Find Your Magic: 5 steps to filling out a perfect March Madness bracket

Building a perfect March Madness bracket is next to impossible - the odds of doing so are 9.2 quintillion to one. But there are steps you can take to swing those odds closer to your favor.

Here are five steps to filling out a perfect March Madness bracket:

1. Trust the No. 1 seeds

In what projects as one of the most wide open NCAA tournaments in recent memory, don't think that puts the top seeds in too much danger. No. 1 seeds are 124-0 in the Round of 64, then 107-17 in the Round of 32. No. 1 seeds have also won seven of the last nine national championships, and 12 of the last 17. Since the field expanded to 64 teams, No. 1 seeds have won 18 of 31 national championships.

2. Don't trust No. 3 seeds

Since the field expanded in 1985, 107 of 124 No. 1 seeds made it to the Sweet 16, as did nearly two-thirds of all No. 2 seeds. But No. 3 seeds haven't been as safe to put through to the second weekend. All-time, nearly half (61 of 124) of No. 3 seeds were knocked out by the time the first weekend concluded. In the past six tournaments, 13 of 24 No. 3 seeds failed to reach the Sweet 16.

3. No. 4 and 5 seeds aren't safe

No. 4 and 5 seeds went 8-0 in the Round of 64 last season, but don't think that's a trend that will continue. In the previous seven tournaments, 12- and 13-seeds won 30 games in the Round of 64 and beyond - an average of 4.3 per year. The 5-12 matchup is particularly dangerous, as the No. 12 seed went 15-13 in the Round of 64 in those seven tournaments. A 12 seed has failed to win a single game only four times in the last 33 NCAA tournaments.

4. Ride those underdogs

Don't load up on upsets (underdogs get the headlines, but the better team wins more often than not), but when picking an underdog to win their opening matchup, consider doubling down and picking them to win their next game as well. Fourteen double-digit seeds made it through to the Sweet 16 in the past six tournaments.

5. Pick a champion from this list

The preseason AP poll's worked as a fairly accurate tool in narrowing down the field of potential national champions. Fourteen of the past 18 national champions were ranked in the top nine of the preseason AP poll. Here are the teams that made up the top nine this season: