Big 12, Big Ten, Big East in talks to participate in new postseason event for teams not in NCAA Tournament

The Big East, Big 12 and Big Ten are in initial talks to probably cling a 16-team, single-site postseason males’s basketball event for teams that do not make the NCAA Tournament, resources showed to CBS Sports. There isn’t any timetable on what 12 months the event, to be held at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena, would start if it comes to fruition.

The 3 meetings had been engaged in talks on account of their monetary dating with a published spouse — the Big East, Big 12 and Big Ten all have media rights offers with the Fox tv community. Sources mentioned that Fox has basically been the motive force at the discussions of this would-be match.

The Messenger first reported the discussions. 

If one of these made-for-TV bracket did materialize, it might destabilize the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). For just about six many years, the NIT — which has misplaced a few of its luster in fresh years — has been the comfort vacation spot for faculties that do not make the coveted NCAA Tournament. If this yet-to-be-named Fox-run match got here to be, it might imply teams from the ones 3 energy meetings would forfeit their proper to play in the NIT, resources mentioned. That may just threaten the NIT style. 

The ACC and SEC, that are in trade with ESPN, are hesitant at this level to be part of Fox’s enterprise, a supply advised CBS Sports. (ESPN nonetheless pronounces the 32-team NIT, which is arranged and paid for by means of the NCAA.) The resistance at this level for all energy meetings to be concerned has devalued the proposition, as it might be a hodgepodge of underachieving teams with out high-major uniformity, mentioned one supply who asked anonymity. (The Pac-12’s life/status in all of this stays wait-and-see.)

“Far from done,” every other league supply advised CBS Sports.

But a couple of resources expect it is much more likely than not that this setup in the end occurs. If it does, it might mark the primary time in the historical past of school basketball {that a} tv community explicitly arranged a postseason match. As The Messenger reported, in an effort to maximize its enchantment, two most important portions of Fox’s pitch are to construct a third-party identify/symbol/likeness component into the event (so avid gamers could be tempted to participate) and to cling it after the Elite Eight and ahead of the Final Four. 

That would have it competing with the top of the NIT championship on ESPN.

Even then, the proposition has demanding situations. Teams that fail to make the NCAA Tournament from time to time hearth their coaches. Under this template, faculties from the Big East, Big 12 and Big Ten could be ready greater than two weeks between the top in their convention tournaments and the Vegas-based Fox event. It’s not going that an athletic director at the verge of creating a training alternate would wait two-plus weeks simply to ship a staff to Las Vegas for a couple of days. 

There also are possible headaches with avid gamers who decide to finish their seasons and search a switch in other places. Failing to make the NCAA Tournament is inclined to breeding roster turnover. There is an opportunity some teams may just nonetheless flip down this chance or, in need of that, ship thinner rosters and/or smaller training staffs. 

As of now, talks are centering round simply males’s basketball teams taking part in in the match.

The event may just additionally pull extra coaches clear of attending the Final Four which, past serving because the fruits of the lads’s school basketball season, has lengthy been the time and position for hundreds of coaches from around the nation to community, reconnect and push concepts ahead to fortify the game.