How Would NCAA Tournament Expansion Impact Cowboy Basketball?

The tournament could soon be expanding, and it could mean a lot for OSU.

Jan 10, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys head coach Steve Lutz watches his team play the Iowa State Cyclones during the second half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-Imagn Images | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

Oklahoma State’s chances of a postseason bid next season may be increasing soon.

In the 2025-26 season, Cowboy basketball seemed to take a step in the right direction, securing its first winning record since 2023 and falling only one time in nonconference play. While the Cowboys’ losses piled up against Big 12 foes, their hot start to the season helped raise expectations for the coming years.

As Steve Lutz heads into his third season as head coach, the Cowboys are expected to be in the mix for an NCAA Tournament bid. And those expectations should only be bolstered by the potential change coming to the tournament’s format.

On Friday, Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported that the NCAA Tournament is set to expand to 76 teams next season in both the men’s and women’s tournaments. The expected change would turn the first four into a round featuring 24 teams across 12 games to get to the typical round of 64.

NCAA Tournament expansion has been rumored for years, but it had largely been shot down and avoided for a variety of reasons. However, it appears the tournament is finally set to change for the first time in decades by going to 76 teams.

OSU just wrapped up its fifth straight season of missing the NCAA Tournament, and with expansion coming, the Cowboys would have even more pressure to avoid allowing that streak to extend to six seasons. 

Considering OSU’s shortcomings in conference play throughout the final weeks of this season, the NCAA Tournament wasn’t even in reach for the Cowboys when the Big 12 Tournament came around. Going into the 2026-27 season, that was already going to be the bare minimum level of success for OSU, and simply being in the discussion likely won’t be enough to keep the most important folks happy if the tournament is fielding another eight at-large teams.

Considering OSU hasn’t had any consistent success since firing Travis Ford a decade ago, the program is desperate for any sort of winning basketball. While a trip to the new version of the first four isn’t the long-term goal for the program, it would be a huge improvement compared to what OSU has seen in recent years. 

With a pivotal year in Stillwater ahead already, NCAA Tournament expansion only adds to the pressure that Lutz and company are facing. Still, the expansion won’t change the fact that OSU needs to start winning to avoid another round of changes in 2027.