2024-25 Men’s College Basketball Championship Odds and Predictions

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With the first two rounds of the NCAA Men’s Tournament completed, College Basketball fans can now turn their attention towards the Sweet 16 matchups.

Furthermore, College Basketball bettors can not only take advantage of some popular matchups for the Round of 16, but they can also look ahead at potential value on the NCAA futures wager for the 2024-25 NCAAB Men’s Championship.

After the first two rounds, we can clearly see the cream is rising to the top as the Duke Blue Devils have opened their lead as the odds-on favorites to cut down the nets. Yet, teams like the Florida Gators, Auburn Tigers, and Houston Cougars still remain within striking distance of the Blue Devils.

With that said, let’s take a look at the latest NCAAB Championship odds, courtesy of the top sports betting sites, and make our NCAAB Championship predictions.

Men’s College Basketball Championship Odds

Check out the latest NCAAB Basketball Championship odds, courtesy of Scores and Stats:

Of the betting favorites, only Duke and Houston have seen their odds improve in regards to winning the National Championship. Both Florida and Auburn have seen their odds increase after the Round of 32.

Other schools like Tennessee, Texas Tech, and Arizona have all seen notable jumps in their NCAAB betting odds. As we enter the Sweet 16, Arkansas is the biggest longshot at +10000 odds.

Men’s College Basketball Championship Favorites

The following NCAAB Men’s teams are considered the odds-on favorites to win the 2024-25 College Basketball Championship:

Duke Blue Devils

As mentioned at the beginning of the tournament, the Duke Blue Devils have a very winnable backet in the East Regional. Their two biggest hurdles to the Final 4 remain with Arizona up next and then possibly a showdown against Alabama in the Elite 8.

With that said, Duke has dominated in the tournament so far, winning by an average margin of 38.5 ppg. And, what makes them even more dangerous is the fact that they’re playing like a team and not relying on just Cooper Flagg who put up a big stat line in the Round of 32.

The Blue Devils are a near-double digit favorite over Arizona in the Sweet 16 and I don’t see the Wildcats being much of an issue for Duke. Their defensive prowess will limit Arizona’s offense, while the Blue Devils will continue putting up points. Currently, Duke is averaging 91ppg.

The Blue Devils entered February at +400 to win the National Title. At the start of the Big Dance, they were listed at +325. Duke is now +225 to win it all. Their odds are going to keep shrinking as they get closer to the Finals.

Florida Gators

The Florida Gators were the hottest team coming into the Big Dance and saw their February odds shrink from +1400 to +350 at the start of the tournament. Unfortunately, after narrowly defeating UConn in the second round (77-75), the Gators’ odds have gone back up to +375.

They looked like the clear-cut best team in the West Region prior to the tournament beginning. Now, they appear beatable. A Round of 16 matchup against Maryland should result in another victory.

However, an Elite 8 matchup against Texas Tech or Arkansas could be a tough challenge for the Gators. We’ll see if they can use the big win over UConn as momentum moving forward.

Auburn Tigers

The Auburn Tigers also had a tough game in the second round as the pulled away late to beat Creighton. However, unlike Florida, the Tigers won by double digits and face a rugged Michigan squad in the Round of 16.

The Tigers have a veteran-led group and are the #1 seed in the South Region. Yet, going into the tournament, I felt that Auburn had a tough road to the Final 4 as they would face teams like Creighton, Michigan, or Michigan State.

After the first two rounds, it’s clear that the Tigers are still the team to beat in this region. However, both of the Michigan schools have also looked strong and could take down Auburn if they’re not playing at their full potential.

Houston Cougars

Like the other regions, the Midwest Region still has their top seed left in the Houston Cougars. And, for the 6^th straight year under Kelvin Sampson, this squad has reached the Sweet 16.

The Cougars won a hard-fought game over Gonzaga in the Round of 32. They fended off a late rally to hold on to the win. Next, they face Purdue in the Sweet 16, who they should beat.

L.J. Cryer had a fantastic game against Gonzaga as he led Houston with 30 points. Cryer appears destined to clash with some of the other big names in this tournament like Flagg.

With that said, they will have to get past the winner of Tennessee vs. Kentucky in the Elite 8 to earn that Final 4 spot and highly anticipated showdown against Duke.

Yet, don’t let Cryer’s performance fool you. This is not a one-man-band. The Cougars have more balance offensively than in years past, which makes them the most dangerous they’ve been under Sampson.

J’Wan Roberts and Milos Uzan put up 25 points, 13 assists, and 10 total rebounds against Gonzaga. I expect this trend to continue in the upcoming rounds as they work their way through the Midwest.

If Houston can beat Duke, then they will cut down the nets. However, that’s a big “if” and there are still two tough games for the Cougars prior to the potential showdown with Duke.

Best Men’s College Basketball Championship Betting Value

The following NCAAB teams offer betting value to win the Men’s College Basketball Championship:

Tennessee Volunteers

Heading into the Big Dance, I had the Tennessee Volunteers pegged as one of the best value bets. And, after two rounds, I still think they fall under this category. However, their odds have shrunk from +2000 to +1600 to win the Championship, so the value is rapidly shrinking.

Nevertheless, you have to like the defense that we’ve seen from the Vols especially against UCLA in the second round. They held the Bruins to just 58 points, which is tied for their lowest offensive output on the season.

In other words, Tennessee’s defense has delivered on all of the pre-tournament proclamations as to this squad being elite.

At the start of the Tourney, I said that the Vols had an easy draw and only Kentucky would stand in the way of an Elite 8 showdown against Houston. That easy prediction has come true as the two schools are set to face each other for a third time this season.

Out of all the Sweet 16 matchups, Tennessee vs. Kentucky is the one that I’m the most excited to see.

The Vols are slightly favored, but if their defense doesn’t improve from the last time they faced off in February, then Kentucky could get the hat trick over Tennessee and move on to the Elite 8.

If the Vols can get to the Elite 8, I think their defense will give Houston fits and it could be one of those low-scoring, last possession games which is always thrilling to watch in the Big Dance.

Michigan State Spartans

The Michigan State Sparts continue to do what they always do in the NCAA Men’s Tournament; they easily win in the first two rounds. Now, the Round of 32 win over New Mexico was a tough one as the Lobos are a good team. Yet, the Spartans won by eight and now face a beatable Ole Miss in the Sweet 16.

There are two reasons why I think the Spartans offer betting value at this point of the tournament. The first is that they are listed at +2200 odds which is rather high considering what’s left in front of them.

Second, Florida looks shaky and the Spartans can pull off the big upset in the Elite 8 if the Gators don’t play to their full potential.

Let’s not forget, Michigan State had tallied six consecutive wins over Top 25 ranked teams before a stunning three-point loss to the Badgers in the Big Ten Tournament.

Over that span, the Spartans beat Purdue, Michigan twice, Maryland, Wisconsin and Oregon. All of those teams made the NCAAB Tournament.

Jaden Akins leads this Spartans team. However, when Jase Richardson is on his game, this duo makes MSU nearly unbeatable. Add in scoring from Carr off the bench, and the Spartans have the talent and depth to take out Ole Miss and Auburn in the South Region.

Kentucky Wildcats

After the brackets were announced, it was pretty easy to see that Kentucky had a winnable path towards a Sweet 16 showdown versus Tennessee. And, that’s exactly what happened as the Wildcats dispatched of Troy and Illinois over the first two rounds.

Now, they enter their Sweet 16 matchup versus the Vols as the underdog. This surprises me some considering the Wildcats have defeated Tennessee twice this season already.

At +5000 odds, you have to love the value that Kentucky offers. Sure, Kentucky struggled against some of the best schools in the SEC, like Alabama and Auburn, but they had no problem beating the Vols twice. Additionally, they also beat Florida, Gonzaga, Texas A&M, and Duke earlier in the season.

The Wildcats have been inconsistent at times, and paid for it with losses, but if they’re playing to their full potential, they can make a surprising run to the Final 4. However, that’s a big “if” as we need to see them beat Tennessee first.

Men’s College Basketball Championship Longshot

The Arkansas Razorbacks (+10000) are my longshot pick as we reset the table for the Sweet 16. Under Calipari, this team took down both Kansas and St. Johns in the first two rounds. They were the underdogs for both matchups and ended up winning by 8ppg.

This team is clearly the darkhorse. In fact, they’re the last Cinderella team remaining as they’re the only seed lower than 6^th left in the tournament.  

Texas Tech will be a tough squad to overcome in the Sweet 16, but they are very beatable. And, I’ve already discussed how Florida has looked shaky so far. The Razorbacks might lack the star power compared to other teams, but they’re definitely talented enough to pull off two big upsets and get to the Final 4.

NCAAM Basketball Championship Predictions

Last June, when I first analyzed this NCAAB futures bet, I jumped on the Duke Blue Devils bandwagon due to the amount of talent they brought in this year with transfers and a historic freshmen class.

In fact, their five top recruits were all in the Top 18 ranked incoming freshmen with Flagg being #1, Maluach being #3, and the overlooked Kon Knueppel being #18.

I proclaimed that if you give this team until February 2025, to fully gel, that they’re going to be unstoppable come March Madness. Well, that’s exactly what happened.

Once February hit, this team took it to another level. They won the ACC Championship and have crushed the competition in the Big Dance so far. In fact, they’ve done it as a team which should put fear in the rest of the Sweet 16 teams.

Tyrese Proctor has been overshadowed by other stars on this team, yet he’s averaging 22ppg in the tournament so far. He also led Duke in scoring to capture the ACC title. With Proctor scoring alongside Flagg and Knueppel’s play, and Maluach’s toughness in the paint, this team is unbeatable.

There’s no reason for myself or anyone else to jump off the Duke bandwagon now. They’re still my College Basketball pick to win it all!

Cooper Flagg will be the #1 pick in the NBA Draft this year, but not before he wins a National Championship at Duke.

Bet: Duke Blue Devils (+225)

Who won the Men’s College Basketball Championship?

The following is a list of the most recent Men’s College Basketball Championship winners: