After a particularly wild Selection Sunday, in which Virginia was crowned a No. 1 seed after winning the ACC championship, and Larry Brown’s SMU team was left out altogether, the March Madness bracket is finally here. Our oddsmakers have the Florida Gators favored to win at +400, but as everyone knows, when it comes to the NCAA tournament, anything can happen.
Once the bracket is out, soon after come the predictions–informed or otherwise–from almost everyone in America, from now until the Round of 64 kicks off on Thursday, March 20, 2014. So, to get you set for your office pool and to help you bet on March Madness, the best tournament in sports, we’ve pulled together the picks that college basketball’s most (and least) knowledgeable minds have made for 2014’s Big Dance.
[sc:MarchMadness ]Who Will Win the 2014 NCAA College Basketball Tournament?
[sc:NCAAB240banner ]Professional basketball commentators spend their years following every major game on the college schedule, and–after the Selection Committee–are likely the people in the world who watch the most NCAA basketball. For that reason, it’s worth incorporating their bracketology into your thinking as you prepare your bracket.
CBS Sports
Online Bracketology Experts
CBS Sports is a good place to start in terms of reliable analysis, particularly their online experts, who break down the bracket with an impressive nerdiness. These four expert heavyweights weren’t cautious – they like this to be a year of upsets.
In particular, three of them selected the Kansas Jayhawks to run the table in the South, beat Florida, and make (at least) the Final, on the back of Andrew Wiggins and a returning Joel Embiid. Matt Norlander has the most unique bracket of the bunch, picking both Creighton and Duke into the Final Four – a combination you will see in few other places.
Expert |
Final Four |
National Championship |
Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
Gary Parrish |
Kansas, Creighton, Wichita State, Michigan State |
Kansas, Wichita State | Wichita State |
Matt Norlander |
Kansas, Creighton, Duke, Michigan State |
Kansas, Creighton | Kansas |
Gregg Doyel |
Kansas, Arizona, Michigan, Iowa State |
Kansas, Arizona | Kansas |
Jerry Palm |
Kansas, Arizona, Michigan, Michigan State |
Michigan State, Arizona | Michigan State |
Selection Show TV Picks
As the TV pundits for the predominant leader in college basketball coverage, CBS Sports’ experts on their Selection Sunday show left much to be desired in terms of originality, but perhaps that should be a lesson to bettors. At the time of this writing, CBS’ on-screen team had yet to reveal their picks for the Madness champion, but you can bet that at least two out of their three, like many, will be following the chalk and taking the Florida Gators.
Expert |
Final Four Prediction |
|---|---|
Clark Kellogg |
Florida, Wisconsin, Wichita State, Michigan State |
Seth Davis |
Florida, Wisconsin, Wichita State, Michigan State |
Doug Gottlieb |
Florida, Arizona, Louisville, Michigan State |
ESPN
The world-wide leader in sports is never far behind CBS in terms of March Madness, and their gurus have weighed in as well, though only Jay Bilas has been so bold as to lay down his picks past the Final Four.
Expert |
Final Four |
National Championship |
Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
Jay Bilas |
Kansas, Wisconsin, Louisville, Michigan State |
Louisville, Michigan State | Michigan State |
Eamonn Brennan |
Florida, Arizona, Louisville, Michigan State |
TBA | TBA |
Andy Katz |
Florida, Arizona, Louisville, Iowa State |
TBA | TBA |
C.L. Brown |
Florida, Arizona, Duke, Michigan State |
TBA | TBA |
SB Nation
A formal media partner of the NCAA, SB Nation has some real clout when it comes to college hoops. Their Ricky O’Donnell has weighed in with his picks, taking the Gators all the way but with some interesting choices in the East conference, where he has Connecticut to upset Villanova, and Iowa State to make the Final Four.
Expert |
Final Four |
National Championship |
Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
Ricky O’Donnell |
Florida, Arizona, Louisville, Iowa State | Florida, Arizona | Florida |
Top Bet
We’re not formally a part of the media at Top Bet, but we’ve been following the lead up to the Big Dance pretty closely ourselves.
We previewed Florida, Arizona, Wichita State, Duke, and Virginia in our favorite previews this past week, and those predictions should help you whittle down your bracket with a closer look at each team’s strengths, weaknesses, and MVPs.
But if it’s just the straight picks you’re after, we’ve got that too. You can see our full bracket picks here, or just the highlights below.
Expert |
Final Four |
National Championship |
Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
Top Bet Sportsbook |
Florida, Arizona, Louisville, Michigan State | Florida, Louisville | Florida |
That’s right, we too think the Florida Gators will cut down the nets as the 2014 NCAA basketball champions, defeating the defending champion Louisville Cardinals.
Editor’s note: this page will be updated regularly as college basketball experts release their picks in the lead up to March Madness. Bookmark us so you can find everything you need in one easy spot.
Who do you think will take home the big prize this season? Use our downloadable, printable bracket to make your picks and put your money where your pen is with our complete NCAA basketball odds.
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