March madness
68 teams, six rounds, one winner. This year’s March Madness begins on March 18 and will crown a champion on April 7. The single-elimination college basketball tournament is an American establishment and has acted as the national championship for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1 College Basketball since 1939. Last year, a combined nearly 34 million viewers tuned in to the finals of the men’s and women’s tournament.
Based on regular season play thus far, the Duke Blue Devils and Auburn Tigers are the top favorites to win the men’s tournament. As of late February, these schools were the only two teams that had negative odds in the money line to make the Final Four. Duke, led by New Balance-sponsored 6’9” guard, Cooper Flagg, will seek to win their sixth NCAA title and first without famed college coach Mike Krzyzewski or Coach K, familiarly. Flagg made headlines this past summer for holding his own in practices with the Olympic champions of Team USA and, if he declares, will likely go first overall in the 2025 NBA Draft. Other top teams in this tournament are the University of Florida, the University of Alabama and the University of Houston. The Alabama Crimson Tide have been averaging over 90 points on offense a game, the most in the NCAA, while the Florida Gators have taken down Auburn and won three straight. A notable name missing from the list of top favorites is Dan Hurley’s University of Connecticut (UConn). After winning back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024, Hurley turned down a six-year, $70 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers to chase a three-peat with UConn. While the UConn Huskies still qualified, they will enter the tournament with 40-1 odds to win.
In the women’s tournament, which was introduced in 1982 and has the same format as the men’s, the South Carolina Gamecocks look to repeat as champions from last year. The Gamecocks’ Chloe Kitts and MiLaysia Fulwiley will have to hold off red-hot University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). Led by Gabriela Jauqez, sister of Jaime Jaquez Jr., a graduated UCLA star, the Bruins have gone 26-1 in their season so far and show no signs of slowing down. Isaiah Fernandez (’26), however, predicts their rivals, the University of Southern California (USC) Trojans to take home the title.
“Juju Watkins is balling. I think USC has a pretty good shot. UCLA is doing really good too, but I don't know,” Fernandez said. “I think USC is gonna take it this year.”
Fernandez made picks for the men’s tournament as well.
“I think Duke is looking pretty good. They always look really good but especially this year with Cooper Flagg, generational prospect,” Fernandez said. “I think Auburn looks really good as well. I think Duke or Auburn is gonna take it.”
Of the 36 teams who have won the men’s tournament, UCLA has the most titles with 11. On the women’s side, UConn has the most titles with 11 as well. Coincidentally, Samo varsity basketball player Zach Bennett (’26) predicts UCLA to win the men’s tournament and UConn, the women’s.
“I think UCLA will win,” Bennett said. “They’ve got a good team, they have heart. I like Trent Perry too because he's from around LA and went to Harvard Westlake.”
March Madness is infinitely hard to predict. Since 2014, Warren Buffet has offered $1 billion to any of his employees who can submit a perfect bracket. Berkshire Hathaway employee or not, no one has ever predicted the entire tournament correctly. The tournament is full of upsets and nonstop, entertaining chaos.