John Petherick Memorial NCAA Pool — How It Works

Overview

This is where you submit your NCAA tournament bracket picks and follow the tournament as it unfolds. Instead of filling out a paper bracket or emailing a spreadsheet, you make your picks directly here, save them, and then watch your standing update on the leaderboard as games are finalized. The pool begins with the main tournament bracket — play-in games are not part of the selection process.

Signing In

You’ll receive a link to access the pool. Use that link to sign in — your entry will be waiting for you once you’re logged in. If you have trouble signing in or can’t find your entry, contact the pool organizer.

Making Your Picks

Once you’re signed in, open your bracket entry to start making picks.

Click to pick — select the winner of each matchup directly in the bracket. Selecting a team automatically advances them to the next round in your bracket.
Selections flow through the bracket — each round builds on the winners from the previous round.
Later rounds depend on earlier picks — you must pick a winner in each round before the teams in the next round are determined. Work left to right.
Save as you go — you don’t have to complete the entire bracket in one sitting.
You can come back and edit — as long as the pool hasn’t locked, you can return, change picks, and save again. Your most recently saved bracket is what counts.

Deadline / Pool Lock

The pool locks at the tournament deadline set by the organizer. After the lock time, brackets can no longer be edited. Make sure your bracket is complete and saved before then.

The lock time will be communicated by the pool organizer. Don’t wait until the last minute.

Viewing Entries After the Pool Locks

Once the pool is locked and the tournament is underway, you can browse all submitted entries and see how others picked. This is view-only — no changes can be made after the lock.

Leaderboard & Live Updates

The leaderboard shows current standings for all entrants. Standings update after games are finalized and the pool organizer updates the scores. In-progress games are not reflected until results are official.

Check back after games wrap up to see updated scores and standings.

Scoring

Points are based on the round your team wins, multiplied by that team’s seed:

Round 1 = 1
Round 2 = 3
Sweet 16 = 6
Elite Eight = 10
Final Four = 15
Championship = 21

Example: a 4-seed winning a Sweet 16 game = 4 × 6 = 24 points

If your selected team loses before reaching that round, you receive 0 points for that pick.

Higher-seeded underdogs are worth more points, especially in later rounds.

Important Reminders

Complete your bracket before the lock. Any unselected games will remain blank and will not earn points.
Your picks carry forward — if a team you picked in Round 1 loses, you won’t receive points for any later picks that depended on that team advancing.
What’s saved is what counts. Double-check your bracket before the deadline and make sure everything looks right.
You may submit multiple entries unless otherwise specified by the organizer.
Ties in final standings are split evenly — there are no tiebreakers.
Entry fee and payment instructions are provided separately by the pool organizer.

Important Disclaimer

This beta Pool Pilot was 90%+ generated by AI (ChatGPT, Codex, and Claude Code), and while we’ve done our best to test and review it, there may still be bugs or issues. If you have any questions or encounter problems, reach out to the pool organizer directly. They manage entry access and can help sort out any issues. Check your bracket and scores carefully!

Good luck — may your upsets be plentiful and your Final Four survive.

Questions or Problems?

If you have trouble accessing your entry, notice something wrong with your bracket, or have any other questions, reach out to the pool organizer directly. They manage entry access and can help sort out any issues.