March Madness: President Joe Biden sneaks in NCAA tournament brackets, loses champion Arizona on Day 1
President Joe Biden is a busy man.
But he managed to sneak in his NCAA tournament brackets on Thursday — just a few minutes after the opening men's game between Maryland and West Virginia tipped off. In doing so, he kept up with presidential tradition most notably maintained by former President and noted basketball fan Barack Obama.
So who does Biden like? He picked No. 2 seed Arizona to beat No. 1 seed Kansas for the national championship. Sadly for Biden, he lost his national champion on Day 1. No. 15 Princeton seed stunned No. 2 Arizona, 59-55 on Thursday in one of the biggest upsets in NCAA tournament history
Biden also included No. 2 Marquette and No. 2 Texas in a fairly chalky Final Four. Like a lot of brackets, Biden picked a No. 12 seed to advance to the second round with Charleston advancing past San Diego State in the South region.
Good luck to every team in this year's NCAA tournament.
I’ve got Arizona in the men’s tournament and Villanova in the women’s – and as you know, in this household, Villanova always wins. pic.twitter.com/iILzABTCuo— President Biden (@POTUS) March 16, 2023
There are no upsets in Biden's Sweet 16, with teams seeded 1-4 advancing in each region. He picked No. 4 seed Virginia to top No. 1 seed Alabama to advance to the Elite Eight in his biggest upset.
Biden took more risk in his women's bracket, including picking No. 4 seed Villanova to win it all with a championship game win over No. 1 overall seed and previously undefeated South Carolina. Perhaps not coincidentally, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden has a masters degree from Villanova. Biden also has perennial powers No. 1 Stanford and No. 2 seed UConn in his Final Four. No. 6 seed Michigan is his biggest party crasher in the Elite Eight.
[Free $25K best bracket contest for women's tourney | Printable bracket]
Biden's brackets differ dramatically from 2022, where he picked his home-state Delaware Blue Hens to win both the men's and women's championships. Sadly for Biden, Delaware didn't make either field in 2023.
In case you're wondering, Obama shared his brackets as he always does, picking Duke to win the men's championship and South Carolina to repeat in the women's bracket. As for Biden missing the deadline — if anyone gets a pass, it's the President of the United States. But that's ultimately up to whomever runs his tournament pool.