RULES
ESPN’s Bracketology efforts are centered on projecting the NCAA event area simply as we count on the NCAA Division I basketball committee to pick the sector in March. ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi makes use of the identical knowledge factors favored by the committee, together with power of schedule and different season-long indicators, together with the NET and team-sheet knowledge related to what’s out there to the NCAA, in his projections of the sector. Go to the NCAA’s web site for a fuller understanding of NCAA selection criteria.
68-Group Bracket
The 68-team bracket is the usual model of the NCAA event area that has been in place since 2011. If the 2021 area is comprised of 68 groups, there will likely be some key variations to previous years, nonetheless.
The first adjustment from a standard yr is, after all, the taking part in of the complete NCAA event at a single web site. This eliminates the necessity for geographical concerns in seeding. Moreover, there will likely be at the least one fewer automated qualifier this season, because the Ivy League’s resolution to forgo the 2020-21 season reduces the variety of AQ entries to 31 for this season.
48-Group Bracket
On this projection, a condensed choice course of would cut back the sector by 10 at-large groups and 10 automated qualifiers (the latter of which nonetheless obtain a income unit). The highest 4 seeds in every area would obtain a bye into the second spherical, with 4 first-round video games per area – 5 vs. 12, 6 vs. 11, 7 vs. 10 and eight vs. 9 – being performed with out followers on the upper seed’s residence court docket.
To attenuate journey, first-round pairings will likely be guided by geography to the best extent doable. And the diminished area ends in solely 32 groups competing on the central web site. All members should publish a minimal .500 convention document – the “Lunardi Rule” – for at-large consideration.
16-Group Bracket
On this projection, the committee selects and seeds the 16 finest out there groups. There aren’t any automated qualifiers, though all non-competing convention champions obtain the designated income unit.
To keep up some sense of nationwide steadiness, convention participation is capped at 4 groups. And no area shall have multiple crew from the identical convention.