NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Rules

The NCAA basketball tournament is one of the year's most exciting sporting events. Along with the excitement comes plenty of controversy over the teams that were chosen for the tournament field. There are certain regulations that apply to the selection of schools for the NCAA tournament each year. 65 bids are given out, with the 64th and 65th teams being matched up in a play-in game the Tuesday before the main tournament begins.

NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Rules: The Committee

The committee that selects the teams for the NCAA basketball is made up of 10 athletic directors or conference commissioners from Division I schools. Committee members are chosen from both the major conferences and the smaller, mid-majors to keep the selection process fair for schools of all sizes. If a committee member's university is the subject of committee discussions, that committee member is required to exit the room to avoid a conflict of interest. A member is permitted to stay in the room if other colleges from the his or her conference are being debated, but may not add any input unless asked to by the other committee members.

NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Rules: Automatic Bids

Each of the 31 NCAA conferences give their champion an automatic bid to the NCAA basketball tournament. This ensures that every Division I school has an opportunity to qualify, regardless of the strength of their schedule. All conferences except the Ivy League have an end of the season tournament that determines the champion. The Ivy League decides its champion by the teams' regular season record.

NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Rules: At-large Bids

The other 34 bids are given out at the selection committee's discretion. The committee evaluates a school's win-loss record, strength of schedule, overall strength of conference, win-loss record versus ranked opponents, and the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI). The RPI is a computer-based calculation made up of the team's winning percentage, its opponents' winning percentages, and the winning percentage of the opponents' opponents.

NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Rules: Seeds

The four regions of the NCAA basketball tournament are seeded from one to sixteen. The best team is given the #1 seed and easiest draw in the region. To decide which teams go in the regions, the selection committee will seed all 65 teams in order of their strength. The top four teams are given the #1 seeds in their regions, the next four teams are given the #2 seed, and so on down the list.

NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Rules: Making the Bracket

The NCAA basketball tournament bracket is split into four different regions: West, East, South, and Midwest. Each conference's top three teams must be placed in different regions. If more than three teams are selected from the same, the committee will try to seed them so that teams so that they do not meet before the regional final. Other factors like religious restrictions must also be taken into account by the selection committee. For instance, Brigham Young University cannot play games on Sunday because of their Mormon beliefs.