Best bets and future odds for the men’s NCAA Tournament
Plus, national title odds, Round of 64 picks and NFL free agency moves.
We’re halfway through March and it’s time for the Madness to ensue!
Make sure you fill out that bracket before the tourney tips off Thursday afternoon. And don’t worry—we’ve got picks, odds and advice to help you navigate the field.
Allow us to walk you through what you need to know before the Big Dance commences.
In today’s Winners Club you’ll find:
- Tournament teams ranked 1-68
- Top teams to fade in March
- How to find a sleeper
- National championship odds
- Printable March Madness brackets
- First Four bets for Wednesday
- Round of 64 underdog picks
- Women's bracket breakdown
- NFL free agency tracker
Getting to Know the Field of 68
With the First Four departures of Southeast Missouri State and Mississippi State, the field has already shrunk to 66 teams. And by the end of the day, two more will be eliminated and the Round of 64 will be set.
So, what do you need to know about the Tournament teams?
Pat Forde ranked them all, from No. 1 Alabama to No. 68 Fairleigh Dickinson.
There’s plenty of familiar faces near the top—your Kansases, Dukes and Gonzagas—and then there’s some lesser-known, lower-seeded teams, like FAU and Drake, who could crash the party.
John Amis/AP
Everyone wants to single out a Cinderella before their magical run begins, and Kevin Sweeney tried his hand at picking a sleeper, but there’s also plenty of value in knowing which high-seeded teams you should stay clear of both as a bettor and a bracket pool participant.
Sweeney also picked five teams (all seeded No. 4 or higher) that could be in danger of an early exit. Purdue, the top team in the East Region, looks particularly vulnerable.
National Title Odds, Final Four and More
The Final Four is in Houston this year and if the title favorite makes it to the final weekend of the tournament, it will be a homecoming for the No. 1 Cougars.
Houston and fellow No. 1 seed Alabama are the only teams with odds shorter than +1000 to cut down the nets. They’re followed by the other top-seeded teams, Kansas and Purdue.
Get an idea of how the title contenders stack up and try your hand at picking a longshot with the championship and region-by-region odds below, via SI Sportsbook. But remember: A No. 1 seed has won eight of the last 10 titles.
Houston +450
Alabama +700
Kansas +1000
Purdue +1100
UCLA +1200
Arizona +1400
Gonzaga + 1400
UConn +1600
Texas +1600
Marquette +1800
Troy Taormina/USA TODAY Sports
Alabama +180
Arizona +450
Baylor +550
Creighton +800
Best odds to win Midwest Region
Houston +120
Texas +350
Xavier +750
Texas A&M +1000
Purdue +300
Marquette +400
Tennessee +500
Duke +750
Kansas +300
UCLA +300
Gonzaga +400
Connecticut +450
Picks for the First Four and Round of 64
No. 16 Texas A&M-CC and No. 11 Pittsburgh both claimed spots in the NCAA Tournament Round of 64 on Tuesday and the second set of First Four games tip off this evening from Dayton, Ohio.
On the line tonight is the No. 16 seed in the East Region and an opportunity to play No. 1 Purdue and the No. 11 seed in the West Region, which will be matched up with No. 6 TCU.
PRINTABLE MEN'S MARCH MADNESS BRACKET
The winner of Fairleigh Dickinson and Texas Southern will clinch the No. 16 seed and the victor between Nevada and Arizona State is the final piece of the first round puzzle.
Texas Southern is a 2.5-point favorite against FDU in a game that pits the two-lowest graded teams in the field against one another. And Arizona State is a 2.5-point favorite over Nevada in the fifth meeting between the two programs.
I broke down both games and offered a best bet for each here.
David Becker/AP
Forde is already looking ahead to Thursday and Friday’s games and he’s landed on five lower-seeded teams that he believes are capable of covering the spread and could even pull off an outright upset.
No. 12 Oral Roberts, which famously made a run to the Sweet 16 in 2021, drew No. 5 Duke in the first round. The Golden Eagles are not being overlooked entirely as they’re 6.5-point underdogs against one of the bluest bloods in the sport, but they have serious upset potential against the Blue Devils.
Keep up with @SI_Betting for more bets throughout the tournament, and take a peek ahead to all the spreads for Thursday and Friday’s games.
How to Fill Out Your Bracket
If betting on March Madness is new to you, Jen Piacenti put together a handy guide to walk you through the many available options.
You’ve got your single-game bets (moneyline, point spread and over/under bets) and a few futures options available, like picking the Final Four participants or the national champion.
And Piacenti also explained how you can use betting odds to your advantage when it comes to filling out your bracket. Future odds certainly come in handy in this case, as do single-game spreads. The odds can be informative, but upsets still happen!
I wrote about how the top 16 teams in the tournament perform against the spread, another useful indicator of whether or not you should back some of the No. 1, 2, 3 and 4 seeds early in the tournament when they’re giving opponents upwards of 20 points.
Of the No. 1 seeds, Alabama has the best mark ATS at 20–14, though the Crimson Tide are just 5–5 over their last 10 when it comes to covering.
Rick Osentoski/USA Today Sports
Sweeney and Forde also both shared their complete brackets with picks for all 63 games:
Sweeney’s Bracket | Forde’s Bracket
Analyzing the Women’s NCAA Tournament
The First Four begins in the women’s bracket tonight when Illinois takes on Mississippi State for a shot at the No. 11 seed. First Four action continues Thursday in advance of the first round Friday.
You can find the complete schedule here and a printable bracket here.
Clare Brennan broke down the entire field, led by undefeated, No. 1 South Carolina. But there’s a few fellow SEC teams who could play spoiler as the dance unfolds, including No. 3 LSU.
(AP Photo/Mic Smith)
Our experts each shared their picks for the entire tournament here. No surprise, the Gamecocks were a popular champion choice.
Free Agent Moves Shake Up NFL, Fantasy Landscape
The new NFL league year begins at 4 p.m. ET but teams took full advantage of the legal tampering period to get the framework of deals done.
Among the most notable moves, quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo agreed to a deal with the Raiders as did wide receiver Jakobi Meyers, quarterback Sam Darnold is now a 49er, running back David Montgomery is headed to Detroit and wide receiver Allen Lazard is now a Jet.
And just in case you were wondering, there’s no official news on the Aaron Rodgers front. But he does apparently have a wish list for New York that reportedly includes receivers Randall Cobb and Odell Beckham Jr. Do with that information what you will.
You can keep up with the SI’s free agency tracker to stay up on all of the player movement.
Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports
Not all of the notable player transactions from this week were free agency moves. The Raiders traded tight end Darren Waller to the Giants in exchange for a third-round pick.
Michael Fabiano parsed the fantasy football impact of the move, which adds another weapon for recently re-signed quarterback Daniel Jones. Fabiano also shared his thoughts on Meyers and Garoppolo joining Las Vegas as well as the Eagles signing running back Rashaad Penny.
In Other News
AP All-American Men’s Basketball Team Announced: Of the 15 players named to the first, second and third teams, 14 will be taking part in the NCAA Tournament. Alabama’s Brandon Miller and Purdue’s Zach Edey headline the first-team selections.
Kings Crack Top Five in Latest NBA Power Rankings: Sacramento keeps on moving up as the start of the postseason draws near. The Nuggets dropped down a few spots amid their losing streak and the Lakers inched up as they continued their strong play since the trade deadline.
That's all for today. Remember to keep up with our ongoing March Madness and NFL free agency coverage at si.com/betting and si.com/fantasy.
There’s no Winners Club coming out this Friday, but I will be back in your inbox next week ahead of the Sweet 16. Here’s to a winning bracket!