Just over a month ago, when the N.C.A.A. was embroiled in another crisis of its own making, 21 board members joined a hastily called videoconference with Mark Emmert, the persistently embattled president of the governing body of college sports.
During the 69-minute session, they heard about disparities between their men’s and women’s basketball tournaments and had, meeting minutes show, “a discussion regarding the timeliness and substance of the response of President Emmert and his staff” to a debacle that had embarrassed the N.C.A.A. amid its signature yearly showcase.
Then, on Tuesday night and with a review into deep-rooted gender equity issues still in its opening weeks, the association’s Board of Governors stunned the rest of the college sports world with the announcement that it had extended Emmert’s contract to the end of 2025.