A new survey conducted by MSN.com finds that even though the economy may be crimping Americans' spending habits, more than one-third said its won’t stop them from entering college basketball pools this March. 

The FBI estimates that Americans wager more than $2.5 billion everyyear on college basketball bracket pools. Even with the recession, this year is looking to be no different. According to the MSN Hoops Hysteria Survey, 45 percent of Americans plan to enter at least one college basketball tournament pool, and more than 20 percent plan to enter three or more. 

Although unemployment is expected to rise to a high of 8.8 percent, more than half of those entering basketball pools are planning to enter at least $20 this year, and 22 percent believe their wager will do better than their 401k. Even more, the dedicated fans of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) are pulling out the big bucks, with 36 percent planning to wager at least $40 on their pools, reinforcing their confidence in their bracket and teams.  

Not everyone has such an optimistic outlook, though. At least 15 percent of respondents said they will be spending less money on NCAA pools than they did last year, with another 10 percent deciding to not enter any money, stating that money is too tight or it is irresponsible in these uncertain economic times. 

While Americans may have a fun attitude toward entering basketballbrackets, most are grounded in reality. When asked what they would do if they won $1 million by filling out their bracket successfully,three-fourths of Americans said they would either pay off debt or save the money.