In a move to help close the pay gap between men and women in college sports, the NCAA will now pay Division I women's basketball teams who play in March Madness games starting this year.

Women's basketball teams will be paid for playing games in the NCAA tournament each March, just like the men have for years, under a plan approved Wednesday at the NCAA convention.

The organization approved “performance units” for women’s teams participating in March Madness after years of only paying men’s programs.

The NCAA announced Wednesday that it has created a $15 million women's basketball fund to reward conferences for their teams making and advancing in the

NCAA members unanimously voted to introduce financial rewards — as it has for years with the men's tournament — starting this spring.

In a historic vote Wednesday at the NCAA convention in Nashville, the organization approved a plan to pay women's basketball teams for making the NCAA Tournament. Men's basketball teams have been reaping the benefits of the same revenue sharing plan for many years.

The move brings a level of parity with the men’s tournament and adds an incentive for schools to invest in their programs to an even greater extent.