Jay Bilas Correctly Predicted Final Four of NCAA Tournament
Just a couple of weeks ago, ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas was feeling the wrath of social media users due to his NCAA Tournament prediction.
Although getting a perfect bracket is less likely than being struck by lightning or winning the lottery, fans were perplexed at Bilas' Final Four teams. He forecasted that all four No. 1 seeds, consisting of Auburn, Duke, Florida and Houston would be the final teams standing.
Advertisement
In theory, the top seeds have the easiest path to the championship due to seeding, but the 2008 season was the only time in tournament history where all top seeds made it. So, when Bilas fired off this prediction, fans were irate at his lack of creativity and at the fact that he was so confident in something that happened only once before.
Well, for all the fans who were clutching their pearls about his prediction, they had to eat a slice of humble pie on Sunday. Following Florida's 84-79 win over Texas Tech, and Duke's 85-65 win over Alabama and Houston's 69-50 win over Tennessee, all that was left was for Auburn to take down Michigan State.
It was a task that the Tigers were able to pull off Sunday evening, as they ended up winning 70-64.
ESPN commentator Jay Bilas.© Matt Stone/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
On top of being correct, Bilas will have some time to take a victory lap. The Final Four will take place this upcoming Saturday as the teams will head to San Antonio, Texas, with the games set to be played at the Alamodome.
Advertisement
As of writing, the oddsmakers at FanDuel currently have Duke (+105) to win the title. Florida (+206) has the second-best odds, Houston the third (+300) and Auburn has the fourth (+500).
While fans may not have liked Bilas' prediction, they may owe him an apology.
Related: Rick Pitino Breaks Silence on RJ Luis Jr. Leaving St. John's After Controversial NCAA Tournament
Related: Kim Mulkey Sends Heartfelt Message on Flau'jae Johnson After NCAA Tournament Loss

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
36 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Auburn star Jackson Koivun shines in U.S Open debut
A sensational two-year stretch for Auburn sophomore golfer Jackson Koivun continued this week. The two-time reigning SEC Golfer of the Year teed off at the US Open in Oakmont, Pennsylvania early Thursday morning, becoming the first Auburn Tiger to participate in the hardest major on the PGA Tour since Jason Dufner eight years ago. Koivun, who has made the cut in all three PGA Tournament events he's played this year, is one of 15 amateur golfers in the field this weekend. He finished in a tie for third (+2) among all 15 in the field after the first round on Thursday, with only San Diego State's Justin Hastings (E) and Arizona sophomore Zach Pollo (E) ahead of him. Advertisement The 20-year-old was agressive throughout the late morning and early afternoon on Thursday. Koivun's scorecard didn't feature a par until his sixth hole of the day, as the decorated Tiger began his round with a bogey on hole No. 10, followed by a pair of birdies, a bogey on hole No. 13, and another birdie on 14. He settled in from there, playing even golf by making par on the final four holes of the back nine. Unfortunately a double-bogey on Koivun's first hole of the front nine dampened what was a spectacular first half performance for the young Tiger. A wild bunker shot halted his momentum, leading to just one birdie over Koivun's final 13 holes of play, and a +2 finish on the day. With only 10 golfers in the entire field under par after the first 18 holes of action, Koivun's round one finish is not only very respectable, but puts him in position to possibly tee off alongside PGA Tour veterans like Ludvig Åberg, Xander Schauffele, and Keegan Bradley, who all hover around the sophomore on the day one leaderboard. If Koivun can replicate or improve upon his day one scorecard, he will likely make his fourth consecutive PGA Tour cut with the projected line hovering around five strokes over par after the first day of action at Oakmont Country Club. Advertisement Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Brian on Twitter@TheRealBHauch This article originally appeared on Auburn Wire: Auburn golf: Jackson Koivun shines in U.S Open debut


Business Wire
44 minutes ago
- Business Wire
VideoAmp Launches THE REPLAY Revealing New Insights Into Live Sports Audiences
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, VideoAmp is debuting a new monthly insights report called THE REPLAY – an interactive analysis of television viewership across major sports tentpole events. Each edition of THE REPLAY will explore the nuances of viewing behavior, regional loyalty, and audience segmentation that shape how America tunes in at home and in public venues leveraging VideoAmp's out-of-home measurement tools. VideoAmp's out-of-home measurement examines whether fans gathered in public venues or stayed home for the big game. Powered by VideoAmp's VALID ™ big data and tech engine, THE REPLAY delivers advanced audience ratings and household-level insights in a highly visual and interactive public-facing tool. 'For media companies and advertisers alike, THE REPLAY will become a must-use tool for decision-making,' said Peter Liguori, Executive Chairman of VideoAmp. 'This isn't simply a monthly data dump. Our experts and analysts will be providing an unprecedented and thoughtful look at sports media consumption, and the unique moments when brands can reach passionate, highly engaged viewers that only VideoAmp's advanced audience capabilities make possible.' The first edition of THE REPLAY looks back on this year's March Madness, examining how fans watched and where their loyalties shifted. From out-of-home spikes to changing regional dynamics, behavior evolved each round. For example, this month's edition found that during the later rounds of the tournament, the audience included a higher share of top investor households (having at least $100K in invested assets) and those with high discretionary income (HHs $200K). The March 30th Michigan v Auburn game and all the Final Four games including the Championship saw over 1m+ $200k households tune in. The next edition, coming in early July, will highlight the NBA Finals with future months set to explore The Stanley Cup Finals, the NFL season opener and the US Open. In 2024, 75 of the top 100 programs in terms of live audience were sports programming. Streamers know this, and are increasingly investing more in the space. Emarketer recently published a report that projected that over 105 million U.S. viewers watched live sports digitally in 2024, an increase from 95.5 million during the previous year. That same report expects digital viewing of live sports will reach 127.4 million viewers in the U.S., a 21% increase from 2024. About VideoAmp VideoAmp is a media measurement company transforming advertising. By leveraging the power of currency-grade big data, VideoAmp's solutions provide clients with access to advanced audiences and the ability to precisely plan, optimize and measure media investments across platforms to achieve better outcomes. With these solutions, media sellers can increase the value of their inventory, while advertisers can benefit from increased return on investment. VideoAmp has seen incredible adoption for its measurement and currency solutions with 880% YoY growth, 98% coverage of the TV publisher ecosystem, 11 agency groups and more than 1,000+ advertisers. VideoAmp is headquartered in Los Angeles and New York with offices across the United States. To learn more, visit


USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
College World Series: Best bets for Coastal Carolina vs Arizona, Louisville vs Oregon St
College World Series: Best bets for Coastal Carolina vs Arizona, Louisville vs Oregon St The College World Series kicks off in Omaha on Friday. The action begins with Coastal Carolina facing Arizona at 1 p.m. CT. Later, Oregon State takes on Louisville at 6 p.m. CT. Play in Bracket 2 won't start until Saturday, where UCLA faces Murray State and LSU meets Arkansas. Arkansas and LSU are considered the best two teams in the field. Both are stacked with MLB talent. Both squads are battle-tested, too, after playing through the grind of an SEC schedule. It would be a major upset if UCLA or Murray State found a way to win Bracket 2. Coastal Carolina and Oregon State make up the next tier. The Chanticleers and Beavers are seen as serious contenders in Bracket 1, while Arizona and Louisville are long shots. Baseball is a weird game, especially in the postseason. It's a fool's game to make predictions, but that's what we're going to do today. Here are your best bets for Friday's action at the College World Series. Coastal Carolina vs. Arizona U9 -115 Depending on where you look, you might see 8.5 as the total for this one. DraftKings still has it at nine runs with -115 odds. Charles Schwab can be hitter or pitcher friendly depending on the weather. The forecast on Friday isn't calling for a major breeze, so I don't expect the ball to be jumping out of the park. Coastal Carolina's pitching staff is one of the best in the country. It's a bad matchup for an Arizona lineup that ranked near the bottom of the Big 12 in runs per game. However, Arizona has the pitching and defense to compete. I don't see a lot of runs scored in this one. Pick: Under 9, -115 Oregon State -188 vs. Louisville Oregon State's moneyline sits between -185 and -200 as of Friday morning. You can find -188 at DraftKings. The Beavers will start freshman pitcher Dax Whitney. Whitney's stuff is electric with 111 strikeouts in 71.1 innings. He's posted double-digit K's in his last two NCAA Tournament outings. With Whitney on the mound, I like Oregon State's chances vs. Louisville. Pick: Oregon State moneyline, -188 Oregon State -1.5 vs. Louisville Along with Whitney on the mound, I feel good about Oregon State's lineup in this one. I have questions about Louisville's pitching staff, and the Beavers' lineup has MLB-level talent. Even if Louisville starter Patrick Forbes has a strong outing, Oregon State will get to the Louisville bullpen. You can find Oregon State -1.5 for +100 at BetMGM. Pick: Oregon State -1.5, +100 For those unfamiliar with the College World Series, here's a refresher on how the tournament works. How many teams are in the College World Series? Eight teams compete in the College World Series. Before reaching Omaha, teams must win a four-team double-elimination regional and a best-of-three super regional. Is the College World Series single elimination? No. The College World Series has two double-elimination brackets, much like the setup used in the regional round. A single loss is not the end of the world. How is the College World Series champion crowned? The winners of each four-team bracket meet in the College World Series final, which is a best-of-three series. A team could lose twice and still win it all. A loss in the opening bracket doesn't carry over to the final. 2025 College World Series teams Here are the eight teams set to compete in Omaha: Arkansas LSU UCLA Murray State Coastal Carolina Arizona Oregon State Louisville 2025 College World Series bracket Bracket 1 Bracket 1 features Coastal Carolina, Arizona, Oregon State, and Louisville. CCU vs. Arizona and Oregon State vs. Louisville are the first-round games. Bracket 2 Bracket 2 features UCLA, Murray State, Arkansas, and LSU. The first round games are UCLA vs. Murray State and LSU vs. Arkansas. 2025 College World Series Schedule