NCAA Tournament remains at 68 teams … for now; Texas tops preseason Coaches Poll

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🏀 Good morning to all but especially to …

THE NCAA TOURNAMENT AND COLLEGE BASKETBALL FANS

The 68-team NCAA Tournament format isn’t going anywhere … for now. The Division I men’s and women’s basketball committees decided Monday to keep the field size as is for the 2026 tournaments, though expansion still looms.

• The committees met in July and did not come to a conclusion regarding expansion.
• Shortly thereafter, NCAA president Charlie Baker said expansion this season would therefore be unlikely, though a decision for 2027 and beyond could be coming this fall.
• Indeed, Dan Gavitt, the NCAA’s senior vice president of basketball, said discussions will continue about expanding to 72 or 76 “in advance of the 2027 championships.”

I don’t want to beat a dead horse, but I’m anti-expansion. Matt Norlander has laid out the reasons and the data about why 68 is the right size. For at least one more year, it’s staying that way.

😁 Honorable mentions

🏈 And not such a good morning for …

MICAH PARSONS, JERRY JONES AND THE DALLAS COWBOYS

The Micah Parsons trade request is now four days old, and somehow it seems that with each passing day Jerry Jones digs himself a deeper hole, most recently saying “This is really nothing new, at all, with Micah” in an interview published Monday.

Technically, he’s right. This is nothing new. (And here’s the timeline for how we got here.) But this isn’t something he should be happy about, or something that should reassure Cowboys fans. Dallas is constantly behind the eight ball when it comes to contract extensions for their biggest stars — whether it’s Dak Prescott or CeeDee Lamb or, now, Parsons — and John Breech details how this has cost the team more than $30 million over the past few years.

There’s also the non-monetary cost of however you’d describe this latest hoopla. Parsons is with the team and “very engaged” according to Brian Schottenheimer, but this contract fiasco is a distraction. Jones just can’t resist commenting on every little development, and even Lamb and Prescott are tired of waiting.

Again, though, this is just the way things are. In Jones’ eyes, being newsworthy — even for bad news — is paramount, Cody Benjamin writes.

• Benjamin: “It’s summer, and the Dallas Cowboys’ best player isn’t happy. Now here’s a riddle for you: Are we talking about 2025? Or 2019? Maybe 1993? Try just about every year under the man who makes a living off of this stuff: Jerry Jones. … There’s a reason Jones insisted Cowboys fans shouldn’t ‘lose any sleep’ over the fact Parsons, a four-time Pro Bowler and one of the game’s most gifted playmakers, literally stated he no longer wants to play for the team after feeling misled in contract talks with Jones this offseason: The man in charge was always interested in making this a spectacle.”

I mean, Dez Bryant and Nicki Minaj are feuding on social media because of the Parsons saga. But, hey, it’s Cowboys-related news, right?!

Of course, there’s contract drama elsewhere, too. James Cook‘s “hold-in” at Bills camp is the newest. We’re keeping tabs on every contract dispute — and predicting outcomes.

😓 Not so honorable mentions

🏈 Texas tops preseason Coaches Poll for first time ever

There’s not a whole lot Texas football hasn’t accomplished, with the program’s fifth-most wins in college football history, four national championships and a pair of Heisman Trophy winners headlining the Longhorns’ storied past.

Monday, though, they received a new accolade. The Longhorns topped the preseason Coaches Poll, the first time the program has been ranked No. 1 in a major preseason (Coaches or AP) poll. For what it’s worth, they’ve been No. 2 in the preseason AP Top 25 five times.

Texas still has to put the pads on and actually take care of business, of course, but it’s a nice bit of recognition for the Longhorns, who enter the Arch Manning era and have a loaded defense headlined by Anthony Hill and Colin Simmons.

Some may view a No. 1 preseason ranking as a kiss of death — in fact, the Longhorns were dealt some tough injury news Monday as well — but Steve Sarkisian‘s team has finished at or above his team’s preseason AP rank each of the past three seasons.

Texas edged out its Week 1 opponent, Ohio State, for No. 1. Here’s the top five, with first-place votes in parentheses.

1. Texas (28)
2. Ohio State (20)
3. Penn State (14)
4. Georgia (3)
5. Notre Dame

Clemson, ranked sixth, garnered the remaining two first-place votes, and in his underrated/overrated list, Will Backus says don’t sleep on the Tigers.

• Backus: “While there’s no doubt that the Bulldogs and the Fighting Irish are legitimate College Football Playoff contenders at this point, there’s plenty of reason to be much higher on the Tigers … Clemson is much better off at quarterback. Cade Klubnik is a first-round NFL Draft prospect with Heisman potential. The Tigers also return one of the best wide receiver units in the nation, an experienced offensive line and a defense loaded with future professional talent, like edge rusher TJ Parker and defensive lineman Peter Woods.”

Meanwhile, 15 of the top 25 teams are from either the Big Ten or SEC. 

🏀 De’Aaron Fox, Spurs agree to four-year, $229 million max extension

The Spurs are loading up for the future around Victor Wembanyama, and De’Aaron Fox very much appears to be a big part of that plan. Fox and San Antonio agreed on a four-year max extension worth up to $229 million.

• The Kings traded Fox, 27, to the Spurs midway through last season, but he played in just 17 games for San Antonio before undergoing season-ending finger surgery in March.
• An All-Star and third-team All-NBA performer in 2022-23, Fox bypassed inking a three-year, $165 extension with Sacramento last offseason — a move he made thanks to a bigger potential payday down the road — and he cashed in.
• Fox was set to be an unrestricted free agent after this season.

The Spurs have missed the playoffs in six straight seasons but look primed to make a push this year. Wembanyama, 21, has already ascended to star status, the shoo-in Defensive Player of the Year last season before deep vein thrombosis ended his season in February. San Antonio also drafted Dylan Harper No. 2 overall this season and returns last year’s Rookie of the Year, Stephon Castle, as well as Devin Vassell, among others.

🏀 WNBA MVP leader Napheesa Collier to miss at least two weeks

Lynx star and MVP frontrunner Napheesa Collier will miss at least two weeks with an ankle sprain, a significant blow as Minnesota hopes to hold onto the No. 1 seed.

• Collier was hurt late in the third quarter of a 53-point win over the Aces on Saturday, the largest road win in WNBA history.
• Collier is leading the WNBA in points per game (23.5) while shooting 54% from the field and 37% from 3. She’s also in the top 10 in rebounds (7.5 per game), steals (1.8) and blocks (1.6).
• The Lynx (24-5) are 5½ games ahead of the Liberty, though Collier’s absence — two weeks would cause her to miss four games — will certainly present a challenge.

As for another injured star, Caitlin Clark still has no timetable for a return from a groin injury, but the Fever have won five straight without her and are up to No. 3 in Jack Maloney’s WNBA Power Rankings.

📺 What we’re watching Tuesday

🏀 Wings at Liberty, 7 p.m. on NBA TV
⚾ Reds at Cubs, 8:05 p.m. on TBS
⚾ Padres at Diamondbacks, 9:40 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 Fever at Sparks, 10 p.m. on CBS Sports Network
⚾ Cardinals at Dodgers, 10:10 p.m. on MLB Network