Master The Madness: Win Big With Pro Basketball's Top-Notch Bracket Guide!

FILE - A basketball with a March Madness logo is seen going through a net prior to a second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament between Notre Dame and Michigan, March 23, 2025, in South Bend, Ind. (AP Photo/John Mersits, File) Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved Selection Sunday brought the release of the 68-team bracket as the NCAA tournament field was finalized .

The selection committee has said it relies on a mix of predictive and resume-based metrics when choosing and seeding teams, blending measures of team strength with results on the court. That process can be viewed as an algorithm. Metrics such as efficiency ratings, strength of record and schedule strength serve as inputs that are combined to produce a final ranking.

While the exact formula is not public, the outcomes are. Using machine learning, that process can be reverse engineered. By modeling the committee’s rankings using the same metrics it references, it becomes possible to quantify which factors mattered most in shaping this year’s March Madness bracket.

Methodology Behind Reverse Engineering March Madness Texas guard Tramon Mark (12), center, scores a layup as North Carolina State forward Darrion Williams (1), right, defends during the first half in a First Four college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Tuesday, March 17, 2026, in Dayton, Ohio. (AP Photo/Kareem Elgazzar) Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.