LinkedIn thinks that they know who will will this year’s NCAA Tournament, and they don’t even need to consider basketball. Well, they need to consider the word “basketball,” but that’s about it.
In alternative method to fill out a bracket news, LinkedIn has calculated a “dedication score” for all of the teams participating in March Madness. That “dedication score” is simply the number of current students and alumni with the word “basketball” in their profile divided by the total number of current students and alumni at each school.
Use each school’s score to determine the winners and there you have it. Gonzaga (15,700 students and alumni, 2.5% referencing basketball) wins with a score of 2.46.
#1 seed Kansas does well in this bracket, making it to the Final Four before being upended by Butler. The cinderella of LinkedIn’s bracket is 14th seeded Valparaiso, which makes it all the way to the Final Four, beating top-seeded Louisville in the process.
Check out the bracket below (click to enlarge).
“Now, I know some of you may be thinking ‘What does this have to do with the basketball team’s performance on the court?’ Team Spirit! We believe in the power of willing your team to win. Your chances of picking a bracket 100% correctly are infinitesimally small, regardless of method, so we think the power of willing your team to win is what it will take. So, you could fill out your bracket based on favorite school colors OR you could use our ‘dedication score,’” says LinkedIn’s Sohan Murthy.
I can’t really argue with that, considering all of the ridiculous ways I’ve seen people construct a bracket.