The college transfer portal opened on Monday, ensuring the richest college basketball programs will get richer — as evidenced by the Sweet 16 of this year’s NCAA men’s tournament.

The annual season-ending tournament to decide the national champion became known as March Madness due to improbable upsets, in which mid-major schools took down the goliaths to earn their one shining moment. That didn’t happen this year. There is no Cinderella left in the dance. 

Many blame the transfer portal, where players with eligibility apply to change schools for more playing time, better competition, and more Name, Image, and Likeness money. For the first time since 2007, the Sweet 16, which begins on Thursday, does not feature a team lower than a no. 10 seed. Arkansas, 10th in the West Region, is the only double-digit seed remaining in the tournament after upsetting no. 2 seed St. John’s in the Round of 32.

It’s logical to blame the portal and the emergence of NIL for the lack of Madness this March. When players couldn’t transfer anytime they wished, mid-major schools built their programs around fourth- and fifth-year seniors seasoned with experience and confidence once March arrived.

 Just two years ago a no. 16 seed, Fairleigh Dickinson, beat no. 1 Purdue and no. 15 Princeton upset no. 2 Arizona. In 2022, no. 15 St. Peter’s beat no. 2 Kentucky and in 2021, no. 15 Oral Roberts upset no. 2 Ohio State. Now, mid-majors in most cases are simply viewed as a pathway to get to a bigger school and more NIL money.

“I think what’s changed in college basketball is there’s not as many old mid-major teams as there used to be,” the Colorado State head coach, Nik Medved, said. “There’s not as much of that because older guys who played together are pretty good.”

The portal has become the main recruiting tool in college athletics, allowing coaches to seek players with experience to fit specific needs. Schools from power conferences cherry-pick talent from the mid-majors, who have to rebuild their teams each season.

In previous years, the portal spanned 45 days and opened on selection Sunday, which drew the ire of coaches trying to prepare for the NCAA tournament. This year, it was shortened to 30 days and pushed back until after the round of 32, though that doesn’t help the 16 teams still trying to survive and advance to the Final Four.

The portal window “opening before the completion of the season continues to present conditions to present complications related to roster management and the public image of the sport,” the president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches, Craig Robinson, told Front Office Sports. “Moving forward, it remains essential that all stakeholders—athletes, coaches, and administrators—collaborate on solutions that balance appropriate accommodations for players with basic program needs and the game’s overall well-being.”

Naturally, the big schools with more NIL money attract the best players, which helps the rich get richer. Hence, only four conferences are represented in this year’s Sweet 16: the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC. According to OptaStats, this is the first time since 1975 that the Sweet 16 consists only of teams from major conferences. The previous low was seven in 2019.

While the lack of a Cinderella is a topic now, it likely won’t be when the tournament resumes on Thursday.  The narrative is that this could be the most talented Sweet 16 in recent history, with brackets filled with perennial titans. All four no. 1 seeds — Florida, Houston, Auburn, and Duke — advanced as did three of the no. 2 seeds, Alabama, Michigan State, and Tennessee.

The Midwest Region at Indianapolis features its top four seeds, with Houston playing no. 4 Purdue and Tennessee playing no. 3 Kentucky. The South Region at Atlanta and the East Region at Newark have four of their top six seeds. In the South, Auburn meets no. 5 Michigan, and no. 2 Michigan State faces no. 6 Ole Miss. In the East Region, Duke plays no. 4 Arizona and Alabama meets no. 6 BYU. The West Region at San Francisco pits Florida against no. 4 Maryland and no. 3 Texas Tech versus Arkansas.

Fans don’t seem to be complaining. Thursday’s full slate of first-round games was the most-watched opening day ever, according to Nielsen data. Television coverage across all platforms averaged 9.1 million, up 6 percent from last year. A peak of 12 million viewers during prime time also set a record for the first round.