Regional rivalries, freshmen debuts and more of the most intriguing nonconference game to tune into for each preseason top 25 team.

Thanks to the NCAA's decision, this conversation isn't going anywhere. While the 2026 tournament is sticking to 68 teams, that's far from a permanent feature of college basketball's postseason.

The NCAA Tournament expanded from 64 to 68 teams in 2011. The change introduced the First Four round, a set of pre-tournament games in which the four lowest-seeded at-large teams and four lowest-seeded conference champions compete for spots in the traditional 64-team bracket.