Updated 2025 March Madness odds have been released. Chaos reigns supreme through the first month of the men's NCAA basketball season. The UConn Huskies have lost three straight games in their quest for a third-straight National Championship. Leaving the door open for teams like Auburn, Duke and Gonzaga. Dan Hurley may be wishing he was in Los Angeles right now.
Here's a look at the full list of college basketball national championship odds, where the Huskies have fallen all the way to seventh on the board.
2025 March Madness Championship Odds
| Teams | Odds |
|---|---|
| Auburn Tigers | +600 |
| Duke Blue Devils | +900 |
| Tennessee Volunteers | +1000 |
| Houston Cougars | +1100 |
| Alabama Crimson Tide | +1400 |
| Gonzaga Bulldogs | +1400 |
| Connecticut Huskies | +1600 |
| Iowa State Cyclones | +1600 |
| Kansas Jayhawks | +1800 |
| Kentucky Wildcats | +2000 |
Odds as of December 24th, 2024 05:41am EST. |
Auburn Favored To Win 2025 National Championship at +900
The Tigers burned me in last year's March Madness tournament, as they were my pick to go all the way. Perhaps I was a year too early.
Star Johni Broome remains. The best player in college basketball, Broome and fellow big man Dylan Cardwell continue to crush the opposition. In the 77 minutes they've shared the floor, the Broome-Cardwell units have gone plus-68, while scoring a stellar 1.64 points per possession.
A last second victory over Iowa State last week has the Tigers atop most prognosticators power rankings. KenPom lists Auburn at the top of his rankings, with the highest offensive rating in the country, and a net rating of plus-31.94.
Bruce Pearl's team travels to Cameron Indoor Stadium this week, where they'll be tested by fellow favorites Duke. If they can overcome Cooper Flagg and the Blue Devils on the road, the Tigers will stretch their lead atop the March Madness odds board.
NCAAB National Champion Darkhorse: Iowa State +1800
Iowa State was just a few plays away from defeating Auburn and earning their place atop the March Madness odds. They lost on a last second Broome tip-in, and are an elite squad on both ends of the floor.
KenPom ranks the Cyclones seventh in his adjusted efficiency rankings. Crucially, TJ Otzelberger's offense is all the way up to fourth in offensive rating, knocking over nearly 64% of shots at the rim. They've also launched far more three-pointers this season, and have refined their shooting chart to be mostly layups and corner threes.
When combined with their notoriously stingy defense, the Cyclones new found offensive chops will have them playing well into March.
Last 10 College Basketball National Champions
| Year | Team | Preseason Odds |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | UConn | +2000 (3) |
| 2023 | UConn | +8000 (28) |
| 2022 | Kansas | +1400 (7) |
| 2021 | Baylor | +800 (1) |
| 2019 | Virginia | +1350 (6) |
| 2018 | Villanova | +2700 (7) |
| 2017 | North Carolina | +1900 (8) |
| 2016 | Villanova | +2500 (10) |
| 2015 | Duke | +900 (4) |
| 2014 | UConn | +6500 (14) |
With their 2024 March Madness win, UConn is the only three-time champion in the last ten years. Coincidentally, the Huskies have the longest odds to win a championship on this list. In 2014, they had the 14th-longest odds at +6500 and in 2023 they had the 28th-longest odds at +8000. As you know, they won both times, so disrespect UConn at your peril.
NCAA Basketball Teams with the Most Titles
| School | # Championships Won | Years |
|---|---|---|
| UCLA | 11 | 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1995 |
| Kentucky | 8 | 1948, 1949, 1951, 1958, 1978, 1996, 1998, 2012 |
| UConn | 6 | 1999, 2004, 2011, 2014, 2023, 2024 |
| North Carolina | 6 | 1957, 1982, 1993, 2005, 2009, 2017 |
| Duke | 5 | 1991, 1992, 2001, 2010, 2015 |
| Indiana | 5 | 1940, 1953, 1976, 1981, 1987 |
| Kansas | 4 | 1952, 1988, 2008, 2022 |
| Villanova | 3 | 1985, 2016, 2018 |
Holding the league record for March Madness titles and longest win streak (seven years), the UCLA Bruins are the clearcut college ball champion. I mean, the John R. Wooden Award for Player of the Year is named after their head coach during that insane streak – what more of a legacy could you ask for?
Trailing UCLA are the Kentucky Wildcats and UNC’s Tar Heels with an impressive eight and six titles respectively – this year, UCLA is further down the odds list than either of these teams. It’ll be a few years before they can be dethroned, but there are undoubtedly expectations for UCLA to keep producing and earn their first title since 1995.
March Madness Betting Trends
Finding trends and patterns in bets is our specialty -- if you want to be a great handicapper, it should be yours too! We've come to know the NCAA's National Championship as a chaotic and exciting event where anyone can walk away with a title, but that doesn't mean there aren't a few trends to keep your eye on. Before placing a March Madness futures wager, check out these betting trends:
- Conference-wise, the Big East has been on a bit of a tear, claiming 4/10 of the last NCAA titles -- the ACC isn't far behind at three in the last ten, and a Big 12 team has won in the previous two-straight years.
- In the last three years, 12th seeds have had the 5th seeds' number in the first round -- they're 6-6 on the moneyline and 8-4 against the spread.
- Underdogs perform well in the first round, plain and simple. They're 122-97-2 ATS since 2015, and almost half of those teams finished those games with a straight-up win.
- Fading the public holds true in March Madness -- since 2016, teams that held 60% of spread bets have ended up going a cumulative 56-80-5 ATS.
How to Bet on March Madness
Betting on March Madness has become increasingly popular for even the most casual of college ball fans. The most common option for the tournament is selecting the overall winner by making a March Madness futures bet – nice and simple, all you have to do is pick the correct 1/68. Easy, right? There are other options for futures too, like selecting the Final Four or individual conference winners.
Of course, when the actual tournament is going on, it’ll be a free-for-all just like the regular season. Each game will have its moneylines, spreads, totals and props – if you need a refresher on how to bet on college basketball, take a look at our guide and review a few key handicapping tools like NCAAB computer picks and public consensus data.
Where to bet on the March Madness
March Madness and betting are synonymous with each other – even your coworkers and elderly neighbors have some sort of pool going to predict the winner. Because of that popularity, you’ll find March Madness odds and matchups available at any major sportsbook under the NCAAB section.
If you need any advice on what to look for in a college basketball betting site, check out our sportsbook reviews for sites that offer NCAAB action!
Understanding The Odds To Win The NCAA Championship
If you’re interested in March Madness futures, you’re likely looking to bet on the outright winner of the tournament. Like the odds table at the top of the page, odds will usually look like this:
- Gonzaga +200
- Baylor +750
- Kansas +1000
- UCLA +2500
These odds tell you the likelihood and corresponding payout of one of these teams winning a national championship. Unlike a moneyline bet, where there is a clear favorite represented by a minus sign (-), the team with the lowest odds would be the favorite. In our example, it’s Gonzaga, and the rest are underdogs even though each team has a plus sign (+) prefacing its odds.
If you were to bet $100 on the Gonzaga Bulldogs and they won, your sportsbook would reward you with $200 in profit for a $300 total win. Betting on a long-shot winner like UCLA at +2500 would earn you $2500 on that same bet – the profits are much higher the further you go down the table, but so is the risk.
To see how much you’d win on the futures odds, check out our Odds Calculator. It’ll show you what your payout would be based on the odds and amount wagered. Don’t forget you can also make selections on which teams will make the Final Four, who will win each conference, and which player will take home the John R. Wooden Award for Player of the Year in the regular season.
