2025 Men’s NCAA Midwest Regional Odds and Predictions

The road to the 2025 NCAA Men’s Championship starts this week. March Madness brackets are already being filled out everywhere, and every pundit, college student, and die hard basketball fan is sure they have the perfect bracket.

All of those brackets will ultimately get busted, and even the best string of College Basketball picks will end in agony. To an extent, at least.

It’s not different in the Midwest region, where top seed Houston will hope to make a run to the Final Four. Folks betting at home will have to make that call long before the Cougars do, of course, and if you bet correctly, you could end up a big winner when the dust settles on the maddest month of them all.

But how do you proceed in such an unpredictable region? Is Houston the easy call? Or is there a wild Cinderella that awaits us? Let’s find out by looking at the NCAA Midwest regional bracket and the latest odds for this region.

Where Is The NCAA Midwest Regional Being Played?

The 2025 NCAA Midwest Regional location will be split up across four areas:

• Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas
• Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, Rhode Island
• Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky

NCAA Midwest Regional Final 

The 2025 NCAA Midwest Regional fires off on March 28th at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana and will run through March 30th.

NCAA Midwest Regional Odds

Check out the latest Men’s NCAA Midwest Regional odds courtesy of the best sports betting sites:

The 2025 NCAA Midwest Region odds greatly favor the #1 seed to reach the Final Four. It’s hard to fight the Houston Cougars, as they enjoyed an elite 30-4 season and have a balanced team that can emerge from shootouts or suffocate the opposition.

Of course, Houston’s price isn’t super alluring, and upsets happen all the time during March Madness. They have frequently happened to Houston, specifically, as they failed to get out of the Sweet 16 the past two years.

The team did reach the Final Four a few years ago, though, so it’s always possible they live up to their 1-seed billing. There’s decent value to be had with other NCAA Bracket Midwest Regional squads such as Tennessee or Gonzaga, too, while some big schools like Purdue and Kentucky could be tough outs.

I’ll walk you through my favorite bets, but if you want extra assistance when betting on March Madness this year, be sure to utilize the best handicappers online.

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Men’s NCAA Midwest Regional Favorites

The following Men’s College Basketball teams are considered the favorites to win the NCAA Midwest Regional:

Houston (+135)

The Houston Cougars certainly look the part of a #1 seed. They’ve been a dominant squad for head coach Kelvin Sampson for years, as this was their fourth year in a row with at least 30 wins.

Their success in March Madness has been solid, too. They have yet to parlay their 1-seed into a title under Sampson, but they’ve made it to at least the Sweet 16 in five of the last six years.

Houston has the makings of a title contender in 2025, however. They own the nation’s top scoring defense (58.1 point per game), while they have a more than capable offense that ranks 4th in three-point shooting accuracy.

Tennessee (+375)

The Tennessee Volunteers are a deserving 2-seed, as they own a solid 27-7 record and went 12-6 in the brutal SEC. Like Houston, they have a suffocating defense (allowing just 61.9 points per game), while they more than hold their own on offense.

Tennessee specifically stifles teams who want to unload the three ball, and they’re set up to at least get to round two of the tourney this year. After making it to the Elite 8 last year and the Sweet 16 the year prior, things could be trending in a positive direction for the Vols.

Gonzaga (+800)

It would only be fitting for Gonzaga to finally claim that elusive championship the second they’re no longer regarded as one of the best teams in the nation.

Mark Few’s crew is not as talented nor as dominant as team’s he’s had in the past, but expectations are understandably also much lower. They’ll come into the 2025 March Madness tourney a bit under the radar as an 8-seed, but they still went a solid 25-8 on the year and still put up points (2nd with 86.6 per game) better than the majority of the teams out there.

Gonzaga is a real sleeper team despite their somewhat favorable odds. They crush it offensively, they defend the perimeter, and they still have one of the best coaches in all of college basketball.

Illinois (+900)

One last contender to emerge from the Midwest region is Illinois, as the Fighting Illini can put up points in a hurry (83.7 per game), and can especially dominate down low.

Illinois was not a dominant squad on the season, of course, as they are a middling outside shooting team and finished just 21-12 on the year. A loaded Big Ten will do that to you, but it’s also arguable this team simply doesn’t have the defensive chops to handle the true powerhouses.

That said, if you can put up points, you have a shot. Illinois can do that, and if their outside shots start falling, they’ll be a very interesting bet at these +900 odds.

Men’s NCAA Midwest Regional Betting Value

The following Men’s College Basketball teams offer betting value based on their current NCAA Midwest Regional odds:

Purdue (+1200)

The Boilermakers have to be regarded as one of the more interesting betting values in the Midwest region, as they literally made it to the title game a year ago.

Obviously Zach Edey isn’t here to own the paint any longer, but Purdue still locked up the 4-seed in this region thanks to a 22-11 record despite playing a tough Big Ten schedule. They were just 4-7 versus Top 25 competition and they aren’t elite defensively, but their offense is solid and they’re battle tested.

Despite not living up to lofty preseason expectations, I think Purdue could be overlooked a bit as we prepare for March Madness.

Clemson (+1400)

A team I like a little more than Purdue – and also happens to offer a more appealing price – is the Clemson Tigers.

Clemson is just as good as Purdue on offense (77.1 points per game), but they’re a much nastier defensive team, and were simply more impressive on the year. They finished a stout 27-6 overall despite playing a tough ACC schedule, and finishing second behind Duke is nothing to be ashamed of.

This is a team that resides in the top 25 on both sides of the ball, while they are specifically lights out from long range. If they get hot early in this tourney, they could be a real problem – even for the top-seeded Cougars.

The Top NCAA Midwest Regional Longshot

If you’re looking for a wild March Madness Cinderella to get behind, look no further than High Point. 

Who? Yes, you probably don’t recognize this team, and that’s largely because they will be debuting in the NCAA men’s college basketball tournament for the first time in school history.

It all depends on how things go early on. They’ll have a stiff test right out of the gates in round one, as they’ll be facing a Purdue team with championship experience. High Point lacks any tourney experience at all, but they finished 29-5 on the year and have a nice combination of solid defense and blistering offense.

The Panthers are as efficient as they come on offense, with the only real question being whether or not they can keep that going against top shelf squads like Purdue. This team is also on fire at the moment, having won each of their last 14 games.

High Point has also been in almost every game this year. In their five defeats, just one came by more than four points. They’re not the most comfortable bet, to be sure, but if you wait to see how they fare against Purdue, I’d be interested in taking a shot on them if they’re good enough to advance to round two.

NCAA Midwest Regional Predictions

Houston is the obvious call and it’s very arguable they’re the safe play. However, I am not a fan of the fact that they’ve come up small despite high seeds in the past. I can definitely see them faltering early again, while there are several teams with high-scoring offenses and/or loads of experience to lean on.

One such contender is Gonzaga, who routinely make noise during the NCAAB tourney. They finished as the runner-up four years ago, and despite owning an elite offense, they’re being fairly overlooked in this region.

I like their combination of coaching, experience, and offensive upside; not to mention a banger +800 price tag.

Bet: Gonzaga (+800)