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Opening 2025 NCAA Tournament Odds – UConn +1400 for March Madness Three-peat

Sascha Paruk

by Sascha Paruk in College Basketball

Updated Apr 8, 2024 · 8:16 PM PDT

Connecticut Huskies guard Tristen Newton cutting down the nets after winning the national championship
Apr 3, 2023; Houston, TX, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard Tristen Newton (2) cuts down a piece of the net after defeating the San Diego State Aztecs in the national championship game of the 2023 NCAA Tournament at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
  • The 2025 March Madness odds have already been posted at online sportsbooks
  • Duke, which has top recruit Cooper Flagg coming in, has opened as the betting favorite
  • See the 2025 March Madness championship odds for the top 40 teams on the board

After back-to-back dominant championships by the UConn Huskies, the 2025 college basketball national championship odds have opened with eight teams between +1000 and +1800. While the Huskies are included in that bunch at +1400, it’s the Duke Blue Devils who have opened as the +1000 favorites to win the 2025 Men’s NCAA Tournament.

The table below lists the 2025 NCAA Tournament championship odds for the top 40 teams on the board.

2025 March Madness Champion Odds

Team Odds
Duke +1000
Kansas +1400
North Carolina +1400
UConn +1400
Alabama +1600
Arizona +1600
Houston +1600
Baylor +1800
Kentucky +2000
Iowa State +2200
Auburn +2500
Gonzaga +2500
Purdue +2800
Arkansas +3000
Illinois +4000
Michigan State +4000
Rutgers +4000
Tennessee +4000
Texas +4000
Tennessee +4000
Creighton +5000
Marquette +5000
Miami FL +5000
BYU +6000
Florida +6000
Ohio State +6000
Saint John’s +6000
Saint Mary’s +6000
UCLA +6000
Maryland +7000
Michigan +7000
Villanova +7000
Wisconsin +7000
San Diego State +8000
Texas Tech +8000
USC +8000
Memphis +9000
Mississippi State +9000
Missouri +9000
Texas A&M +9000

The top team on the board that has never won a national title is Alabama (+1600), which reached its first-ever Final Four this season, losing to eventual-champion UConn.

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UConn Will Have Whole New Cast

It’s possible that Dan Hurley will have to replace all five of his starters. Tristen Newton and Cam Spencer are seniors (as is sixth man Hassan Diarra) while sophomore center Donovan Clingan and freshman guard Stephon Castle both project as lottery picks. Sophomore forward Alex Karaban is a likely second-round pick if he chooses to go pro.

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Hurley has two top-100 recruits coming in and 6’10 junior Samson Johnson (5.4 PPG, 2.8 RPG) should adjust well to a starting role, but next year’s Huskies will be a completely different group than the one that romped to a second straight national championship. If Hurley is going to lead UConn to the first three-peat since early 70s UCLA, he’s going to do it the hard way.

I expect UConn to drop way down this list when the realities of roster turnover set in.

Duke Has Plenty of Variables

The Blue Devils will lose senior guard Jeremy Roach (14.0 PPG, 3.3 APG) are almost certain to lose stud freshman Jared McCain (14.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG) to the NBA, but it’s possible that leading scorer and rebounder Kyle Filipowski (16.4 PPG, 8.3 PPG) could return for his junior season. Same goes for freshman guard Caleb Foster (7.7 PPG, 40.6 3P%). And Jon Scheyer has the top-ranked recruit in the nation, 6’9 wing Cooper Flagg, joining the mix along with three other players in the top 25.

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The Blue Devils went 29-7 and are coming off an impressive run to the Elite Eight. They finished the season rated seventh in adjusted efficiency at KenPom and were a rock-solid 21-14-1 against the spread in 2023-24. Their spot at the top of the board makes sense given how much the teams above them in the analytics will be losing. Duke’s odds are going to shift – one way or the other – when Filipowski makes his final draft decision.

Zags Will Be Running It Back

Gonzaga didn’t have a banner year, failing to win either the WCC regular-season or tournament championship. But the Zags did win 16 of their final 19 games and reached the Sweet 16 for the ninth straight season, where they bowed out to Purdue. They finished the year rated 12th at KenPom and eighth at Haslametrics. Their best regular-season win was an 89-85 victory at Rupp Arena over Kentucky, and they absolutely demolished Kansas (89-68) in the NCAA Tournament.

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The only senior on their roster was forward Anton Watson (14.5 PPG, 7.1 RPG), the team’s second-leading scorer and rebounder. Barring unforeseen transfers, Mark Few should have the likes of Graham Ike, Ryan Nembhard, Nolan Hickman, Ben Huff, Ben Gregg, and Dusty Stromer back, which is a Final Four-calibre team.

Look for the Zags to start the season shorter than their current price of +2500.

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