The Purdue Boilermakers won the Big Ten Tournament last week and were bumped up from a No. 3 seed to a No. 2 seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket, according to the selection committee. Purdue was placed in the West Region, where they’ll begin March Madness 2026 on Friday at 7:35 p.m. ET against Queens. The Boilermakers have experienced ups and downs in recent seasons, losing as a No. 1 seed to No. 16 Fairleigh Dickinson three years ago and making the national championship game two years ago.
Last season, Purdue made a Sweet 16 run, but they’re hoping they can ride the momentum from their conference title even deeper in the NCAA Tournament 2026. How far should you advance the Boilermakers in your 2026 March Madness bracket picks? Before filling out your NCAA Tournament bracket 2026, be sure to see the 2026 March Madness bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
Their proven projection model has simulated every game in the tournament 10,000 times. It has absolutely crushed its March Madness picks recently, beating over 91% of all CBS Sports brackets in four of the past seven tournaments. It was all over UConn’s championship run two years ago and nailed 12 teams in the Sweet 16 last year. It also correctly predicted all four Final Four teams in 2025.
It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 25 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016.
There’s no reason to rely on luck when there’s proven technology to help you dominate your 2026 March Madness picks. Now, with the 2026 NCAA bracket revealed, the model is simulating the matchups and its results are in. You can only see it over at SportsLine.
Top 2026 March Madness bracket picks (preview two matchups)
One of the Midwest Region picks from the model: No. 9 Saint Louis beats No. 8 Georgia in the first round. Coach Josh Schertz is in his second year at Saint Louis and already has the Billikens among the nation’s best. Saint Louis finished 13-20 in 2023-24, but improved to 19-15 with an NIT appearance a year ago. This season, the Billikens have been dominant at times, going 28-5 overall and finishing 15-3 in the Atlantic 10 Conference to win their first conference title since 2013-14.
Saint Louis won 22 games this season by 10 or more points. Georgia, meanwhile, tied for seventh in the Southeastern Conference at 10-8 and is 22-10. The Bulldogs, however, have dropped seven of their last 13 games. Georgia is fifth in the nation in scoring at 89.8 points per game, while Saint Louis is 10th at 87.2, but the Billikens have the fourth-best point differential at plus-17.7, while the Bulldogs are 31st at plus-10.6.
Another surprise in the Midwest: No. 5 Texas Tech defeats No. 4 Alabama in the second round. Nate Oats has transformed Alabama into one of the best programs in the country, taking Alabama to its first Final Four two seasons ago and backing it up with an Elite Eight trip last year. However, Oats would be one of the first to admit that his defense hasn’t been good enough this year.
Alabama ranks 356th out of 365 DI teams in points allowed per game (83.5) and even with the offense playing at a breakneck pace, it will be tough to outscore teams long enough to put together another deep run. Texas Tech is an extremely capable offensive team (12th in adjusted offensive efficiency) that can also string together stops when needed (33rd in adjusted defensive efficiency). Without significant defensive improvements, that simply looks like a bad matchup for the Crimson Tide. You can see the model’s 2026 NCAA bracket picks here.
How to make 2026 NCAA bracket predictions
Who wins every tournament-defining matchup, and which region does the model project the No. 1 seed not making the Final Four, plus there being two double-digit seed stunners? 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 2026 NCAA bracket picks.
So what’s the optimal NCAA Tournament 2026 bracket, and which NCAA Tournament double-digit seeds will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which region is loaded with upsets, all from the model that’s beaten 91% of bracket players in four of the last seven tournaments.
