Here are the updated March madness odds to win the 2017 NCAA Division I men’s basketball championship.
North Carolina +610
The Tar Heels are the new favourite of fans who bet on March madness to cut off the nets on April 3rd. though as Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer puts it, the “Tar Heels will only go as far as Joel Berry can take them.”
Kansas +760
The Jayhawks would arguably be in UNC’s top spot were it not for the fact that they made an unexpectedly early exit from the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament. But the Big 12 tournament is not the NCAA tournament. Apples and oranges, people.
Villanova +810
The Wildcats are so good that Villanova University used the $11.4 million that men’s basketball team made them to fund their other less successful sports teams. This is a language that people who bet on March madness can certainly understand.
Gonzaga +810
The Zags struggled for a while there against SD State in the opening round of the NCAA tournament, including Nigel Williams-Goss uncharacteristically underperforming, but the rest of the team proved the Bulldogs are not a one-player squad.
Duke +810
The Blue Devils’ regular season can be best described by their fluctuations in the AP poll; from No. 1 before the start of the season, to a season-low No. 21 in Jan.-Feb. to No.17 before the ACC tournament. And then it was on like Donkey Kong, and if Duke keeps the momentum up, it’ll take a lot of barrels to stop them.
Arizona +960
The Wildcats’ March madness odds received quite a boost after convincingly defeating North Dakota in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Arizona is in the midst of a five-game winning streak encompassing regular season, Pac 12 tournament, and NCAA tourney.
Kentucky +1225
The Wildcats have won their last 11 games in a row. At the same time, lead scorer Malik Monk has been in a bit of slump as of late, hitting a scoring nadir in the SEC quarterfinals against Georgia, where he had just two points. The silver lining is Kentucky still managed to win the SEC championship.
UCLA +1425
Unlike Kentucky, the Bruins’ offence as a whole could cost them. UCLA shot 41.2% in the Pac-12 quarterfinals versus USC, and then 40.7% against Arizona in the semifinals. They pulled through in the former but succumbed in the latter.
Louisville +1675
Head coach Rick Pitino said at a press conference that he is “very confident” about his team but, are fans who bet on March madness? The Cards’ March madness odds aren’t as good as those of the preceding teams, but “the last 10 days or so I felt very confident that we made great strides,” Pitino said.
Oregon +2550
The Ducks took a heartbreaking hit when Chris Boucher suffered a season-ending torn anterior cruciate ligament. The senior forward had been averaging 11.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game, shooting 52% from the floor and 35% from the three-point field.