SportCon

Everyone knows you should pick favorites if you want to win your March Madness pool. But what if everyone picks favorites? What if you knew everyone picks favorites? How do you stand out from the crowd? Which upsets should you pick? How do you decide? In this presentation we will explore a novel NCAA Basketball Tournament simulator that maximizes the probability of winning a bracket pool. Using publicly available data on team strength and popularity, the simulator fills out an optimal bracket by finding the ideal balance between picking favorites and upsets. Whether you’re a college basketball fan, a data scientist, or just someone looking to win your office pool, this presentation will help you get closer to your perfect bracket. Just in time for March.