The 2025 NCAA men’s basketball tournament field is set, which means the most entertaining three-week stretch in sports is set to get underway. The tournament will start with 68 teams, but four play-in games reduce the field to 64. From there, the tournament is divided into four regional brackets, each featuring 16 teams each. The winners of these regions advance to the Final Four, which will be held this year at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. 

The four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament bracket are Auburn, Duke, Houston, and Florida. However, history tells us several of these teams will fall victim to an early upset. Nine out of the 12 No.1 seeds over the last three seasons have been eliminated in the Sweet 16 or earlier.  

The beauty in all the madness is smaller universities get a chance to showcase their skills and to gain exposure on the biggest stage in college basketball. The University of Nebraska Omaha men’s basketball is a prime example as they clinched their first NCAA Tournament berth in program history. The Mavericks are a 15-seed and get the opportunity to go up against the No. 2 seed St John’s University and cause early chaos in everyone’s brackets.  

The Duke University Blue Devils emerge as top contenders to win the tournament. The Blue Devils were able to capture their 23rd ACC Basketball Championship despite being without their best player, Cooper Flagg. Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer said Sunday on ESPN he wants to get Cooper back as quickly as possible and is optimistic for a return in time for the team’s opening game on Friday.  

The SEC (Southern Eastern Conference) has been dominating all year and has proven it can compete with the top teams in the college basketball world. The SEC had two No. 1 seeds in Auburn and Florida, with Auburn being the No. 1 overall seed. The SEC teams will be looking to make a mark in history books and make a statement since the last team in the conference to win the NCAA championship was Kentucky in 2012.  

March Madness is one of the most unpredictable events in all sports. Millions of March Madness brackets are busted early each year and the odds of having a completely perfect prediction bracket is one in 9.2 quintillion. With each round passing the stakes only grow higher. Whether it’s a dominant powerhouse living up to expectations or a mid-major shocking the world, the beauty of March Madness lies in its unpredictability. All that’s left to do now is fill out your brackets and enjoy the ride because anything can happen in the Big Dance. 

Featured Image via ncaa.org