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No new dance members: NCAA Tournament expansion not imminent

Indianapolis, IN (Sports Network) - The bubble will still burst for teams sweating over their NCAA Tournament resumes as the Division I Men's Basketball Committee announced Thursday that expansion of the men's tournament is not in its immediate plans.

The field will remain at 65 institutions for one of sports greatest events, a single-elimination tournament built on the mantra of, "One Shining Moment." The 10-person committee spent considerable time examining the implications of expanding the tournament and also reviewed feedback from a variety of individuals both inside and outside of the membership.

"There is no enthusiasm on the part of the committee to expand the tournament at this time," said director of athletics at the University of Virginia and chair of the men's basketball committee Craig Littlepage. "In the interest of sustaining the quality of the tournament, the committee has decided to maintain the current structure."

The committee considered information pertaining to the current quality of competition, logistics, television ratings and the overall popularity of the event in determining that field will remain at 65 teams.

The idea of expansion gained considerable steam following mid-major George Mason's magical run to the Final Four last season. Several coaches, including Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim, pointed to the Patriots' success as an indication of the parity in college basketball.

The women's committee also shut down the idea of expansion, as both groups wanted to keep the two tournaments on similar formats.

The men's committee made no announcement about whether or not expansion will be considered in the future.