Obama unveils NCAA Tournament bracket

Former President Obama revealed his March Madness bracket early Thursday, picking Gonzaga to win the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament.

“Like many of you, I’m thrilled that #MarchMadness is finally back,” Obama tweeted alongside his picks on the first day of the annual men’s and women’s tournaments. 

Like many of you, I’m thrilled that #MarchMadness is finally back. You can check out my picks here: https://t.co/S5mlQofvAp pic.twitter.com/xyePa9ux2y

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) March 18, 2021

Obama chose Gonzaga University, the undefeated No. 1 seed, as well as the University of Michigan, Baylor University and the University of Illinois to make it to the Final Four of the men’s tournament. 

Obama also chose Baylor to win the women’s tournament. He predicted that Stanford University, the University of Maryland and North Carolina State University will advance to the Final Four alongside the Bears.

The former president, an avid basketball fan, has released his March Madness predictions annually since 2009.

Since that year, he has only predicted the men’s champion twice. He has accurately selected the winner of the women’s tournament five times since 2009.

The NCAA canceled March Madness last year amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Last week, it outlined health restrictions for this year’s tournament, saying said basketball teams only need five healthy players to compete.