March Madness bracket predictions: Instant picks for men’s 2026 NCAA tournament

This has been one of the best seasons of men’s college basketball in the recent history of the sport, and it’s setting up for what should be an all-time great NCAA tournament. There are four powerhouse teams leading the field. Can anyone knock off Duke, Florida, Michigan, and Arizona before the Final Four, or are we about to see all four No. 1 seeds win their regional for the second year in a row?

There are worthy challengers all over the bracket, and anything can happen in a single elimination tournament. Iowa State has never made the Final Four, but head coach T.J. Otzelberger might have his best team yet led by star senior forward Joshua Jefferson. Houston came minutes away from a national championship last year, and now head coach Kelvin Sampson has multiple one-and-done draft picks on the roster in Kingston Flemings and Chris Cenac Jr. Illinois has the most efficient offense in the country with multiple 7-footers who fire away from three. Arkansas can score with anyone thanks to freshman star Darius Acuff. Wisconsin is a sleeper too with arguably the country’s best backcourt.

March Madness is going to be incredible. Now that the bracket is out, here are our instant predictions.

East region

Duke will have a tough second matchup with No. 8 seed Ohio State, but the Blue Devils are too good to lose that early. St. John’s is a really strong five-seed after their Big East regular season and tournament championship. The Johnnies beat Northern Iowa in round one, and then take out Kansas in round two. St. John’s run ends against Duke in the Sweet 16.

South Florida upsets Louisville in the first round, while Michigan State takes care of business vs. North Dakota State. Tom Izzo punches another ticket to the Sweet 16 in the next round. UConn knocks out UCLA in the round of 32 to make the Sweet 16. I like UConn over Michigan State in the Sweet 16, but the Huskies’ run ends against Duke.

The bottom of the bracket has a lot of injury questions. Will freshman star Mikel Brown Jr. play for Louisville? Will Donovan Dent be ready to go for UCLA after suffering an injury in the Big Ten tournament? This feels like a tough run just to get to the Elite Eight for Duke. Ohio State is no pushover with Bruce Thornton, one of the country’s best guards, at the controls. Beating the winner of St. John’s and Kansas won’t be easy, either. Duke won’t have guard Caleb Foster for this run, so they will need Cam Boozer’s twin brother Cayden Boozer to step up. I wouldn’t be thrilled with this draw if I was a Duke fan, but ultimately they are my Final Four pick after a dominant regular season and ACC tournament championship.

West region

Arizona helms this bracket and should advance easily to the Sweet 16 after beating Utah State in the round of 32. The Sweet 16 will be harder for the Wildcats. I like Wisconsin to sneak by High Point in round one while Arkansas beats Hawai’i. Give me Wisconsin over Arkansas to make it to the Sweet 16.

BYU is a tough No. 6 seed, and they will beat Texas in the second round. A.J. Dybantsa will lead his Cougars to the Sweet 16 after they knock off Gonzaga in round two. Missouri knocks off Miami (FL) in the first round. Purdue beats Mizzou, then knocks off BYU, to reach the Elite Eight.

Purdue vs. Arizona in the Elite Eight will be a fantastic game. I’ll go with the Boilermakers to pull off the upset. Purdue was the preseason No. 1 team in the polls, and they have the size to battle Arizona with 7’3 Daniel Jacobsen and 6’11 Oscar Cluff. Point guards win in March, and it doesn’t get any better than Smith.

This region has some of the most electric players in the country. Dybantsa and Darius Acuff are incredible freshmen talents. Braden Smith is the ultimate college point guard. Arizona has at least two first-round picks in freshmen Koa Peat and Brayden Burries, and I think Motiejus Krivas is their best player.

Midwest region

Michigan lost in the Big Ten tournament championship game, but this is still an elite team even without injured backup point guard LJ Cason. The Wolverines beat Saint Louis to easily reach the Sweet 16. Texas Tech will miss JT Toppin in this NCAA tournament. I think Akron upsets the Red Raiders in round one. Alabama beats Hofstra, and then beats Akron to make the Sweet 16. The fun ends against Michigan, who reaches the Elite Eight.

I like SMU to beat Miami (OH) in the first four and then knock off Tennessee. I’ll pick Santa Clara to upset Kentucky in the 7-10 game. Iowa State knocks off Santa Clara in the round of 32, and beats Virginia in the Sweet 16. Michigan over Iowa State in the Elite Eight.

It’s too bad Iowa State got stuck in Michigan’s regional. I really like the Cyclones, but Duke and Michigan are the two teams I just can’t pick to lose early. There are some awesome players in this region: Texas Tech’s Christian Anderson, Alabama’s Labron Philon, and Iowa State’s Joshua Jefferson are all arguably top-10 players in this field.

South region

Florida beats Iowa to make the Sweet 16 without a problem. The Gators will have a really good shot to win back-to-back national championships with that front court. I see Florida beating Vanderbilt in the Sweet 16. Yes, Vandy just beat the Gators in the SEC tournament, but the NCAAs are different, and the Gators will respond.

North Carolina gets upset by VCU in the first round. It’s too bad Caleb Wilson can’t play in this tournament because of a broken thumb. Illinois got a nice draw. The Illini should be able to get past TJ Power and Penn in the first round, and then beat VCU to make the Sweet 16. Houston vs. Illinois will be an electric Sweet 16 game, but the Cougars are too damn good. Kelvin Sampson is one of the best head coaches in the country, and he has enough to get past Brad Underwood.

I like Houston over Florida in the Elite Eight. It’s a risky pick, but the Cougars have a big advantage in the backcourt, and I think Jojo Tugler and Chris Cenac Jr. have just enough to get the job done.

Final Four

I have Duke vs. Houston and Michigan vs. Purdue in the Final Four. Duke will beat Houston to get revenge for last year’s Final Four matchup. Michigan vs. Purdue is a rematch of the Big Ten tournament title game, and this time Michigan gets revenge.

Duke and Michigan have been the two best teams all year. I have to go with Duke, because Cameron Boozer doesn’t lose. Boozer has won the championship in just about every competition he’s ever faced. Why wouldn’t it happen in March Madness? I think Duke’s path is pretty hard for the No. 1 overall seed, but they are still my pick to win it all.