Its time to win that office pool.
We spoke with data scientist and bracketologistWalter Sun, who created and leads theBing Predictsproject at Microsoft.
Also known as theirrecency factor, this is a full statistical breakdown of their last ten games.
Whats their win-loss record?
Are any of their star players injured?
How many games have they won in a row?
Also, take into account how many points they won or lost by in each game.
Keep an eye out for trends and youll probably net yourself a few extra points in the long run.
Teams are separated into separate conferences around the country.
Theres a big difference between being in theACCandSWACconferences, for example.
That means not all team win-loss records are necessarily created equal.
Dont go overboard with your upset predictions.
Usually, data talks.
Teams That Travel Farther Usually Do Worse
Youre probably well aware of how exhausting travel can be.
Its the same for athletes.
This matters quite a bit, according to Sun.
If possible, see what their record is at that specific venue (if theyve played there before).
A team with a decent road record who has to travel less than their opponent has the upper hand.
But every point counts, so its still beneficial to get winners right early on in the tournament.
Problem is, theres a metric crap-ton of teams to choose between.
That makes filling in your bracket with the other 63 teams you dont follow either difficult or time consuming.
you’re free to also get predictions and thorough analysis atSportsline.
There arenine different bracket predictionsyou can scour on their web site from expert bracketologists.
Illustration byOrgus88(Shutterstock).
drop a line to the author at[email protected].
