Crunch time for bracketheads
The bracket isn't filled out, is it?
Here's a A company called TeamRankings.com has launched a "BracketBrains 2008" link that lets users "apply sophisticated mathematical analysis" to their picks, says its press release.
Why it's easy: "BracketBrains offers a simple and highly configurable user interface that allows users to analyze game scenarios from a variety of different angles. Users can compare the expected outcomes of different bracket strategies and compute precise odds to win for any given team."
Then they can pick the other team because it has a better mascot.
TeamRankings.com CEO and co-founder Tom Federico says in the release that 22 percent of BracketBrain customers win in their office pools because they had better info.
The product, by the way, is powered by predictive algorithms designed by a team of Stanford University ngineering and math graduates. So be careful when it tells you the Cardinal will go all the way to the NCAA final.
One other way to decide your bracket: Think green. Beyond Notre Dame.
Lee Bodner, the co-organizer of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, points out that 23 of the 65 teams selected are schools that have committed to eliminate global warming. UCLA is one of 'em. USC and Cal State Fullerton apparently are not.
Check out this approach at http://www.greenbrackets.com. The Green Team, Mount St. Mary's, already won its play-in game, so that strategy may be helpful.