INFORMS Open Forum

Can an algorithm take the guesswork out of selecting and seeding teams for "March Madness?" A new study says, "Yes!"

  • 1.  Can an algorithm take the guesswork out of selecting and seeding teams for "March Madness?" A new study says, "Yes!"

    Posted 03-07-2018 11:46
    New research has developed an automated approach for narrowing down and ranking the field of Division 1 college basketball teams from 351 to the 68 that would play in the annual "March Madness" basketball tournaments, watched by more than 80 million people each year.

    Each year, a rotating 10-person committee is tasked with selecting and seeding teams to compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Men's Basketball Tournament. The new automated approach would be capable of potentially replacing the current manual system, to remove any questions of bias and the potential for human error. 

    The study, "Using Mathematical Programming to Select and Seed Teams for the NCAA Tournament," conducted by Bruce Reinig of San Diego State University and Ira Horowitz of the University of Florida, will be published in the INFORMS journal Interfaces

    Click here to read more!



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    Ashley Kilgore
    Manager, Public Relations
    INFORMS
    Catonsville MD
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