It’s that time of year again – March Madness is upon us, and basketball fans everywhere are eagerly filling out their brackets and making predictions. The NCAA Tournament is always full of surprises and upsets, and this year is no exception. While everyone is focused on the top-seeded teams and whether they will fall victim to the dreaded 16-seed curse, there are plenty of other matchups to watch out for.
One trend that has caught my attention is the recent success of 15-seeds in upsetting 2-seeds. Over the past three years, there has been a streak of 15-seeds pulling off upsets, and this year could be no different. The 2-seeds for this year’s tournament are Marquette, Iowa State, Arizona, and Tennessee. Of these teams, Tennessee seems to be the most vulnerable, as they face off against Saint Peter’s, a 15-seed known for their upsets.
Another intriguing matchup is between Iowa State and South Dakota State. South Dakota State enters the tournament on an impressive eight-game win streak, while Iowa State has a history of falling short as a 2-seed. It’s impossible to ignore the possibility of history repeating itself.
While making predictions for the NCAA Tournament is always a challenge, there are some tools that can help. One such tool is SportsLine’s computer model, which has a track record of success in predicting upsets. This model simulates every game 10,000 times, and has accurately predicted 20 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016. It even correctly predicted UConn’s dramatic Final Four run as a 4-seed last year.
According to SportsLine’s computer model, there are a few potential upsets to keep an eye on in this year’s tournament. In the Midwest Region, the model predicts that 5-seed Gonzaga will defeat 4-seed Kansas in the second round. Gonzaga boasts an efficient offense, ranking second in field goal percentage and ninth in assist-to-turnover ratio. Kansas, on the other hand, has struggled against teams with similar offensive prowess. This could be a recipe for an upset.
Another potential upset comes in the form of 9-seed TCU defeating 8-seed Utah State. TCU returns key players from last year’s team that won a first-round tournament game, while Utah State has not retained any players who scored a point last year. This continuity for TCU could give them the edge over Utah State, especially considering Utah State’s recent struggles in the NCAA Tournament.
Using predictive models like SportsLine’s can be a helpful tool when filling out your bracket, but it’s important to remember that anything can happen in March Madness. That’s part of what makes it so exciting. However, by analyzing past trends and using advanced algorithms, we can make more informed predictions and increase our chances of success.
Looking ahead, it will be interesting to see how these trends continue to evolve. Will 15-seeds continue to have success against 2-seeds? Will predictive models become even more accurate in their predictions? Only time will tell, but one thing’s for certain – March Madness will always be full of surprises and excitement.