2025 March Insanity odds: Again favorites Florida, Duke to cowl in Remaining 4

After which there have been 4! 

The 2025 males’s NCAA Event has lacked the upsets and drama that we’ve grow to be accustomed to seeing in March. Nevertheless, we’re left with 4 excellent groups and hopefully three excellent video games to complete the season. 

For the primary time since 2008 — and for simply the second time ever — the Remaining 4 consists of all No. 1 seeds. Florida overcame a 9-point deficit within the ultimate minutes to defeat Texas Tech within the Elite Eight. Duke, Auburn and Houston all cruised to comfy wins within the final spherical to search out themselves in San Antonio, with an opportunity to chop down the nets on Monday evening. 

This Event is often beloved by followers for buzzer-beaters and Cinderella tales. However that ingredient appears to have been compromised by the brand new period of school sports activities. Now, with NIL and the switch portal, larger faculties have extra means to choose off the perfect gamers from smaller faculties. 

The 2025 model of March Insanity has been predictable and video games have usually been lopsided. Let’s see if it may be salvaged with an incredible Remaining 4, whereas we attempt to make some cash within the ultimate few video games of the faculty basketball season. 

No. 1 Florida (-2.5) vs. No. 1 Auburn 

I like Florida right here. And it’s merely due to the uncertainty surrounding Auburn famous person Johni Broome. He left final Sunday’s recreation in opposition to Michigan State with an elbow harm. Broome did return, however does that imply he’s 100% wholesome or was he fueled by adrenaline when he got here again?

Additionally, if Broome is compromised, Florida would possibly make it a degree of emphasis to be ultra-physical with him to see if it will possibly put on him down. These groups met on Feb. 8 in Auburn with a wholesome Broome. The end result was a decisive 90-81 highway win for the Gators that put Florida on the map as a nationwide contender. 

Florida, although, in lots of respects, is lucky to nonetheless be enjoying. The Gators might have misplaced to UConn, which led by six within the second half within the Spherical of 32 recreation. When the Gators performed Texas Tech, the Pink Raiders led by 9 with just some minutes remaining. Each of these shut calls, nonetheless, got here after solely sooner or later of prep. 

Florida’s most spectacular efficiency on this Event? That got here in opposition to Maryland within the Candy 16, when it had a protracted break between video games, because it has had earlier than this matchup in opposition to Auburn.

And for a bonus decide, you would possibly contemplate wagering on Broome Beneath 31.5 mixed factors, rebounds and assists.

PICK: Florida (-2.5) to win by greater than 2.5 factors 

Will Duke, Houston, Florida or Auburn win the Nationwide Championship?

No. 1 Duke (-5) vs. No. 1 Houston

A rematch of a Candy 16 recreation from final 12 months when Duke despatched 1-seed Houston packing with a 54-51 upset. In that recreation, Houston star Jamaal Shead bought harm and was not capable of return. 

I’m unsure how a lot of final 12 months’s matchup carries over to this one, as Houston was coping with accidents, and Duke has virtually a completely new (and higher) workforce from final 12 months. The one factor that I’ll take away from final 12 months that might repeat itself is the ugly, low-scoring nature of that recreation. And it lacked tempo. 

Finally, I’m going to choose Duke to win and canopy once more. The Blue Devils have been a workforce that’s merely exhausting to wager in opposition to contemplating how dominant it has been up so far. Duke has a mean margin of victory of practically 24 factors per recreation on this Event, and whereas Houston will probably be its stiffest competitors by far, I’ve no real interest in stepping in entrance of this Duke juggernaut. 

Duke quieted a red-hot Alabama offense within the Elite Eight and held the Tide to only 8-for-32 from behind the arc and solely 65 factors in a lopsided 85-65 contest. The Blue Devils have the athleticism on protection to disrupt Houston, whereas having the explosiveness on offense to ultimately draw back. 

Duke jogs my memory an excessive amount of of the final couple UConn title groups in its dominant nature for me look to wager the opposite method.

PICK: Duke (-5) to win by greater than 5 factors

Will Hill, a contributor on the Bears Bets Podcast, has been betting on sports activities for over a decade. He’s a betting analyst who has been a number on VSiN, in addition to the Goldboys Community. 

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