Paul Zeise: Expansion of the NCAA men's basketball tournament is inevitable, so embrace it

That's why this newest expansion won't change much, if anything, about the actual NCAA Tournament, so I am not sure what all the angst is about. And that's especially true considering every model I've seen makes it pretty clear any new model will be built around the 64-team bracket.

Here is the excerpt from CBS Sports, which lays it out fairly well:

"According to Yahoo Sports, the presented changes would keep the core 64-team bracket intact, adding additional play-in games and at least one more First Four site. Expansion to the women's tournament could follow suit.

The NCAA Tournament field was expanded from 65 to 68 in 2011 and from 64 to 65 in 2001. The alteration to the event's core bracket came in 1985 when it expanded from 53 teams to 64."

The model of going to 72 or 76 games is simply going to add a few more play-in games. I am not sure what the issue is with that because people tend to like the play-in games. I mean, all we are really talking about is going from a "First Four" to maybe a "First Eight" or something.

If it makes critics feel better, let's keep calling them play-in games, and therefore, the NCAA Tournament still won't really truly begin until it gets to the field of 64. But regardless, it won't change the actual bracket. It will basically add, say, eight teams playing for four spots in the bracket.

Obviously, last season, Pitt would have benefitted greatly by an expanded field because they were one of the top teams left out of the field. But this isn't about Pitt or any individual team, it is about the kind of revenue that will be generated by extra games being played.

That's why I am OK with it and you should be, too. I mean, if an old crotchety man who has been yelling at clouds for at least 30 years can accept it, it can't be that big of a deal. The new era of college athletics is here, and that means everything that can be monetized must be monetized.

The NCAA Tournament will be fine even if they add a few more play-in games, so there is no reason to fight it now or even in the future when they talk about expanding it again.