![\"March](\"https:\/\/thesportsbrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/MarchMadness-13.jpg\")
<\/a>March Madness Bracket<\/p><\/div>\n
Come the middle of March, some people start contemplating green beer. Some start getting a little crazy \u2013 or, well, mad. It\u2019s not that they\u2019ve had too much St. Patrick\u2019s Day beer, but that they\u2019re succumbing to March Madness.<\/p>\n
March Madness Tournament<\/h2>\n
So, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA, runs a tournament for college basketball every \u2013 you guessed it \u2013 March. The tournament actually starts mid-March and runs for a month.\u00a0 While there are tournaments for three divisions of men\u2019s basketball as well as women\u2019s basketball, Division I men\u2019s basketball tends to be the most prominent.<\/p>\n
The tournament starts with 68 Division I men\u2019s teams. There\u2019s a whole system to how they\u2019re selected, involving season records, Selection Committees and even a few cloaks and daggers \u2013 well, cloaks anyway. Ultimately, though, these 68 teams get announced on Selection Sunday.<\/p>\n
The Tournament<\/h2>\n
This is not big-money business \u2013 not for the players anyway.\u00a0 Being college students, they are technically playing just for the sport of it, or for scholarships. In reality, though, they\u2019re playing for bragging rights. Whoever wins all of their tournament games is crowned as the champions of college basketball. (Ok, they\u2019re not really crowned, but\u2026 maybe they should be.)<\/p>\n
By the way, you read that right \u2013 they have to win every single one of their games. The March Madness is strictly single-elimination.<\/p>\n
Now, during the tournament, you\u2019re going to hear all kinds of fancy terms like \u201cSweet 16,\u201d \u201cElite Eight\u201d and \u201cFinal Four.\u201d These are not 80s movies \u2013they refer to specific rounds of the tournament.<\/p>\n
So, using statistics, the basketball teams get \u201cpodded\u201d and \u201cseeded.\u201d Seeds are the placement of a team in one of four geographical regions. Their pods are the method of grouping seeds at certain sites. As to why they\u2019re called \u201cpods\u201d and \u201cseeds,\u201d well\u2026 let\u2019s just say March Madness is very<\/i> popular in America\u2019s Breadbasket.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a First Four initial round that\u2019s kind of like a Wild Card determination. After that, the basketball teams just start playing their games. The number of teams still in the running gets cut in half after each round. Rounds don\u2019t get cutesy with names until after the second when \u2014 mathematicians are you ready? \u2013 There are just 16 teams left. Now the cutesy names probably make sense.<\/p>\n
The final round, by the way, isn\u2019t called Dynamic Duo or anything like that. It has to be content with the prestigious title \u201cNational Championship.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tournament Pool<\/h2>\n
People don\u2019t talk about March Madness just because it\u2019s fun. Heck, some people get caught up in the excitement of the tournament even if they don\u2019t like<\/i> basketball. One reason so many people get wound up is you can bet on the March Madness Tournament.<\/p>\n
Ok, technically you can bet on anything…However, this tournament has such a systemized method of betting on the games that it has its own science associated with it \u2013 bracketology.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not going to lie \u2013 I think bracketology may be a pseudo-science. But then, who cares, because when was the last time high school Biology helped you win your office pool?<\/p>\n
Basically, if you want to participate in the tournament pool, you have to fill out a bracket starting with all 64 teams and predict the winners of each round, ultimately picking the winner. You do this all before a single game is played.<\/p>\n
How to Fill Out Your March Madness Bracket<\/h2>\n
There are all kinds of stats and tips for how to choose your teams. For instance, a number-16 has never beaten a number-one seed. A number-one seed has only ever failed to make it to the Final Four, like, three times. \u00a0However, if you\u2019re really into it, you can probably spend some time looking at the teams\u2019 records, their strengths, weaknesses, injuries\u2026<\/p>\n
Personally, I just usually choose the team with the coolest uniforms or the greatest characters and manipulate my bracket backwards so that they win. Needless to say, I have never won the office pool, but I\u2019m pretty sure I have way more fun in choosing than anyone else.<\/p>\n
Here are the best tips:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Focus on how teams have played in the last month, not the entire season and certainly not seasons prior. Who’s beginning a hot streak?<\/li>\n
- Don’t pay too much attention to conference tournaments.<\/li>\n
- There are different levels of schools, the big guys (the major conferences) and the little guys (or mid-majors) so make sure you’re taking into account who they’ve played.<\/li>\n
- Pick some upsets…but like 1. \u00a0They’re super hard to predict and in the\u00a0past 14 years, only one national champion has been lower than a No. 3 seed. And only three teams with double-digit seeds have ever made the Final Four. \u00a0So don’t try to play psychic too much.<\/li>\n
- BUT don’t overthink it. \u00a0The odds of you picking a perfect bracket are near impossible so have some fun. \u00a0Root for your teams but if they’re a dumb pick, have the sensibility to pick a correct game in your bracket over your alma mader in the later rounds.<\/li>\n
- The 12-5 is the most common upset. \u00a0Meaning a 12 seed beats a 5 seed most often in tourney history when it comes to upsets. \u00a0Not 12-2s.<\/li>\n
- Stick to one bracket. \u00a0This is why it’s fun. \u00a0This isn’t a survivor league, its literally supposed to be funny how many you get wrong. Plus, when you’re expectations are realistic, it’s more fun when you get one right.<\/li>\n
- When in doubt, go with your intuition. \u00a0Never heard of Old Dominion, don’t go too crazy with research and worst case, trust your gut.<\/li>\n
- Don’t forget to enter into a pool! There are tons of free ones but it not only helps you keep up but when its more official its more fun.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
FYI Warren Buffet offers $1 billion (with a B) for the perfect bracket.\u00a0 I mean you have to get every single game correct, but the pay off is INSANE.\u00a0 Good luck and no matter what it\u2019s fun to root for your alma mater, the underdog or the favorite.\u00a0 Point is, just participate and you\u2019re guaranteed to have some fun.<\/p>\n
Download your March Madness Bracket<\/a>\u00a0for practice!<\/p>\n
![\"March](\"https:\/\/thesportsbrat.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/MarchMadness-21.jpg\")
<\/a>March Madness Bracket<\/p><\/div>\n
Check out my bracket from last year here<\/a>. I’ve linked my Fried Mozzarella (basket)balls<\/a> here too so you can plan the perfect watch party. \u00a0If you’re headed to any of the tournament games check out my post on Basketball style<\/a> so you know exactly what to wear. And last but not least…check this post on clear stadium bags<\/a> so you know exactly what you can carry into the games.<\/p>\n