Welcome back to our first college basketball post ever. Bob and I have never been much for college ball, but with an incredibly loaded draft class on the horizon and a great March Madness just a month away, I feel it’s my duty to take a look at some of the favourites to win it, and give you a brief breakdown of them. Perhaps we’ll even make a prediction on who’s gonna win the National Championship. Let’s get into it.
Duke
Record: 24-2
Hometown: Durham, NC
Conference: Atlantic Coast (1st)
Key Players: Cam Boozer, Patrick Ngongba, Isaiah Evans, Cayden Boozer
National Championship Odds (BetMGM): +650
Coming off a season with the mouth-watering duo of Cooper Flagg and Kon Kneuppel, Duke is now the home of one of the best draft prospects in the past five years, Cam Boozer. The elite forward prospect is also joined by Patrick Ngongba, favoured to be drafted at some point, and Cam’s younger brother, Cayden Boozer. This is going to be a fun team to watch come March, and the dynasty continues next season, with 2027 prospects Cameron Williams, Deron Rippey, and Bryson Howard all committed to Duke for 2026/27. Duke seems a lock for at least the Final Four, where they were last year.
Arizona
Record: 23-2
Hometown: Tucson, AZ
Conference: Big 12 (2nd)
Key Players: Koa Peat, Brayden Burries
National Championship Odds: +450
One of the best mentality teams in the country, Arizona is a rough, defence-first team, led by scrappy defender Koa Peat and board-heavy big man Motiejus Krivas. On the other side of the ball, they have Brayden Burries and Jaden Bradley heaving threes, and look like a very tough-to-beat side.
Michigan
Record: 25-1
Hometown: Ann Arbor, MI
Conference: Big Ten (1st)
Key Players: Yaxel Lendeborg, Aday Mara
National Championship Odds: +425
Official favourites for the National Championship, Michigan has the backbone of a winning team. With 23-year-old lottery projected Yaxel Lendeborg, as well as 7’3” Spaniard Aday Mara, Michigan presents a challenge most teams just don’t know how to handle, and so far, only Wisconsin have been able to handle it. Michigan’s record against big teams also speaks for itself, netting a 40-point win against Gonzaga, a 27-point win over Villanova, a 30-point win against Auburn, and an 11-point win against Purdue. This team looks insanely scary.
Houston
Record: 23-3
Hometown: Houston, TX
Conference: Big 12 (1st)
Key Players: Kingston Flemings, Emanuel Sharp, Chris Cenac Jr.
National Championship Odds: +750
Managing to be first in a conference with Arizona, Iowa State, Kansas, and BYU is an achievement that in itself proves why Houston should be considered a favourite for the National Championship. Led by Kingston Flemings, a top-5 projected pick who some say might be a #1 pick in other drafts, last year’s National runners-up have put together some impressive wins, beating Auburn, Florida State, BYU, Syracuse, and Baylor. Putting together a small roster with some great, flashy players, I can’t wait to see Houston in March Madness.
Illinois
Record: 21-5
Hometown: Champaign, IL
Conference: Big Ten (2nd)
Key Players: Keaton Wagler, Andrej Stojakovic
National Championship Odds: +1300
The first of the teams with longer odds, Illinois have one of the best offenses to watch in the country. With Keaton Wagler leading the team, a Top-10 projected pick, Kylan Boswell (when he’s available), and Andrej Stojakovic. A lack of defence could end up being Illinois’ downfall, but their offence alone could see them make a deep run into the tournament.
Florida
Record: 20-6
Hometown: Gainesville, FL
Conference: Southeastern (1st)
Key Players: Thomas Haugh, Alex Condon, Boogie Fland
National Championship Odds: +1300
Last year’s national champions may perhaps be the categorically most interesting team to watch in the country this year. Not only do they have Boogie Fland, a projected future draft pick and very flashy guard, but they also have Olivier Rioux, the tallest player in college basketball history, considerably taller than Aday Mara, Zach Edey, and all giants who came before him at an inconceivable 7’9”. While Rioux barely gets any minutes, it’s always a great time watching the big man.
Iowa State
Record: 23-3
Hometown: Ames, IA
Conference: Big 12 (3rd)
Key Players: Joshua Jefferson, Tamin Lipsey, Milan Momcimovic
National Championship Odds: +1200
Iowa State is the “slow and steady wins the race” team, and could win the championship just by having more dudes than everyone else. They aren’t top heavy like Kansas or BYU, and in fact have no projected future NBA players, but just have such a great, deep team. Their offence and defence are both top 10 in the country, and are legit contenders to win the tourney.
UConn
Record: 24-2
Hometown: Mansfield, CT
Conference: Big East (1st)
Key Players: Braylon Mullins, Solo Ball, Alex Karaban
National Championship Odds: +1500
A very defensively solid team, UConn is going to provide a great challenge for everyone they come up against. Led by lottery-projected Braylon Mullins, the 2023 and 2024 National Championship winners are going to be a dark horse team come March. Don’t be surprised if this team can make a surprise Final Four.
Kansas
Record: 19-6
Hometown: Lawrence, KS
Conference: Big 12 (4th)
Key Players: Darryn Peterson, Flory Bidunga
National Championship Odds: +2000
We go a little further down these rankings because we see a team, in Kansas, who have who may just be the best prospect in the country. Darryn Peterson, the favourite to become the #1 pick in an incredibly top-heavy 2026 Draft Class, is tearing up college ball. In 27 minutes a night, he’s been scoring 20 on nearly 50-40-90 shooting. His only problem is that he’s only shown up for 14 of Kansas’s 25 games so far, managing injury issues. In a massively tough Big 12 conference, Kansas needs a healthy Peterson, an on-it Flory Bidunga, and some of that Allen Fieldhouse magic to make a run, but they may just do it. A deep Big 12 tournament or National Tournament run could lead to Peterson becoming a lock for that #1 pick.
BYU
Record: 19-6
Hometown: Provo, UT
Conference: Big 12 (6th)
Key Players: AJ Dybantsa, Robert Wright III, Keba Keita
National Championship Odds: +6600
The final team we’ll be going over, BYU are a massive longshot for the Championship, especially while being in that loaded Big 12, but they have a wild card – AJ Dybantsa. The final member of that elite three with Peterson and Boozer, Dybantsa has the potential to put on an all-timer performance to get BYU to a late round of March Madness.
Those are ten teams to look out for ahead of one of the most stacked March Madnesses of all time, with plenty of future NBA talent, some great matchups ahead of us, and an ending to this college basketball season that’ll resemble a movie. I personally can’t wait. I’m Jim James, until next time.
