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Obama picks Michigan State to 'bring it home' in NCAA tourney

US President Barack Obama holds an autographed basketball presented by UConn's women's basketball head coach Geno Auriemma (at podium) as he welcomes the 2013 NCAA Champions to the White House, July 31, 2013, in Washington, DC. Obama continued a tradition of welcoming sports champions to the White House and thanking them for their community service. UPI/Mike Theiler
US President Barack Obama holds an autographed basketball presented by UConn's women's basketball head coach Geno Auriemma (at podium) as he welcomes the 2013 NCAA Champions to the White House, July 31, 2013, in Washington, DC. Obama continued a tradition of welcoming sports champions to the White House and thanking them for their community service. UPI/Mike Theiler | License Photo

WASHINGTON, March 19 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama Wednesday pegged the Michigan State Spartans to beat defending champ Louisville Cardinals in the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

The hoopster in chief revealed his "Barack-etology" on ESPN's "SportsCenter."

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"Tom Izzo is a great tournament coach," Obama said. "I've got Michigan State going all the way. ... He knows how to motivate folks and he knows how to coach."

"My pick: Michigan State. Bring it home for me," said Obama, an avid basketball player. "It's been a while since I've won my pool."

Rounding out Obama's final four picks are No. 1 overall seed Florida and top seed Arizona.

"I know these are not imaginative picks, but I think they're the right ones," Obama said of his Final Four selections.

The Final Four will be played in Arlington, Texas.

Obama picked two upsets in the opening rounds, both 12 seed over 5 seeds -- Harvard over Cincinnati, and North Dakota State over Oklahoma. He also slotted North Carolina to upset 3-seed Iowa State to reach the Sweet 16.

Last year, Obama's bracket ranked 2,080,996 of 8.15 million entries in ESPN.com's free Men's Tournament Challenge, the sports network said. He was in the 74.4th percentile.

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