March Madness 2026

Office Pool Bracket
Picks optimized for pool-winning probability. Michigan as champion (26.5% model win prob, only 14.5% public pick rate). Strategic upsets based on injury data + analytics.
National Champion
Michigan
(1) Wolverines — Midwest Region
Best value play: 12-point gap between model probability and public ownership
Final Four — Indianapolis
Semifinal 1
(1) Duke vs (3) Illinois
Duke
Semifinal 2
(1) Michigan vs (1) Arizona
Michigan
Championship — April 6
(1) Duke vs (1) Michigan
Michigan
East West South Midwest

East Region

Elite 8: Duke
First Round
1Duke
16Siena
───
8Ohio State
9TCU
───
5St. John's
12Northern Iowa
───
4Kansas
13Cal Baptist
───
6Louisville
11South FloridaUpset
───
3Michigan State
14North Dakota St
───
7UCLA
10UCF
───
2UConn
15Furman
Round of 32
1Duke over (9) TCU
5St. John's over (4) Kansas
3Michigan State over (11) S. Florida
2UConn over (7) UCLA
Sweet 16
1Duke over (5) St. John's
2UConn over (3) Michigan State
Elite 8
1Duke over (2) UConn

West Region

Elite 8: Arizona
First Round
1Arizona
16Long Island
───
8Villanova
9Utah State
───
5Wisconsin
12High Point
───
4Arkansas
13Hawai'i
───
6BYU
11Texas
───
3Gonzaga
14Kennesaw St
───
7Miami (FL)
10Missouri
───
2Purdue
15Queens (NC)
Round of 32
1Arizona over (9) Utah State
4Arkansas over (5) Wisconsin
3Gonzaga over (6) BYU
2Purdue over (10) Missouri
Sweet 16
1Arizona over (4) Arkansas
2Purdue over (3) Gonzaga
Elite 8
1Arizona over (2) Purdue

South Region

Elite 8: Illinois
First Round
1Florida
16Lehigh
───
8Clemson
9Iowa
───
5Vanderbilt
12McNeese
───
4Nebraska
13Troy
───
6North Carolina
11VCUUpset
───
3Illinois
14Penn
───
7Saint Mary's
10Texas A&M
───
2Houston
15Idaho
Round of 32
1Florida over (9) Iowa
4Nebraska over (5) Vanderbilt
3Illinois over (11) VCU
2Houston over (10) Texas A&M
Sweet 16
1Florida over (4) Nebraska
3Illinois over (2) HoustonDark Horse
Elite 8
3Illinois over (1) FloridaDark Horse

Midwest Region

Elite 8: Michigan
First Round
1Michigan
16Howard
───
8Saint Louis
9Georgia
───
5Texas Tech
12AkronUpset
───
4Alabama
13Hofstra
───
6Tennessee
11SMU
───
3Virginia
14Wright State
───
7Kentucky
10Santa Clara
───
2Iowa State
15Tennessee St
Round of 32
1Michigan over (9) Georgia
4Alabama over (12) Akron
6Tennessee over (3) Virginia
2Iowa State over (10) Santa Clara
Sweet 16
1Michigan over (4) Alabama
2Iowa State over (6) Tennessee
Elite 8
1Michigan over (2) Iowa State

Strategy Notes

GENERATED 2026-03-18 — PICKS BASED ON ESPN, CBS SPORTS, NATE SILVER, YAHOO SPORTS ANALYTICS