Let the Madness begin! The complete field for the 2015 March Madness tournament has been announced and that means it’s time to start filling out your bracket for this year’s craziness.
To get you in the know, below we have compiled the expert picks for the Final Four of the 2015 tournament. If you want to get a sense of what these experts are expecting in the earlier rounds, check out our complete look at experts’ sleeper picks for the 2015 March Madness tournament.
Otherwise, read on for a breakdown of the biggest picks from all the major sports outlets, from ESPN to CBS and beyond. If it’s a bracket you need, grab our complete 2015 March Madness bracket and then check out our complete predictions for March Madness 2015. If
Update: another day, another batch of picks. As of Monday, March 16, we have added many more experts’ picks from around the world of college basketball.
[sc:MarchMadness ]Complete Experts Picks for 2015 March Madness Bracket
CBS Sports
CBS Sports Expert Picks
CBS is a long-time partner of the NCAA’s, and their commentators know the game inside and out. That still makes them only slightly more qualified to guess at what wild upsets and storylines will emerge in this year’s tournament, but then, every edge helps.
All but one CBS expert liked the juggernauts from Kentucky, who are even money to cut down the nets according to our NCAA championship odds, but after that the gurus had a variety of different opinions.
Matt Norlander believes Villanova will reach the Final Four, but he sees the East region as the biggest toss-up between the No. 1 Nova and No. 2 seed, Virginia. Meanwhile, Sam Vecenie sees Arizona’s athletic wing players and terrific defense to upend Wisconsin out in the West Region.
Down in the South, Chip Patterson has No. 1 Duke coming out of that region. He particularly likes the make-up of this group, with Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones leading the way, to avoid last year’s disappointing exit at the hands of Mercer. And of course, Kentucky is the one and only pick to come out the Midwest.
| Expert | Final Four Predictions | National Championship | Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Parrish | Kentucky, Arizona, Villanova, Duke | Kentucky, Duke | Kentucky |
| Jerry Palm | Kentucky, Wisconsin, Virginia, Duke | Kentucky, Duke | Kentucky |
| Matt Norlander | Kentucky, Arizona, Villanova, Duke | Kentucky, Duke | Kentucky |
| Sam Vecenie | Kentucky, Arizona, Virginia, Gonzaga | Kentucky, Virginia | Kentucky |
| Dennis Dodd | Kentucky, Arizona, Villanova, Duke | Kentucky, Duke | Duke |
| Chip Patterson | Kentucky, Arizona, Oklahoma, Duke | Kentucky, Oklahoma | Kentucky |
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Perhaps the most trend in these brackets is the omission of Wisconsin in so many Final Fours. The Badgers have the odds-on favorite to win the Wooden Award for the best player in college hoops in Frank Kaminsky, and are widely considered one of the biggest threats to Kentucky, thanks to their suffocating inside defense. The belief many of these CBS minds are backing is that Arizona will be too much for the Badgers, but if not they could end Kentucky’s run before they even get a chance to make it to the championship.
CBS Selection Show TV Picks
[sc:NCAAB240banner ]And those are just the online picks. Right after the bracket was unveiled, the CBS Sports TV panel on the Selection Sunday show blasted out some picks. Seth Davis and Doug Gottlieb agreed on Duke and Arizona, with Davis pulling off perhaps the shock pick of the three with his pick of Northern Iowa heading to the Final Four.
| Expert | Final Four Predictions |
|---|---|
| Clark Kellogg | Kentucky, Villanova, Gonzaga, Wisconsin |
| Seth Davis | Kentucky, UNI, Duke, Arizona |
| Doug Gottlieb | Kentucky, Virginia, Duke, Arizona |
ESPN
If CBS is the number one name in college sports, ESPN is 1B. And it might even be the opposite order. In any case, several college hoops experts from the World Wide Leader’s stable have made their initial Final Four picks and surprise, surprise, they have Kentucky going to Indianapolis.
In its post-bracket coverage, some of ESPN’s biggest names offered their Final Four predictions, and some of the results are pretty surprising (others…not so much).
| Expert | Final Four Predictions | National Championship | Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jay Bilas | Kentucky, Wisonsin, Virginia, Duke | Kentucky, Duke | Kentucky |
| Rece Davis | Kentucky, Arizona, Michigan State, Gonzaga | Kentucky, Gonzaga | Kentucky |
| Seth Greenberg | Kentucky, Arizona, Villanova, Duke | Kentucky, Villanova | Kentucky |
| Jay Williams | Kentucky, Arizona, Virginia, Gonzaga | Arizona, Gonzaga | Arizona |
Rece Davis and Jay Williams mix it up a bit at ESPN, with Davis taking a hot Michigan State team to push by Virginia and Villanova in the East, while Williams likes Arizona to take down mighty Kentucky and roll to a national championship.
Twitter had even more predictions coming in from other ESPN names.
Jeff Borzello also has another No. 1 in Villanova to make good on its high seeding to join the Wildcats in Indy, along with No. 2 Arizona and No. 3 Iowa State. Andy Katz agrees mostly with Borzello, but he expects the East to be wide open, with as much as four (Villanova, Virginia, Michigan State and Northern Iowa) as legit contenders.
Finally, Dick Vitale has stuck his neck out and put Gonzaga in his Final Four. The Zags have been infamous for their early round flameouts in recent years, but Dickie V likes their chances of making it out of the South ahead of Duke and Iowa State.
| Expert | Final Four Predictions |
|---|---|
| Jeff Borzello | Kentucky, Villanova, Iowa State, Arizona |
| Andy Katz | Kentucky, Wisconsin/Arizona, Iowa State/Gonzaga/Duke, East=Wide open |
| Dick Vitale | Kentucky, Virginia, Gonzaga, Arizona |
SB Nation
SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell has gone all in on the Big 12, putting not one but two teams from the conference in the Final Four. O’Donnell has Iowa State being the final challenge to Kentucky’s undefeated season. But unsurprisingly, he sees the Wildcats winning their 40th game and claiming that national title with an undefeated record.
| Expert | Final Four Predictions | National Championship | Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ricky O’Donnell | Kentucky, Arizona, Oklahoma, Iowa St | Kentucky, Iowa St | Kentucky |
Top Bet
The experts here at Top Bet are in agreement with just about everyone with regard to Kentucky making it to the Final Four at the very least. Neither Kansas nor Notre Dame – the No. 2 and 3 seeds in the Midwest – have enough big bodies to stop the Wildcats inside.
But we’re going to take a stand and say the Wildcats don’t go 40-0. Instead, we see Frank The Tank and Wisconsin emerging victorious over Virginia in the championship game. How’s that for March Madness?
| Expert | Final Four Predictions | National Championship | Champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Top Bet sportsbook | Kentucky, Wisconsin, Virginia, Iowa St | Wisconsin, Virginia | Wisconsin |
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.
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