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ESPN Insider- ESPN Insider college basketball contributor
- First began covering college hoops in 2004
- Has written for Basketball Prospectus and the Wall Street Journal
Giant Killers is back for our 14th annual metrics-based forecast of big upsets in the NCAA tournament bracket. As usual, we're analyzing each Giant vs. Killer game in the first round. (Quick reminder: A Giant Killer is any team that defeats an opponent seeded at least five lines higher in any round.)
Our statistical model yields an upset probability for each game, based on both the Basketball Power Index of each team and on the stylistic factors that have most often led to tournament upsets in the past. As always, we've sorted our picks into four categories based on the likelihood of an upset: Best Bets, Worth a Long Look, Not Completely Crazy and, last and very likely least, Stay Away. (Hopefully, the titles are self-explanatory.)
Now, let's get to the good stuff. Here are the upsets in the making: