2026 March Madness odds and predictions: Breakdown of every game in the Midwest Region including upsets

Not one of the top four seeds in any region lost in the Opening Round of last season’s NCAA Tournament. Just one double digit seed (Arkansas as a 10-seed) advanced to the Sweet 16. Chalk prevailed by and large throughout the tournament. Will this year’s tournament unfold in a similar fashion?

We previously broke down the first round in the East. Lets take a look at the Opening Round in the Midwest.

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2026 NCAA Tournament: Midwest Region

The Midwest was rocked yesterday with the arrest of Aden Holloway on federal drug charges. Head Coach Nate Oats said Monday the Crimson Tide were preparing to play without the star guard. Holloway is the second leading scorer on the team (16.8ppg). That loss is sizable. If the team’s top three-point shooter is absent beyond even their opening round game, his absence will be more than noticeable. Does Michigan now reach the Elite Eight without breaking much of a sweat?

Lets dive into the region and look at every game of the First Round.

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No. 1 Michigan Wolverines vs. No. 16 Howard/UMBC

Spread: TBD
Total: TBD

Purdue had the arsenal to upset the Wolverines in the Big Ten Championship. Neither the Bison nor the Retrievers have that kind of firepower. The injury to L.J. Cason will eventually catch up to the Wolverines but they roll in Round 1 and cover what will undoubtedly be a big number.

No. 8 Georgia Bulldogs (-162) vs. No. 9 St. Louis Billikens (+136)

Spread: Georgia -2.5
Total: 169.5
This game opened Georgia -1.5 with the Total set at 171.5.

St. Louis shoots the ball better than every other team in the country. They’ll need to be good because while they rebound the ball well, few teams do that better than Georgia. Pace is also something to consider. The Bulldogs will push tempo at every opportunity. For the last month or so, St. Louis has regularly started games slowly. They can ill afford to do that against a Georgia team that ranks Top 5 in scoring in all of college basketball. The play is…

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Publish date : 2026-03-17 16:43:00

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