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The Kansas Jayhawks were the preseason No. 1 team in the nation and although Kansas fans didn’t get to enjoy a dominant regular-season or Big 12 Championship, a national title is still in play. Kansas is 21-12 this season, the worst win percentage in Bill Self’s 22 years as head coach and the program’s lowest since the 1988-89 season. NCAA Tournament 2025 wins can change that, but Self will likely need to best two other elite coaches to do that with the No. 7 seed Kansas Jayhawks playing John Calipari’s No. 10 Arkansas Razorbacks in the first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. If Kansas wins the opening round, it will likely face No. 2 seed St. John’s, led by Rick Pitino, in March Madness 2025. Will Self avenge a down year, or will this be a quick 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket run for the Jayhawks? Before making any predictions for games in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, see the March Madness bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
SportsLine’s proven projection model has simulated every game in the tournament 10,000 times. It has absolutely crushed its March Madness picks recently, beating over 91% of all CBS Sports brackets in four of the past six tournaments. It was all over UConn’s championship run a year ago and nailed 13 teams in the Sweet 16. It also nailed Alabama’s Cinderella run to the Final Four as a 4-seed.
It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 24 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016.
Now, SportsLine’s advanced computer model has simulated the entire 2025 NCAA Tournament 10,000 times to come up with the perfect 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket and find out which teams will pull off the biggest upsets. You shouldn’t even think about making a pick without seeing what their model has to say.
Top 2025 NCAA Basketball Tournament bracket upset picks
One of the matchups from the Midwest Region that could ultimately shape the 2025 NCAA bracket outcome: No. 8 Gonzaga vs. No. 9 Georgia. The Bulldogs are playing in their 26th straight NCAA Tournament, 25th under head coach Mark Few, and this is their lowest seeding since 2016. The Bulldogs had four West Coast Conference losses this year, its most under Few, and went just 3-3 against ranked opponents this year. However, Gonzaga still won its 11th WCC Tournament over the last 13 years in a 58-51 win over Saint Mary’s. Georgia went 4-10 against ranked opponents this year but had wins over Florida and St. John’s, who are No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in their regions in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
Another pivotal Midwest Region matchup: No. 5 Clemson vs. No. 12 McNeese State. A litmus test for a smaller-conference underdog is to see how it performed against powerful programs in non-conference play. McNeese State played Alabama and Mississippi State and kept both games within single digits, indicating that the Cowboys can stick around with this caliber of team. Clemson, however, ranks inside the top 25 in both offensive and defensive efficiency via KenPom’s metrics, which makes the Tigers not only a tough out in the first round, but also a sleeper pick to go deep in the 2025 NCAA bracket.
Finally, the matchup between No. 4 Purdue and No. 13 High Point will be a fascinating one to watch in the Midwest. The Boilermakers lost in the national championship game to UConn last season and had to replace national player of the year Zach Edey, but Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer were both back in the lineup to give Purdue one of the most experienced backcourts in the country. Smith is averaging 16.1 points and 8.7 assists per game this season while Loyer is averaging 13.8 points and shooting 46.4% from the 3-point line. However, High Point is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance and has already set a new program record with 29 wins. The Big South regular-season and tournament champions rank top 25 in the nation in both scoring average (82.2 ppg) and KenPom adjusted offensive efficiency (118.5). You can see the model’s 2025 NCAA bracket picks here.
How to make 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket predictions
Who wins every tournament-defining matchup, and which teams will make surprising runs through the 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket? With the model’s track record of calling bracket-busting upsets, you’ll want to see which stunners it’s calling this year before locking in any 2025 NCAA bracket picks.
So what’s the optimal NCAA Tournament 2025 bracket, and which NCAA Tournament Cinderella teams will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which region features three must-have upsets, including a play-in team that absolutely stuns its first-round opponent, all from the model that’s beaten 91% of bracket players in four of the last six tournaments.
