March Madness picks: Expert predictions, odds, betting lines, schedule for NCAA tournament Elite Eight

Yahoo

29-03-2025

No. 1 vs. No. 3. And three No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchups.
Those are the seeds for the Elite 8, as one of the chalkiest NCAA tournaments ever moves on. There were some nervous moments from the top teams in the Sweet 16, but Texas Tech had a wild comeback, Michigan State and Auburn rallied after showing some signs of being in trouble and Houston got a last-second shot to advance. The only seed outside of the top two lines that made it to the Elite 8 is Texas Tech, which was all the way down as a No. 3 seed. St. John's is the only top-two seed that lost before the Elite 8. There are many brackets that still are in pretty good shape late in the tournament.
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Let's see if the favorites keep rolling as we find out the Final Four. Here are the picks for the Elite 8, with all odds from BetMGM:
All times Eastern.
Florida (-7.5) over Texas Tech, 6:09 p.m. Saturday
Texas Tech's comeback against Arkansas in the Sweet 16 was amazing. They had a 16-3 run late in the second half to force overtime, then a Darrion Williams shot late in overtime clinched the win. It reinforced that the Red Raiders are a tough, well-coached and talented team. But Florida is a lot different than Arkansas. Since early February the Gators are 13-3 against the spread, via Covers.com, which shows that a good team is still easily outperforming the market expectations. The Gators had a scare against UConn in the second round, but bounced right back with a 16-point win over a good Maryland team in the Sweet 16. Depth is a bit overrated in the NCAA tournament, but it can't hurt that the Gators keep coming at opponents with waves of talented players. Texas Tech is very good, and the Red Raiders were tested all year in a very good league. But Florida is on another level. The tournament has been defined by favorites winning, so maybe the best move is just leaning into taking the chalk.
Which four teams will move on to the Final Four in San Antonio? (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Duke (-7.5) over Alabama, 8:49 p.m. Saturday
If Alabama shoots like it did Thursday, the Crimson Tide will go to the Final Four. They hit 25-of-51 from the 3-point line. The 25 made 3s was an NCAA tournament record. Anyone who didn't know of coach Nate Oats' philosophy of shooting almost only 3s or layups knows about it now. The problem is, the Crimson Tide might need 20 or more 3s again to advance. Duke looks like 2023 and 2024 UConn, cruising to a championship. They're rolling behind Cooper Flagg, who is three wins from being a college basketball legend. Duke didn't cover against Arizona, so they won't replicate the Huskies' run of all double-digit wins, but the Blue Devils are still the team to beat. And they're a much, much better defensive team than BYU. The Crimson Tide won't be able to rain 3s as easily on Saturday. Alabama is excellent on offense and this season they've already beat Houston and Auburn, a couple of No. 1 seeds, so it's not like they can't explode on offense and pull the upset. But it's not fun going against this Duke team. There are many other good teams still alive, but if Duke doesn't win it all it will be a disappointment for the Blue Devils.
Tennessee (+3.5) over Houston, 2:20 p.m. Sunday
We have to get one team outside of the No. 1 seeds in the Final Four, right? In some other seasons Tennessee would have been a good choice as a No. 1 seed. It's just that there was no room for them on the top line in this bracket. But it's an elite team, with the 17th most efficient offense and third most efficient defense in the sport according to KenPom.com. Houston is a great team as well, perfectly capable of winning it all. But at very least, the Volunteers can keep it to a one-possession game. They were very impressive in the Sweet 16.
Auburn (-5.5) over Michigan State, 5:05 p.m. Sunday
Auburn had been underwhelming since late in the regular season and then found itself trailing Michigan by nine in the second half. Suddenly the Tigers from earlier in the season reemerged. Auburn played its best basketball in a while to cruise past Michigan, looking like the team that spent most of the season as the co-favorite with Duke to win the title. It could be foolish to believe that half of a half of basketball means Auburn is back, but the Tigers still have that top gear and it was good to see it. Michigan State will be ready, as it always is, but if that Auburn team shows up again and does it for 40 minutes? Then we'll see the favorite cover fairly easily and Auburn get itself back in the conversation as a team that can cut down the nets in San Antonio.