The NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, known as March Madness, opened with the first 16 first-round games on March 19, 2026. The NCAA reported on March 20 that roughly 14,000 perfect brackets remained intact out of more than 36 million submitted across major online platforms, or 0.039% of the total.[1]

The tournament is a 68-team single-elimination event, with the First Four play-in games preceding the 64-team bracket. The winner will be determined at the Final Four on April 4 and 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.[2]

A string of upsets contributed to the sharp decline in perfect brackets. Key results included No. 9 seed TCU's 66-64 win over No. 8 Ohio State, which reduced perfect brackets to 14.5 million; Nebraska's 76-47 victory over Troy, the Cornhuskers' first win in NCAA tournament history after a 0-9 record entering the event[3]; No. 12 High Point's 83-82 defeat of No. 5 Wisconsin at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, dropping flawless predictions to 2.3 million[1]; and Louisville's 83-79 win over South Florida.

Later games further reduced the total below 1 million before VCU's overtime victory over North Carolina, in which the Rams overcame a 19-point deficit, left about 300,000 perfect brackets. Saint Louis defeated Georgia, and Gonzaga beat Kennesaw State to conclude Thursday's slate with 14,000 perfect entries remaining.[1]

For context, the NCAA reported 36,000 perfect brackets after the first day last year and a record low of 121 in 2021.[1] The next 16 first-round games are scheduled for March 20.

Sources

1. NCAA
   Article/page title: Men's Bracket Challenge
   Publication date: accessed October 2024
   Direct URL: https://www.ncaa.com/bracket-challenge/mens
2. NCAA
   Article/page title: NCAA announces sites for Men's Final Fours through 2026
   Publication date: April 25, 2023
   Direct URL: https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/article/2023-04-25/ncaa-announces-final-four-sites-mens-through-2026
3. Wikipedia
   Article/page title: Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball
   Publication date: accessed October 2024
   Direct URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebraska_Cornhuskers_men%27s_basketball