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Odds of Picking Perfect Ncaa Bracket Involves Lots of Zeroes


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DePaul University Professor Jeff Bergen

"If you're just guessing, you basically have no chance" of getting a perfect bracket, says DePaul University Professor of Mathematics Jeff Bergen.

Credit: DePaul University

March Madness fans hoping to nail the perfect NCAA bracket of college basketball championship matchups might want to consider the odds weighing against perfection.

According to Jeff Bergen, a mathematics professor at DePaul University in Chicago and a lifelong collegiate basketball fan, the odds of picking a perfect bracket are less than one-in-9.2 quintillion. For those with a solid knowledge of the history of the NCAA tournaments, the odds of picking a perfect bracket increase greatly but still involve numbers with lots of zeroes.


 

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