PickHoops Press Package

PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops started, the national semifinals have featured just one #1 seed eleven times. PickHoops QuickFact

Since 1996, more #11 seeds (19) have advanced to the round of 16 than #8 or #9 seeds. PickHoops QuickFact

In twenty eight years, a team seeded #9 or lower has advanced to the round of sixteen 68 times, 16 percent of the time. PickHoops QuickFact

Since 1996, more #10 seeds (21) have advanced to the round of 16 than #8 and #9 seeds combined. Only one of these (Syracuse in 2016) has advanced to the National Semifinals. PickHoops QuickFact

During PickHoops history, UCLA has 4 appearances in the national semifinals. PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops started, the lowest average seeding in the national semifinals was in 2023, when the #4, #5, #5, and #9 advanced, making an average seeding of 5.75. PickHoops QuickFact

During PickHoops history, four #15 seeds have made it to the round of 16 (Florida Gulf Coast in 2013, Oral Roberts in 2021, St Peters in 2022, and Princeton in 2023). PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops was founded, nineteen #11 seeds have advanced to the round of 16. PickHoops QuickFact

In twenty eight years, the SEC has had six schools advance to the national semifinals (Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana State, Mississippi State, Auburn, and South Carolina). PickHoops QuickFact

Since 1996, a #14 seed has upset a #3 seed 12 times. It happened twice in 2014. PickHoops QuickFact

In twenty eight years, no team seeded #6 has reached the national semifinals, let alone won the national championship. PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops was founded, no team seeded #6 has reached the national semifinals, let alone won the national championship. PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops started, only three times did seeds #1, #2, and #3 in a region all fail to advance to the round of 16. This happened in once in 2018 and twice in 2000. PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops was founded, only eleven times has a region's first round games gone according to seed (i.e. chalk). PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops started, the national semifinals have featured four #1 seeds only once, in 2008. PickHoops QuickFact

Since PickHoops was founded, nineteen #11 seeds have advanced to the round of 16. PickHoops QuickFact

During PickHoops history, 14 different schools have won the national championship.

PickHoops Press Package

PickHoops is a small company based in Durham, NC, that manages national college basketball tournament bracket contests at https://www.pickhoops.com/ .

PickHoops started in 1996 when a bunch of computer geeks got tired of scoring their brackets by hand and applied web technologies, then brand new, to solve the problem. The first year PickHoops handled less than 40 brackets; the 2006 version handled tens of thousands across many hundreds of office groups and promotional contests.

Web surfers can sign up for a 25-bracket pool for $9.95, and invite their friends to play for no additional charge. PickHoops also handles larger pools ideal for corporate promotions, such as radio stations, that handle 500 brackets or more.

It takes longer to score a typical pool by hand over the entire 6-round tournament than to actually play a game of college basketball.

PickHoops competes in a crowded field dominated by large media, web, and sports companies. PickHoops distinguishes itself by allowing more customization of scoring systems and tiebreakers and exclusive features like the Quick Pick. The PickHoops Quick Pick lets the computer fill out a bracket with randomly selected teams. The advanced statistical algorithm takes into account past tournament results to pick only the likeliest upsets. Recently a Quick Pick finished first in a pool of more than 30 "real" players.

Another innovative PickHoops feature is the Basketball IQ score. PickHoops asks each user to describe their own level of basketball knowledge on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is "none" and 5 is "all-knowing", and then compares their own rating with their actual results.

PickHoops also distinguishes itself from larger companies by offering pages with no advertising, no spam, and by not selling its users' data to marketing companies.

Office pool gambling is illegal in many states, although enforcement is unevenly applied. PickHoops was originally created for "teambuilding" within a corporation, as a means to bring its employees together with a fun activity. PickHoops does not include features that specifically cater to gambling, and is designed for amusement only.

PickHoops was founded by Chris Hehman (pronounced Hay-men), a graduate of Virigina Tech who doesn't have any time to watch college basketball with the demands of running PickHoops.

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