriemma said last month. “If that’s not the plan to let more (mid-majors) in, then it doesn’t make any difference.”
What does expansion mean for the Gamecocks?
NCAA Tournament expansion shouldn’t really affect South Carolina because of the state of its women’s basketball program.
The Gamecocks have been a No. 1 seed in all but four of the 14 NCAA Tournaments Staley has guided the team to since taking over in 2008. The Gamecocks have been a No. 1 seed in each of the last six years.
The new Opening Round will pit the 12 lowest-seeded automatic qualifiers against each other and the 12 lowest-seeded at-large teams against each other. The automatic qualifier portion will feature two No. 15 vs No. 15 seed games and four No. 16 vs No. 16 seed games. The at-large portion will feature two No. 11 vs No. 11 seed games and four No. 12 seed vs No. 12 seed games.
As of right now, tournament expansion will just impact which of the lower seeds the Gamecocks would be matched up with. This was already the case, as South Carolina has often been matched up with the winner of a First Four game between No. 16 seeds in the Round of 64.
The only way South Carolina will find itself playing in the Opening Round is if the Gamecocks somehow find themselves on the bubble come Selection Sunday. With the way the program has played in the last decade, it’s hard to see USC being in that predicament any time soon.
The State’s Jordan Kaye contributed to the reporting of this article.
This story was originally published June 4, 2026 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Dawn Staley reacts to NCAA Tournament expansion. And here’s what it means for USC."
