1 of 6 1/21/2015 5:33 PM

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1 1 of 6 1/21/2015 5:33 PM Sign In or Register EDITIONS: CITIES: USA DEPORTES More Argentina Australia Brazil Colombia Mexico United Kingdom Venezuela BOSTON CHICAGO DALLAS LOS ANGELES NEW YORK ESPN Men's Basketball Shop Updated: January 21, 2015, 12:08 PM ET By Dana O'Neil ESPN.com Recommend69 Tweet81 Comments13 Print Andy Katz's 3-Point Shot Andy Katz discusses charter flights during the NCAA tournament, players left off the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 list and Billy Donovan's role with Team USA. Tags: NCB NEXT VIDEO Andy Katz's 3-Point Shot 1H MIZZ J. Williams III made Dunk. 1H WAKE M. Wilbekin made Three Point Jumper. Assisted by C. Miller-McInt Coach K's Defining Moment

2 2 of 6 1/21/2015 5:33 PM College basketball coaches heading to the NCAA tournament this year might want to pack their Fodor's Guides along with their whiteboards. Due to what the NCAA says is a shortage of charter aircraft, losing teams might be sticking around up to a full extra day before flying back to campus. Last week, the NCAA sent a memo to all men's and women's teams alerting them to potential doomsday scenarios that could come into play, especially during the first weekend of games. The sheer number of teams that need to be moved -- exacerbated in 2015 because the women's tournament moved its opening day to Friday, coinciding with the second day of the men's tourney -- and the lack of planes simply don't add up. Consequently, the women's teams have been told that if they play Friday, they should be prepared to leave as late as 10 p.m. Wednesday, or if they prefer to leave a day earlier, as late as 10 p.m. Tuesday. On the men's side, any team that loses in a game that tips before 3 p.m. will travel home the same day -- departing as early as seven hours after the start of the game and as late as 10 p.m. Any team that loses in a game that begins after 3 p.m. will spend an extra night in the subregional city and could depart as late as 10 p.m. the next day. The NCAA would pick up the hotel tab for the additional night plus supply an additional per diem. "The intent of the memo and the communication is to try and change and reset expectations," said Dan Gavitt, NCAA vice president of the men's basketball championship. "We have situations where we can't get a team back to campus as late as 10 the next night, but the alternative is that we cheapen the experience for the student-athletes by rushing them out the door." That's exactly what happened last year. New Mexico State lost to San Diego State in overtime in a game in Spokane, Washington, and was practically rushed out of town like a bunch of bandits. The team had only a short time to return to the hotel, check out, grab dinner boxes and head to the airport. The Aggies departed at 2:15 a.m., landing in El Paso, Texas, at 7 a.m. To add insult to injury, there was just one bus waiting when they arrived in El Paso for the two-plus hour ride to the Las Cruces campus. Some members of the travel party had to wait on the bus to return. "It's disgraceful," San Diego State coach Steve Fisher said in his postgame news conference. The NCAA later apologized for the problems, citing a lack of available aircraft. That fiasco and a handful of others prompted immediate conversations between the NCAA and National Association of Basketball Coaches. Gavitt said they have exhausted every possible avenue to find more planes but the industry is at a 15-year low. The memo to coaches says the NCAA uses between 10 and 15 aircraft for the men's and women's tournaments combined. Since the NCAA can't change the inventory, it wants coaches to be forewarned. "We don't have much of a choice," said Georgia State coach Ron Hunter, first vice president of the NABC. "But I think last year, it caught us all off guard, and that was the bigger problem. At least now we can plan ahead. If you know you're staying over, you can plan a dinner or something for your team the next day." NCAA rules prohibit teams from using private planes from deep-pocketed boosters. Teams that play within 350 miles of a tournament site are to bus, although Gavitt does not expect to see a significant change in NCAA seeding based on location. Recommend69 Tweet81 Subscribe Print Comments13 Dana O'Neil College Basketball Follow Archive College basketball reporter. Joined ESPN in Graduate of Penn State University. SPONSORED HEADLINES

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4 4 of 6 1/21/2015 5:33 PM 13 comments Jack Fitzsimmons Top Commenter Sports Anchor/Reporter at WBOY 12News Well maybe you shouldn't have moved up the Women's tournament to start a day earlier then... Reply Like 7 21 hours ago Braden Baughman Works at Ground Round Half the team shouldn't be in the tourny, and that would solve the problem. Reply Like 5 21 hours ago Brian Blue Analyst at Flint Hills Resources I am surprised the NCAA is even concerned about this...chartered jets seem like a privilege. Maybe the teams could all just book flights through Expedia.com and the NCAA gets sponsorship dollars from this! Genius. Reply Like 4 21 hours ago Adam McLane Top Commenter San Diego, California 181 followers Go ahead, try to book 30 people on a flight out of Portland on a Thursday night without a prior booking. See how well Expedia handles that one. Reply Like 9 17 hours ago John Daniels Top Commenter Co-Executive Producer at Redneck Rivals TV Simply allow teams who can to get their own planes. Reply Like 9 hours ago Ian Kleeba Top Commenter Works at CURT Manufacturing I am surprised that teams weren't allowed to stay all weekend. The kids would appreciate time in a new city while also taking in a great experience at the NCAA Tourney. If I was a 16 seed knowing I will more than likely get bounced out of the first round would still value taking in all the games at the regional location. Reply Like 3 12 hours ago Buddy Smith Top Commenter Well not every host city is worth sticking around for. They aren't exactly tourist stops. Plus its always more fun to have a vacation when you have money to spend... They are student athletes after all, so rushing them back to campus should be most important so they don't miss class... LOL. Reply Like 1 5 hours ago Adam McLane Top Commenter San Diego, California 181 followers Good job coach Fisher for speaking up for others. Reply Like 2 17 hours ago View 5 more Facebook social plugin EDITORS' PICKS Heels Trending Upward North Carolina begins a crucial stretch tonight vs. Wake Forest. Gamecast Player Rankings Update Ben Simmons still has the top spot in the class of ESPN 100» Leading The Cardinal Johnny Dawkins has Stanford making noise in the Pac-12.

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