Bracketology
Encyclopedia
Bracketology is the process of predicting the field of the NCAA Basketball Tournament
, named as such because it is commonly used to fill in tournament brackets
for the postseason. It incorporates some method of predicting what the NCAA Selection Committee will use as its Ratings Percentage Index
in order to determine at-large (non-conference winning) teams to complete the field of 68 teams, and, to seed the field by ranking all teams from first through sixty-eighth. ESPN
's Joe Lunardi
is the inventor of the term "bracketology", starting first as the owner and editor of the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook and ending up as the resident bracketologist on ESPN. He also teaches an online course at Saint Joseph's University
titled "Fundamentals of Bracketology.". Although Lunardi invented the term, he is ranked only 23rd in the past four years' results of the tournament.
In recent years the concept of bracketology has been applied to areas outside of basketball.
, the RPI
, and the seeding and balancing process, a "bracketologist" places teams in the tournament in the various regions (most commonly East, West, Midwest, and South however sometimes the region names are changed to reflect the host cities). Some bracketologists go as far as placing teams in which "pods" they will play in the first and second rounds. Generally, the lists also show the last four teams in and the first four teams out. However, these brackets change daily as conference tournaments
continue and teams automatically qualify for the tournament.
A bracketologist's credibility is judged on how many teams he predicts correctly being in the tournament and the average difference between the bracketologist's projected seed and the actual seed assigned by the NCAA Selection Committee. The difference between projected matchups and the differences between the "pods" selected in the first and second rounds are less important.
may be profitable for study or enjoyment.
This spread has been helped along by literary agent and writer Mark Reiter and sports journalist Richard Sandomir
, who have edited two books on bracketology as applied to the world around them, most recently The Final Four of Everything
, which was published by Simon & Schuster
in May 2009.
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
, named as such because it is commonly used to fill in tournament brackets
Bracket (tournament)
A bracket is a tree diagram that represents the series of games played during a tournament, named as such because it appears to be a large number of interconnected brackets....
for the postseason. It incorporates some method of predicting what the NCAA Selection Committee will use as its Ratings Percentage Index
Ratings Percentage Index
The Rating Percentage Index, commonly known as the RPI, is a quantity used to rank sports teams based upon a team's wins and losses and its strength of schedule. It is one of the systems by which NCAA basketball and baseball teams are ranked...
in order to determine at-large (non-conference winning) teams to complete the field of 68 teams, and, to seed the field by ranking all teams from first through sixty-eighth. ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
's Joe Lunardi
Joe Lunardi
Joseph Lunardi is a college basketball analyst for ESPN. He was born in Philadelphia, he is a graduate of Haverford High School in Pennsylvania, and is a Saint Joseph's University alumnus. Lunardi currently lives in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania...
is the inventor of the term "bracketology", starting first as the owner and editor of the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook and ending up as the resident bracketologist on ESPN. He also teaches an online course at Saint Joseph's University
Saint Joseph's University
Saint Joseph's University is a private, coeducational Roman Catholic Jesuit university located partially in the Wynnefield section of Philadelphia and partially in Lower Merion Township and located in the Pennsylvania Main Line, Pennsylvania, United States.The school was founded in 1851 as Saint...
titled "Fundamentals of Bracketology.". Although Lunardi invented the term, he is ranked only 23rd in the past four years' results of the tournament.
In recent years the concept of bracketology has been applied to areas outside of basketball.
Process
Using the NCAA basketball tournament selection processNCAA basketball tournament selection process
The selection process for College basketball's NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship determines which 68 teams will enter the tournament, known as March Madness, and where they will be seeded and placed in the bracket...
, the RPI
Ratings Percentage Index
The Rating Percentage Index, commonly known as the RPI, is a quantity used to rank sports teams based upon a team's wins and losses and its strength of schedule. It is one of the systems by which NCAA basketball and baseball teams are ranked...
, and the seeding and balancing process, a "bracketologist" places teams in the tournament in the various regions (most commonly East, West, Midwest, and South however sometimes the region names are changed to reflect the host cities). Some bracketologists go as far as placing teams in which "pods" they will play in the first and second rounds. Generally, the lists also show the last four teams in and the first four teams out. However, these brackets change daily as conference tournaments
NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Conference Tournaments
A conference tournament in college basketball is a tournament held at the end of the regular season to determine a conference tournament champion. It is usually held in four rounds, but can vary, depending on the conference. All Division I Conferences hold a conference tournament except the Ivy...
continue and teams automatically qualify for the tournament.
A bracketologist's credibility is judged on how many teams he predicts correctly being in the tournament and the average difference between the bracketologist's projected seed and the actual seed assigned by the NCAA Selection Committee. The difference between projected matchups and the differences between the "pods" selected in the first and second rounds are less important.
Non-basketball applications
Bracketology as a discipline has spread beyond a focus on basketball, into other sports, as well as pop culture, history, nature, and other topics where a loose application of binary oppositionBinary opposition
In critical theory, a binary opposition is a pair of related terms or concepts that are opposite in meaning. Binary opposition is the system by which, in language and thought, two theoretical opposites are strictly defined and set off against one another. It is the contrast between two mutually...
may be profitable for study or enjoyment.
This spread has been helped along by literary agent and writer Mark Reiter and sports journalist Richard Sandomir
Richard Sandomir
Richard Sandomir is an award-winning sports and television columnist for the New York Times and author of several books including Bald Like Me: The Hair-Raising Adventures of Baldman and The Englightened Bracketologist: The Final Four of Everything....
, who have edited two books on bracketology as applied to the world around them, most recently The Final Four of Everything
The Final Four of Everything
The Final Four of Everything co-edited by Mark Reiter and Richard Sandomir is a book about bracketology. The book's cover features a yellow background with an empty bracket to accompany it...
, which was published by Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation, is a publisher founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. It is one of the four largest English-language publishers, alongside Random House, Penguin and HarperCollins...
in May 2009.