LAS VEGAS (AP) - The No. 1 seeds had a clear separation over the remainder of the field when last year's NCAA Tournamentbracket was revealed and it played out that way with all those groups reaching the Final 4.
This year's front runners - Duke, Arizona, Michigan and protecting national champ Florida - are the favorites at BetMGM Sportsbook to win the nationwide title.
Bruce Marshall, handicapper for WagerTalk/Gold Sheet, said he might see a number of other groups breaking through to make the Final Four in Indianapolis.
"I do not think we'll see all of them (No. 1 seeds) in the Final 4," Marshall said. "Maybe someone slips through on the three-line. I 'd see Virginia possibly. They have actually got a pretty great possible road in their region. That's Michigan's region. I think Michigan is beatable now."
That said, Marshall said it's not that different from last season in which just a few teams have a realistic opportunity to win all of it.
The NCAA selection committee likewise appeared to get the majority of the first-round matches right, at least if going by the chances. There are only two favorites that are the lower-seeded groups, a set of 8-9 matches with Utah State preferred by 2 1/2 points over Villanova and Iowa by the exact same number over Clemson.
"We ´ re anticipating a relatively milky tournament this year, comparable to what we saw last season," stated Patrick Berbert, college basketball trader at Caesars Sportsbook. "The NIL period has really widened the space in between the top programs and the rest of the field. From a betting perspective, we ´ re predicting record engagement again."
Connecticut is a huge favorite at BetMGM and Caesars to win the females's NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row.
The Huskies as a two-seed defeated 3 No. 1s to win the 2025 title, but there is no sneaking up on this year ´ s field.
"UConn has actually been extremely dominant, winning 29 straight games by double digits," Berbert said. "It ´ s among the more remarkable runs we ´ ve seen in current memory, which dominance is reflected in their current title price of -280. ... In our view, UCLA provides the most significant potential difficulty, however overall, it ´ s hard to see many teams standing in UConn ´ s way if they continue dipping into this level."
On the men's side, Michigan and Florida weren't penalized by the committee for losing in their conference tournament and were given No. 1 seeds.
Duke survived 2 scares in winning the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, beating Florida State by a point and Virginia by 4 in the title video game.
Arizona had the finest week of the top seeds however had to be at its finest to beat Iowa State and Houston by a combined 7 indicate record the Big 12 championship.
"When we get to the Big Dance, what takes place in the conference tournaments normally does not matter," Marshall said. "Teams that lose in the conference tournaments often end up winning the entire thing. It might not be the best thing to play 3, 4 days in a row in the week before the competition, so I do not check out too much into it."
Bettors frequently look beyond the favorites in hopes of getting a larger payment by striking on a team that fumes.
Johnny Avello, sports operations director for DraftKings Sportsbook, stated he is seeing UConn and Arkansas. DraftKings lists the Huskies at 30-1 chances and the Razorbacks at 60-1 although Arkansas won the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
"In the future book, there are a few clear favorites at the top of the board, but there ´ s likewise a great deal of worth in the middle of the pack," Avello stated. "Bettors can still find attractive rates on teams that have actually revealed they can dip into a high level this season."
It's almost become anticipated that at least one No. 12 seed will defeat a No. 5 in the preliminary.
Texas Tech is the fastest preferred at BetMGM, noted at 7 1/2 points over Akron. Wisconsin is favored by 9 1/2 over High Point, Vanderbilt by 11 1/2 over McNeese State, and St. John's by 11 1/2 over Northern Iowa.
Marshall stated he might see Akron and McNeese pulling the upsets.
"I don't believe St. John's will lose to Northern Iowa," said Marshall, who noted he believed the Red Storm were underseeded. "It'll just be a hard game. And I think Wisconsin will beat Peak, although High Point's kind of enjoyable to view."
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
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