Despite claiming a share of the conference’s regular season championship, the Illinois Fighting Illini failed to win a game in the Big Ten Tournament, losing to NIT-bound Indiana, 65-63. Illinois, which enters the 2022 NCAA Tournament bracket with a 22-9 record, is led by center Kofi Cockburn. The junior heads into the NCAA bracket 2022 averaging 21.1 points and 10.6 rebounds. He’s recorded 16 double-doubles this season and will be one of the players to watch in the 2022 March Madness bracket.
The Fighting Illini are the No. 4 seed in the South Region and face Chattanooga in the first round of the 2022 NCAA bracket. Will Illinois make a deep run in March Madness 2022 or should you back teams like Arizona, Villanova or Tennessee in the South? Before filling out any NCAA Tournament brackets 2022, be sure to see the 2022 March Madness bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
SportsLine’s advanced computer model absolutely crushed its March Madness picks last tournament, beating over 92 percent of all CBS Sports brackets for the second time in three years. 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, the model has simulated every possible matchup in the 2022 NCAA Tournament and revealed its optimal bracket. You can only see it over at SportsLine.
Top 2022 March Madness bracket picks
One team set to disrupt 2022 March Madness brackets, according to the model: No. 6 Alabama suffers a defeat in the first round in the West Region. Alabama will face either Rutgers or Notre Dame, the play-in 11-seeds.
Alabama enters the NCAA Tournament 2022 averaging 80.0 points per game, which ranks 10th in the nation. The Crimson Tide are led by Jaden Shackelford, who’s scoring 16.7 points per game. However, the junior guard has been inconsistent in recent weeks, scoring eight points or fewer in two of his last five outings.
Plus, Alabama has been unable to stop the opposition from scoring this season, giving up 76.4 points per contest, which ranks 318th in college basketball. SportsLine’s model expects Alabama’s defense to struggle in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, resulting in an early exit for the Crimson Tide.
Another team to back in your 2022 NCAA Tournament picks: The 10th-seeded Davidson Wildcats, who stun No. 7 Michigan State in the first round of the West Region.
Davidson’s Foster Loyer played in 86 career games for Michigan State, averaging just 2.6 points per contest. Loyer has been a dynamic playmaker for the Wildcats this season, leading Davidson with 16.6 points per game. The junior guard is connecting on 45 percent of his three-point attempts this season and has scored 20 or more points in five of his last seven outings.
Michigan State, meanwhile, ranks 154th in scoring defense, giving up 68.4 points per game. That doesn’t bode well against a Davidson team that’s knocking down 48.45 percent of its field goals this season, the 14th-best mark in college basketball. SportsLine’s computer model likes Davidson’s chances to beat the Spartans and considers the Wildcats one of the March Madness 2022 bracket breakers to watch.
How to make 2022 NCAA Tournament bracket predictions
SportsLine’s model also has one region where the No. 5 seed goes to the Elite Eight and the 14-seed delivers a shocking upset. Nailing those picks could literally make or break your bracket. With the model’s proven track record of calling bracket-busting upsets, you’ll want to see which stunners it is calling this year before locking in any bracket picks.
So who else makes a deep run in the NCAA Tournament 2022? Visit SportsLine now to see which region features a No. 5 seed in the Elite Eight and a 14-seed that delivers a massive shocker, plus see who wins every single game, all from the model that beat over 92 percent of bracket players two of the last three years.