NCAA Tournament 2024: Early Predictions, Championship Odds for Men's March Madness

It will still be a little while before we know for sure which teams will take part in this year's men's NCAA Tournament.

That doesn't mean we need to delay our predictions for the tournament.

We have nearly a season's worth of data on these teams, and while the madness of March doesn't always follow with that data's logic, we still have hunches about which teams are built to make a title run.

Will coach Dan Hurley's UConn Huskies become the first repeat champions since Billy Donovan's Florida Gators went back-to-back in 2006 and 2007? Or will someone knock the Huskies off the hill and embark on their own title run?

To help answer that question, we'll examine the latest championship odds from DraftKings before making a prediction about how two of the top projected seeds will fare.

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UConn +500

Houston +650

Purdue +750

Arizona +1200

Tennessee +1200

North Carolina +2000

Iowa State +2000

Kentucky +2200

Duke +2200

Auburn +2200

Marquette +2500

Creighton +2800

Alabama +2800

Kansas +3000

Illinois +3000

Baylor +3000

BYU +5500

Michigan State +7000

Florida +7000

San Diego State +7000

Saint Mary's +7000

Gonzaga +7500

Wisconsin +8000

South Carolina +8000

This prediction is less a vote against the Huskies and more a reflection of the enormous odds they face.

There's a reason repeat champions are so seldom seen in the Big Dance. The single-elimination format erases all margin for error, meaning teams must bring their best six consecutive games and can't afford a slipup.

UConn has a really good team. Three of its top four scorers—Tristen Newton, Alex Karaban and Donovan Clingan—were key contributors for last year's championship team. That core has been complemented by newcomers like sharpshooter Cam Spencer, a graduate transfer from Rutgers, and electric freshman guard Stephon Castle, a five-star recruit out of Georgia.

But there are plenty of other good-to-great teams in this field. And as everyone knows, the best teams don't always come out on top at this tournament.

Whether UConn's offense goes uncharacteristically cold, or some opponent gets scorching hot, something will keep this club from defending its throne.

In coach Tommy Lloyd's first two seasons at the helm, Arizona snagged a top-two seed at this tournament. The Wildcats are closing in on a third, having posted a .793 winning percentage and holding a No. 1 seed on the latest bracket from ESPN's Joe Lunardi.

Lloyd's first two teams had trouble translating that regular season success into postseason triumph, though. In 2022, the top-seeded Wildcats were bounced from the Sweet 16 by fifth-seeded Houston. Last year, disaster struck the second-seeded Wildcats, who were upended from the opening round by 15th-seeded Princeton.

This year will be different.

The Wildcats have everything needed for a deep tournament run. Experienced guards are hugely helpful this time of year, and Arizona has a pair of super productive seniors in Caleb Love and Pelle Larsson. Sophomore center Oumar Ballo checks the box for a difference-making big man. This offense almost never runs cold (second-most points per game at 90.3), and the defense is plenty stingy (15th in efficiency, per KenPom).

Arizona has top-level talent, depth, experience and two-way balance. All of the ingredients are in place for a championship-banner-raising performance.

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