Brackets and predictions were completely shattered over the weekend in the NCAA Tournament, leaving fans grappling with reality against incredibly slim odds. By Sunday, any glimpse of achieving a perfect bracket vanished entirely for millions of fans watching the competition unfold.
Yahoo Sports and CBS Sports witnessed the end of their last flawless predictions by Saturday. Florida, the top-seeded team, secured a narrow 77-75 victory over the two-time reigning champion UConn, intensifying the chaos by Sunday.
One remaining spotless bracket reflected on ESPN’s tracker also succumbed swiftly; it fell apart following Duke’s commanding 89-66 victory over Baylor. It didn’t stop there, as Kentucky’s 84-75 win over Illinois sealed the fate of 24.3 million brackets in total imperfection.
The Wildcats’ triumph delivered the decisive blow to the final perfect bracket among the 34 million entries on the NCAA’s official platform. Earlier chaos had also shredded the last flawless bracket on Yahoo Sports — poor Shawno saw his Grand Bracket’s promising streak crumble when Michigan’s 91-79 win over Texas A&M dismissed his perfect record.
CBS Sports’ last perfect bracket couldn’t withstand Saturday’s events either; games like BYU, a No. 6 seed, clinching victory over third-seeded Wisconsin by just two points, and Texas Tech’s 77-64 triumph over No. 11 seed Drake contributed to that campaign’s collapse.
A particularly prominent game that disrupted many predictions was when Creighton managed to dismantle Louisville 89-75 during Thursday’s opening game, eliminating over 13 million entries on ESPN’s platform alone. On a different note, ESPN identified around 30 brackets with every prediction incorrect, almost a feat in itself even for those attempting to pick only losing teams.
In workplace betting pools, some saw better fortunes. Out of all participants, one person employed at FlightSafety International, a subsidiary of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, showcased incredible insight by accurately predicting 31 out of 32 games in the opening round, including 29 consecutive picks spot-on. This remarkable feat earned them a million-dollar payout.
Continuing the thrill, eleven other contestants within the scope of Berkshire’s staggering 392,000 employees also bagged prizes of $100,000 each by predicting 31 winners in the opening round. This year witnessed a Berkshire employee clinch the top prize for the first time, although the company customarily awards $100,000 annually for the best brackets. Notably, Buffett had adjusted the contest rules slightly this year to pave a smoother path for someone to secure the grand prize.