NCAA bracket predictions: College basketball model releases surprising March Madness 2022 tournament picks

The first weekend of the 2022 March Madness bracket will be one of the most exciting times of the year in sports with 48 games of wall-to-wall action taking place in the first four days. Before the whirlwind begins, millions will fill out their 2022 NCAA Tournament bracket. Gonzaga was given the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament 2022 and could be a popular title pick, but the program has never won a national championship. Should you fade the Bulldogs as you fill out your 2022 NCAA Tournament picks?

Can Gonzaga star freshman Chet Holmgren finally put one of the nation’s most successful programs over the top at the end of the March Madness 2022 bracket? Before making any 2022 March Madness bracket predictions, be sure to check out the 2022 NCAA Tournament bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulated the entire 2022 NCAA Tournament 10,000 times. It absolutely crushed its March Madness picks last year, beating over 92 percent of all CBS Sports brackets for the second time in three tournaments. The model also nailed a whopping three teams in the Final Four last year.

It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 17 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds. It also nailed some massive upsets last tournament, including predicting the championship game between Gonzaga and Baylor, and hit Houston’s Midwest Region win even though the Cougars weren’t the No. 1 seed.

There’s simply no reason to rely on luck when there’s proven technology to help you dominate your 2022 March Madness picks. Now, with the 2022 NCAA bracket revealed, the model is simulating the matchups and its results are in. You can only see it over at SportsLine.

Three 2022 March Madness bracket games to watch

One of the most intriguing 2022 March Madness matchups to watch: No. 5 seed Connecticut vs. No. 12 seed New Mexico State in the West region. R.J. Cole and Adama Sanogo earned first-team All-Big East honors and give UConn a dynamic inside-outside scoring combo with Tyrese Martin. New Mexico State’s defense has been stingy of late, allowing opponents to shoot just 36.4 percent from the floor and 26.9 percent from the three-point line over the last three games.

One 2022 March Madness matchup to keep an eye on: No. 8 Boise State vs. No. 9 Memphis in the West Region. The Tigers lost four games in a row early in the season and then dropped three consecutive games early in the conference schedule, but rallied to win 12 of their last 14 and earn an at-large bid. Freshman center Jalen Duren is averaging 13.8 points and 11.0 rebounds over his last five games and blocks 2.2 shots per game for the season. Boise State is an experienced squad led by seniors Abu Kigab, Marcus Shaver and Emmanuel Akot, who have the length to disrupt the post-entry to Duren.

Another West Region matchup that stands out is No. 7 seed Michigan State vs. No. 10 seed Davidson. The Wildcats have a style that relies heavily on three-point shooting, and every player in the starting five shoots at least 37.7 percent from beyond the arc. Davidson ranks seventh in the nation in three-point shooting percentage (38.6) and Michigan State transfer Foster Loyer is one of the nation’s best shooters (44.5 percent from deep). The Spartans will be focused on stopping their former teammate and have held three of their last four opponents to under 40 percent shooting from the floor. You can see the model’s picks for these games and every other here.

How to make 2022 NCAA bracket predictions

Who wins every tournament-defining matchup? And which teams will make surprising runs through the 2022 NCAA Tournament bracket? With the model’s track record of calling bracket-busting upsets, you’ll want to see which stunners it’s calling this year before locking in any 2022 NCAA bracket picks.

So what’s the optimal NCAA Tournament 2022 bracket? And which NCAA Tournament Cinderella teams will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which double-digit seeds you can back with confidence, all from the model that’s called 17 upsets by double-digit seeds.