How to Fill Out Your March Madness Bracket

The NCAA Tournament stands out as one of the most thrilling sporting events of the year. It features a showdown between 64 teams, each vying to be the last team standing in a head-to-head NCAA basketball tournament format. Diehard and casual fans alike compete in bracket prediction contests in hopes of picking the perfect bracket.

Filling out a March Madness bracket is about having fun and enjoying the spectacle that is the three-week stretch of the NCAA Tournament. This article will help guide you by providing bracket selection strategies, discussing common challenges that arise during the process, and highlighting important statistical trends to consider before moving select teams through every round.

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One of the greatest aspects of filling out a March Madness bracket is that anything can, and usually does, happen. One only has to look at the results of last year’s tournament which saw a number of dark horses bust brackets as early as the first round. In the entire history of the NCAA Tournament, nobody has been able to successfully pick every single game correctly when filling out a March Madness bracket. Be prepared to have every major media outlet attempt to get a hold of you should you become the first!

The following are the basic steps towards filling out a bracket and being a part of what’s become March Madness:

1. Download our printable March Madness bracket.
2. Choose teams and predict the winners in every round.

Although numerous factors are involved in effectively selecting the winner of a March Madness bracket competition, these three actions are fundamentally the essence of the entire phenomenon. 

Making bracket selections can seem overwhelming, but with a systematic approach, you can make informed decisions. Here are some key steps to follow:

Opening Rounds

Begin by predicting the winners of first-round matchups. While upsets are always a possibility, history has shown it to generally be good practice to select higher seeds in the early rounds.

• To gain a better understanding of the teams involved in March Madness, conduct research on their records, strengths, weaknesses, and key players. Take into account highly esteemed ranking sites like KenPom or Haslametrics which college basketball bettors utilize on a daily basis. 
• Sportsbook betting lines, performances in conference tournaments, and any prior matchups between teams should also be taken into account.
• Pay attention to the recent form of teams leading up to the tournament. Take note of any winning streaks, slumps, or injuries to key players as these can have a significant impact on team confidence and momentum.
• As tempting as it may be to correctly predict the next Cinderella story that captivates March Madness audiences, striking a balance between riskier upset picks and safer choices is key to help avoid potential pitfalls and increase chances for success.

Sweet 16 & Beyond

The next wave of rounds through the title game will take some more research to come to a decision on which teams to push through your March Madness bracket. Utilize these steps to move the decision process along.

• Seek out matchups where one team possesses a distinct advantage over the other. This advantage could stem from superior skills, experience, or a noticeable superiority in offense, defense, or other measurable statistics. For instance, consider picking a team that excels at shooting 3-pointers against a defense that struggles to defend the perimeter.
• Be cautious picking upsets but they are common in the tournament. The ability to do so successfully can greatly impact the outcome of your bracket. While history shows it’s important to lean towards the favorites, consider selecting a few well-researched upsets that you believe have a high percentage chance of occurring in these rounds. 
• Coaching and experience can play a vital role in tournament success. Coaches with extensive tournament experience may have strategies and a deeper understanding of how to guide players in high-pressure situations. This advantage shines through in these rounds.

This is your bracket and your bracket only. Outside influences can help paint a better picture about teams, players, and coaches you might be unfamiliar with, but don’t let those opinions sway you from trusting your gut. Believe that your intuition can often yield accurate predictions. Simply going with the flow and buying into popular frames of mind won’t allow for the separation needed to produce a memorable March Madness experience.

After indulging in fantasies about the improbable chance of selecting a flawless bracket in your office or home league pools, the focus should shift to outperforming fellow March Madness contest participants by correctly predicting more winners in every round. The key is to aim for approximately 50 accurate picks to be positioned among contenders vying to win the pool.

To optimize scores in bracket tournaments, it is crucial to focus on making accurate selections in the later rounds, such as the Sweet 16 and beyond, rather than the initial two rounds, like the Rounds of 64 or 32. Each correct selection earns points, and as the rounds progress, the point allocation increases.

Create a winning strategy to overcome obstacles and put yourself in a position to score the most points by following these guidelines:

Common Challenges

1. Overvaluing Underdogs: While Cinderella stories are part of the tourney’s allure, it is essential to avoid overvaluing underdogs. Balance your bracket selections with a mix of both higher and lower-seeded teams.
2. Overreacting to Upsets: They happen, but it’s crucial not to overreact and immediately discount higher-seeded teams after a single surprise result that just occurred in a conference tournament. Let your opponent select the chic upset instead.
3. Bias and Emotion: It’s natural to have personal biases and emotional attachments to certain coaches, players, teams, or conferences. However, always make objective decisions based on facts, statistics, and performance rather than subjective feelings.
4. Time Constraints: You have a short window from the moment the March Madness bracket is set until the first game tips off on Thursday. Focus on key matchups, rankings, conference performance, and overall team strengths to make informed decisions efficiently.

Taking these measures will potentially put you in a position to best predict a majority of the teams still alive in the later rounds of the NCAA Tournament. Even if you make a handful of incorrect predictions in the first two rounds, you still have a good chance of creating a successful March Madness bracket as long as you correctly choose the teams that will advance to the Sweet 16, Elite Eight, Final Four, and ultimately, the Championship Game.

Statistical trend analysis should be utilized as a tool when developing a new strategy, rather than being relied upon solely as the determining factor. This train of thought mustn’t be overlooked when formulating a plan of attack on how to best formulate your approach to filling out a March Madness bracket. College basketball trends can provide insights into possible future outcomes for the NCAA Tournament, but ultimately, it is up to you to determine when to take risks or err on the side of caution.

Overall Seed Winning Percentages

Extensive data analysis conducted since 1985, when the tournament expanded to 64 teams, supports my suggestion to favor higher seeded teams in the early rounds. The table below reveals that the top six seeds consistently maintain a winning record. Conversely, the subsequent ten seeds have a history of underperforming in March Madness. 

Don’t make it a habit of eliminating the No. 1 seed in the opening round.

• As exciting as the UMBC and most recent Fairleigh Dickinson upsets of Virginia and Purdue were in 2016 and 2023, the two wins moved the No.16 seed to 2-150 versus the No. 1 seed all-time. 
• It’s not advisable to move any 16-seed into the next round going by the data. 

Picking against the No. 2 seed in the opening round is an option should the matchup call for it. 

• Recent trend data shows a higher percentage chance of the No. 15 seed upsetting the No. 2 with it occurring 11 times dating back to 1991. 
• That includes each of the last three seasons with Oral Roberts taking down Ohio State in 2021, St. Peter’s shocking Kentucky in 2022, and Princeton advancing past Arizona last season.
• Don’t go crazy moving the No. 2 much further with it reaching the Sweet 16 only once.

1st Round Matchup Records

Getting your March Madness bracket off on the right foot is only half the battle. Still, there is no harm in using all the historical records of the first-round matchups as a compass to determine when it might be best to stray off or stay on a steady path.

• Bold moves have a higher percentage chance to come through in the No. 5 vs. No. 12, No. 6 vs. No. 11, No. 7 vs. No. 10, and No. 8 vs. No. 9 seed pairings. 
• Historical data shows it to be beneficial advancing the higher seeds in the No. 1 vs. No. 16, No. 2 vs. No. 15, No. 3 vs. No. 14, and No. 4 vs. No. 13 seed pairings.
• This makes perfect sense considering the top-four seeds account for 36 of the 39 national championships won since the field expanded.

Last year, the Connecticut Huskies won the Championship and are favorites to win again this year. Let's take a look at the winners over the last 24 years:

Looking at the seed rankings of the 23 teams that ultimately went on to win, you’ll notice a majority of the winners came from top seeds, followed by the No. 3, No. 2, and No. 4.

• No.1 seed (16)
• No. 2 seed (2).
• No. 3 seed (3)
• No. 4 seed (1)
• Only once did a seed higher than No. 4 win it all.

Those teams received high seeds from the selection committee due to being the best teams in NCAA basketball throughout the regular and conference tournament seasons. 

In conclusion, filling out a March Madness bracket is an exciting and unpredictable experience. While it’s nearly impossible to pick a perfect bracket, following a systematic approach can help make informed decisions to produce a competitive bracket. 

• Research teams, consider rankings and betting lines, and analyze recent form.
• Striking a balance between risky upsets and safer choices is strategic.
• Recognize matchups where one team holds a distinct advantage. 
• Focus on making accurate selections in the later rounds rather than the initial rounds.
• Don’t let bias and emotion cloud your judgment. 
• Favor higher-seeds in early rounds with bold moves considered in certain seed pairings. 
• Select top-ranked teams to win the NCAA Tournament.

Ultimately, trust your research and your intuition and enjoy the thrill of March Madness, knowing that anything can happen in this highly anticipated tournament.