March Madness is the best tournament in the country and it's coming up very soon. That means we will soon have "Selection Sunday," where teams are seeded and placed in their regions. These matchups are then analyzed by fans who are hoping to correctly fill out their brackets. But why? It's because of the existence of bracket pools, the biggest (illegal) gambling activity in the country. If you want to win your bracket pool this season, follow some of the tips below.
1. Never Pick a 16 Seed to Win.
A 16 seed has never beaten a one seed since the field expanded to 64 teams.
It's tempting to be the first one who picked that upset, but it's also not worth it. Just advance all one seeds past the first round of the tournament.
2. Pick a 1, 2, or 3 Seed to Win the Championship.
On average, 75% of the teams that win the national championship are seeded in this range. It's very rare to see a champion like seventh seeded UCONN, so don't be the bold fan who picks a five seed to win it all for the novelty of the idea.
3. Pick at least one 12 to win first round.
Twelve seeds are traditionally the best mid-majors in the country and they get to play against some of the weaker major conference teams in the nation. Historically, these games tend to be a toss up and at least one twelve seed tends to win every year.
Don't be shy and pick at least one upset in these 12 vs. 5 games.
4. Don't Underestimate 11 Seeds.
Eleven seeds have the potential to make big runs in the tournament. Dayton went to the Elite 8. George Mason and VCU, two lesser known schools, made it all the way to the final four. Eleven seeds might look weak on paper, but now that they're in the tournament, they are playing with house money.
5. Consider the Format of Your Bracket Pool.
Does your pool reward you for picking upsets? Or do you get the same number of points no matter what? These are important considerations to have when making your picks. A pool that rewards upsets should see an uptick in upset selection frequency to gain an edge over the opponents within the pool.
