2026 NCAA tournament picks, predictions: Best bets for the Final Four

We saw the definition of March Madness last weekend, when No. 2 UConn stunned No. 1 overall seed Duke with a last-second 3-pointer to win 73-72 and complete a historic comeback, having been down 15 points at halftime.

UConn is a small underdog against No. 3 Illinois in the Final Four, while No. 1 Arizona is a currently a small ‘dog against fellow No. 1 seed Michigan in what should be a fantastic matchup between arguably the two best teams in the country.

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Below you’ll find the favorite wagers for all the games from our college basketball handicappers — Corbie Craig, Matt Jacob and Matt Russell. We’ll update this file throughout the week with more wagers from our experts.

All odds courtesy of BetMGM.

Best bets for Saturday’s Final Four games

No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 1 Michigan (-1.5, 157.5)

Jacob: First-half scores in Michigan’s last five contests dating to the Big Ten tournament championship game: 38-38, 50-46, 48-39, 49-47 and 48-26. All five surpassed 75 points and all five flew over the first-half total, with the Wolverines putting up an average of 46.2 points.

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Meanwhile, in its last eight games dating to the regular season finale at Colorado, Arizona and its opponents have combined for at least 74 first-half points in six times. During this stretch, the Wildcats have averaged 37.1 points in the opening 30 minutes of action.

Translation: Both of these No. 1 seeds love to push the pace, particularly early; both can fill the bucket in bunches; and both are extraordinarily efficient on the offensive end of the floor. I don’t expect anything different in Saturday’s Final Four nightcap.

In fact, both teams have already shown in the NCAA tournament what happens when facing an opponent that also loves to sprint up and down the court. In the Sweet 16, Arizona beat Arkansas 109-88 (with the teams combining for 97 first-half points), and Michigan thumped Alabama 90-77 (with 96 of those points scored before halftime).

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It might take a beat or…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/mens-college-basketball/betting/article/2026-ncaa-tournament-picks-predictions-best-bets-for-the-final-four-183324756.html

Author : Matt Jacob,Matt Russell

Publish date : 2026-03-31 18:33:00

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