Updated March Madness Odds – Alabama Favored to Win National Championship Ahead of Sweet 16

• The Alabama Crimson Tide are the +360 favorites in the March Madness odds heading into the Sweet 16
• Houston (+380) and UCLA (+700) are the only other schools with betting lines shorter than +1000
• Eleven of the 16 remaining teams saw their odds shorten from where they were when the NCAA Tournament began

Certainly, there’s no madness associated with the Alabama Crimson Tide making a march to a national championship. Alabama going after a title in March – now that’s where the madness enters the picture.

Considered a blue blood when it comes to football programs, suddenly, people are discovering the the Crimson Tide also have a basketball team that’s rolling. And oddsmakers are ready to roll right along with them.

As the NCAA Tournament moves into the Sweet 16, it is Alabama that is assuming the outright favorite’s role in the March Madness odds. The Tide are set as +360 favorites.

2023 March Madness Odds

Prior to the start of the tournament, Alabama and the Houston Cougars were set as +400 co-favorites. The Cougars are currently the second betting choice at +380. Following them at +700 are the UCLA Bruins. They’re the only three schools with betting lines shorter than +1000.

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Tide Turning It On

While a pair of #1 seeds (Purdue, Kansas) have already been sent packing, Alabama, the #1 seed in the South Region, is taking care of business. The Crimson Tide not only won their first two games, they did so easily.

The average margin of victory for Alabama through the the first two rounds was 19.5 points.  Against Maryland in the second round, the Tide whipped by Terrapins by 17 points in the second half.

"Our job's not done… We're here to win a national championship." – Alabama star Brandon Miller #MarchMadness #RollTide #Alabamabasketball #crimsontide pic.twitter.com/87IrB1WaV1

— Alabama Crimson Tide | AL.com (@aldotcomTide) March 19, 2023

Houston, the other remaining #1 seed, is hardly looking dominant. The Cougars struggled to get past #15 Northern Kentucky and trailed Auburn by as many as 10 points in the second round. Injuries to starters Marcus Sasser (groin) and Jamal Shead (knee) are also casting doubt over the Cougars’ chances.

Third betting choice UCLA is also banged up. Jaylen Carter is out and Adem Bona (shoulder) is playing hurt.

Bluejays Moving On Up

Among the many movers in the March Madness betting lines are the Creighton Bluejays. They took out #3 seed and 2021 national champion Baylor in the second round of South Region play. That win came after silencing a dangerous NC State team in the opening round. Creighton’s odds were +2000 at the start of the NCAA Tournament. Today the Bluejays are the +1200 co-sixth betting choice.

It’s been a rough year for the so-called blue bloods of college basketball. North Carolina didn’t make the tournament, while Duke, Kansas and Kentucky all made second-round exits. As the defending national champion Jayhawks were bowing out, arch-rival Kansas State was moving on. The Wildcats downed Kentucky and saw their odds shorten from +6000 to +2500. That was the biggest line movement of any school.

Michigan State also made a quantum leap in the odds. Head coach Tom Izzo won his March Madness-record 16th game as a lower-seeded team when the #7 Spartans beat #2 Marquette 69-60 in the East Region. The Spartans saw their NCAA Tournament odds dip from +4500 to +2500.

Volunteers Slip Sliding Away

You would think that after a solid 65-52 dispatching of red-hot Duke that the Tennessee Volunteers would be getting some love from the oddsmakers. Instead, the Vols are being jilted. Their March Madness betting line lengthened to +1400 from +1100. Perhaps the thinking is that the injury absence of Zakai Ziegler will catch up to Tennessee as the opposition gets tougher.

"ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE" @PrincetonMBB pic.twitter.com/FSaSDkDbPZ

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 19, 2023

Speaking of not getting the love, what do the Princeton Tigers need to do to earn a little respect? Even after back-to-back upsets of Arizona and Missouri in the South Region, the Tigers saw their betting line grow from +15000 to +20000.

March Madness Showing A Crimson Hue

Alabama is healthy. The Tide are on top of their game. They’ll get San Diego State in the Sweet 16 and then the Creighton-Princeton winner in the Elite Eight. It looks like smooth sailing to the Final Four.

Alabama was set as the #1 overall seed at the outset of the NCAA Tournament. The Crimson Tide have done nothing to suggest that’s not still the case.

Pick: Alabama Crimson Tide (+360)