How Many At-Large Bids Are in the NCAA Tournament?

Colorado guard J'Vonne Hadley (1) lays up the ball against UCLA forward Adem Bona, center right, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in Los Angeles.
(AP Photo/Raul Romero Jr.)

March Madness is one of the gambling world’s favorite events. It’s one of the best times to be a player at BetMGM. 

With college basketball’s postseason more popular than ever, thanks in part to the growth of women’s college basketball odds, many new fans are watching their first NCAA basketball tournaments and wondering how the tournament format actually works.

Here are the basics.

How Many At Large Bids Are In the NCAA Basketball Tournament?

A total of 37 college basketball teams receive at-large bids into the NCAA Tournament every year. 

The remaining 31 teams for the 68-team field are automatic qualifiers as conference tournament champions. Many of them come from smaller conferences and receive double-digit seeds.

What Is an At Large Bid in the NCAA Tournament?

If a team doesn’t automatically qualify for March Madness by winning its conference tournament, it can still earn one of 37 at-large bids chosen by the 10-person NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Committee. These at-large bids are given to the best remaining Division I teams that didn’t previously earn an automatic bid.

The committee chooses (and then seeds) these at-large teams using dozens of metrics and records, including NET rankings, strength of schedule, and quadrant records.

The 68-team field for the 2025 NCAA Tournament will be unveiled on Selection Sunday on March 16.

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About the Author Read More @chaseakiddy

Chase Kiddy is a writer for BetMGM and co-host of The Lion's Edge, an NFL and college football podcast available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else. He has also written for a number of print and online outlets, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Washington Post, Daily News-Record, and HERO Sports. His first novel, Cave Paintings, is in development.

Chase Kiddy is a writer for BetMGM and co-host of The Lion's Edge, an NFL and college football podcast available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else. He has also written for a number of print and online outlets, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Washington Post, Daily News-Record, and HERO Sports. His first novel, Cave Paintings, is in development.