21-03-2025
3 Best Survivor picks (BYU!) for the first round of the men's NCAA tournament
3 Best Survivor picks (BYU!) for the first round of the men's NCAA tournament
Tired of filling out bracket? Not content with betting moneylines or spreads? You're in the right spot. We're taking a different approach to March Madness, exploring the teams that are most likely to help you win your Survivor Pool.
The first weekend of the NCAA men's tournament, as everyone knows, is utter chaos. So picking three teams to advance to the Round of 32 is much tougher than it sounds.
For the purposes of these picks, we'll be using the rules for the USA Today Survivor Pool — which you can still join here!
In simple terms: We want to pick teams that are going to win, but are low enough seeds to win your pool. Here's who we're rolling with in the Round of 64.
No. 12 UC San Diego over No. 5 Michigan
The name to know here is Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones. The UCSD guard from New Zealand is averaging nearly 20 points per game and creates some fun mismatches thanks to his 6-foot-6, 200-pound frame. The Tritons haven't lost since January 18, which is partly why they're a popular upset pick this week. The other reason is because UCSD plays stellar defense. Look out, Michigan.
No. 10 Vanderbilt over No. 7 Saint Mary's
There maybe a little SEC bias in this pick, but while Saint Mary's has been a tournament darling for years, the Commodores deserve some respect. Vandy has signature wins over No. 6 Tennessee, No. 9 Kentucky , No. 24 Ole Miss, No. 12 Texas A&M and No. 14 Missouri — the last three of which occurred consecutively.
No. 6 BYU over No. 11 VCU
VCU is another popular upset pick in the Round of 64, but we're going to zig a little bit and stick with BYU. The Big 12 team had a stellar season, taking down No. 23 Kansas, No. 19 Arizona and swept Iowa State. KenPom ranks the Cougars as the 24th-best team in the nation with the No. 11 offense.
