The expansion of March Madness and the $300 million in extra revenue that comes with it through opening sponsorships to beer, wine and liquor companies offered a brief reprieve from the steady drip of headlines this spring that underscore the problems confronting college sports.

The men’s March Madness bracket is set, and Duke, Arizona, Michigan and Florida have claimed the four No. 1 seeds in the tournament.

Alabama coach Nate Oats says 7-foot center Charles Bediako, who gave up his college eligibility in 2023 to enter the NBA draft, will play against Tennessee on Saturday.

The NCAA has decided not to expand the men's and women's basketball tournaments beyond 68 teams in 2026.

Top-ranked Duke and the Atlantic Coast Conference have informed the NCAA Tournament selection committee that freshman Cooper Flagg will be available for March Madness.

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark is in favor of expanding the men’s NCAA Tournament to 76 teams.

An NCAA official says the governing body may consider using a single site for later rounds of men’s college basketball tournaments following a successful run in Indianapolis.

NCAA basketball administrators apologized to the womens basketball players and coaches after inequities between the mens and womens tournament went viral on social media. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic, File)SAN ANTONIO – NCAA basketball administrators apologized to the women's basketball players and coaches after inequities between the men's and women's tournament went viral on social media and vowed to do better. We acknowledge that,” said NCAA Senior Vice President of women’s basketball Lynn Holzman, who is a former college basketball player. In the past, campuses would host the opening rounds so teams would be able to schedule weight room times in those on-campus sites. All teams here deal with the same issues as the men’s teams this season, yet their ‘reward’ is different.”___More AP women’s basketball: https://apnews.com/Womenscollegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

SAN ANTONIO – The NCAA on Friday morning addressed disparities between the men’s and women’s Division I basketball tournaments after several issues with the women’s tournament in San Antonio surfaced on social media. Lynn Holzman, NCAA VP of women’s basketball, admitted the NCAA and women’s committee fell short in some areas of preparation prior to the tournament’s start on Sunday. “We need to make it doesn’t happen again, and we will address the shortfalls here in San Antonio and moving forward,” King said. “We’re trying to do the right thing and we’ve adjusted on the fly now that we’re here in San Antonio,” Holzman said. It will be played in three San Antonio locations, Austin and San Marcos.

Lisa Moeller takes a photo of the NCAA bracket for the NCAA college basketball tournament on the side of the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis. The National College Players Association, a college athlete advocacy group, released a statement late Wednesday that detailed the players' goals. Meanwhile, at the women's basketball tournament in San Antonio, those players were forcing the NCAA to deal with a different kind of equity issue. Attorney Tim Nevius, a former NCAA investigator, said college athletes are increasingly aware of their power to effect change. “These are warning shots,” he said, “until they’re not.”___Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and updated bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket

The Texas basketball team walks around the concourse at Victory Field at the NCAA college basketball tournament, Wednesday, March 17, 2021, in Indianapolis. This is life at a basketball tournament being played in a pandemic. Starting Thursday, in an attempt to get through 67 games uninterrupted, the NCAA has placed players, coaches and staff under a virtual lock and key. “But it was not NCAA staff that encouraged meals to be had in restaurants,” he said. “Gotta make sure the game’s sharp by the time springtime comes.”Ad___More AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket

The coliseum is one of six venues hosting NCAA Tournament games later this week. One referee tested positive for COVID-19, forcing him and five others who went out to dinner with him, out of the tournament. Though the NCAA brought plenty of backup referees, the mass departure served up yet another illustration of how things can go wrong. “It's not ever going to be perfect in a pandemic,” NCAA vice president Dan Gavitt said. Iona took its two tests in the same day, and Gavitt said the change had been OK'd by the NCAA medical advisory group and the local health department.

(AP Photo/David Becker)All a team needs to play in this year's NCAA Tournament is five healthy players. AdPlayers will have their own rooms and teams will have their own floors at designated hotels throughout their stay in Indiana. But Gavitt acknowledged that as long as a team has five players, it can stick around for as long as it keeps winning. Ad“We decided if they had five players eligible and healthy," they could play, he said. “We're looking at who's played games and missed games.

INDIANAPOLIS – The University of Maryland-Baltimore County pulled off one of the greatest upsets in American sports history at the 2018 NCAA Tournament, knocking off Virginia to become the first No. 4 seeds during an opening weekend that epitomized the beloved spectacle the NCAA Tournament has become. Multiple basketball programs are currently on pause due to COVID-19 and the Ivy League announced last week the cancellation of winter sports, including men’s and women’s basketball. Gavitt said there is no plan to change the start date and the NCAA Tournament is expected to be played in March and April as scheduled. A one-site NCAA Tournament will cause a financial hit to the cities scheduled to host early-round and regional games.

The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___Iona coach Rick Pitino is calling for a delayed start to the college basketball season as COVID-19 cases rise across the country. Many schools are still trying to fill out schedules with the season set to start on Nov. 25. Saturday's game in Leipzig had been in doubt after four Ukraine players and one staff member tested positive for the coronavirus. ___AC Milan coach Stefano Pioli has tested positive for the coronavirus. ___The Croatian soccer federation says midfielder Marcelo Brozovic has tested positive for the coronavirus.