Just 0.25% of brackets remain perfect after one day of March Madness action

Matt Marriott/NCAA Photos via Getty Images

• The first day of March Madness action is in the books.
• Thursday didn’t see any huge upsets, with No. 12 Murray State being the lowest-ranked team of the day to pull off a first-round win.
• Despite this, brackets across the country were busted, as just 42,828 perfect brackets remain in ESPN’s Tournament Challenge.

March Madness is the most unpredictable event in all of sports.

Though many contests through the years have advertised larger-than-life prizes, the quest for a "perfect bracket" that correctly predicts the winner of all 63 games of the tournament is an all but impossible endeavor that we will likely never see in our lifetime.

Read more: The Cinderella team that rocked March Madness the year you were born

Case in point — after just one day of March Madness action, just 0.25% of brackets in ESPN’s Tournament Challenge remain perfect, according to ESPN Stats & Info. More than 17.2 million brackets were submitted to ESPN this year, and of them, only 42,828 were able to nail the first 16 games of the tournament.

That low perfection percentage comes despite the fact that there were hardly any big upsets through the first day of the tournament. No. 12 Murray State was the lowest-seeded team to win their opening game on Thursday, and they came into the tournament as on of the most popular upset picks in the tournament.

Read more: Here are the most likely March Madness upsets, according to Las Vegas

Other than the Racers’ upset victory, just three teams — No. 10 Florida, No. 10 Minnesota, and No. 9 Baylor — defeated a team with a higher seed.

In other words, despite an extremely calm first day of action in terms of upsets, just one in every 400 brackets was able to make it through the first day without a loss.

With another full slate of games set for Friday and likely an even more unpredictable set of outcomes, chances are that numbers dwindles even quicker as we head into the second round of the tournament.

• More March Madness 2019:

Here’s your printable 2019 NCAA tournament bracket

New Mexico State loses in March Madness after player passes up wide-open, game-tying layup in the final seconds in wild finish

President Obama has released his March Madness bracket, and like everyone else, he’s picking Duke to win it all

Celebrities have flocked to see Duke’s 18-year-old superstar, Zion Williamson — here’s why he’s been dubbed one of the ‘most impressive’ collegiate prospects ever

We picked March Madness favorites, sleepers, and Cinderellas for every region in the bracket

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See Also:

• The NBA draft stock of one of the top prospects is soaring after he shredded an opponent in one of the biggest upsets of March Madness so far
• The Cinderella team that rocked March Madness the year you were born
• March Madness brackets require a final score in the championship game — here’s one of the most likely outcomes

Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (Tyler Lauletta)