March Madness is About to Begin!

The teams have been picked and the brackets have been filled. The first round will start Tuesday night, followed by games every day through Sunday, and then every weekend after that, until the championship game on April 8. Millions of Americans will be following these games for the next several weeks, with many fans being involved in office pools. Even people who have no interest in the sport will be picking teams today!

This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the tournament. Things were a bit different back in 1939, when Oregon beat Ohio State 46-33. First of all, there were only 8 teams involved, compared to the 68 teams invited this year. But the biggest difference is that total attendance for the tournament in 1939 was 15,025. The total attendance in 2012 was 717,185, with millions more watching on televisions, computers, tablets, and smart phones.

Until the 1950s, the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) was considered the more prestigious tournament of the two. For many years, the two tournaments were held at different times so that many teams could compete in both. Throughout the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, the number of teams participating in the tournament slowly increased from eight, until there were 32 teams in 1975.

After it expanded to 32 teams, the popularity of the tournament really took off. During the 70s and 80s, many of the future stars of the NBA would play during March -- Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Michael Jordan, to name a few.

Another popular aspect to the Tournament is whether there will be a "Cinderella" team. One of the most famous of these teams was the 1983 champion North Carolina State Wolfpack. They defeated the heavily-favored Houston Cougars, who had such future NBA stars as Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. They won 54-52 at the buzzer on a shot by Lorenzo Charles.

Check out this video to see the thrilling final seconds and ensuing-on court pandemonium from 1983.

N.C. State Coach Jim Valvano celebrating with his team  in 1983

So as you fill out your picks for your office pool, take a look at the "fun" facts about lost worker productivity from a study by a outplacement firm -- and good luck!

• Almost 1/3 of workers will spend at least 3 hours a day following the tournament during work hours.
• These viewing habits will cost American companies at least $134 million in "lost wages" during the first two days of the tournament.
• 7% of respondents to a survey said that they would take time off of work to watch games at home.

-- Post by Tracy