March Madness Sweet 16 Picks Today: Odds, Expert Predictions & Best Bets for NCAA Tournament
The NCAA Tournament has taken on a heavyweight feel with all power conference teams left to compete for a national championship.
Our early March Madness Sweet 16 picks analyze the eight games that will be played today and Friday, backing three underdogs and one favorite as our best bets.
We have been on fire thus far with our NCAA Tournament best bets, enduring an 11-1 stretch in the second round, and look to continue that momentum with our March Madness predictions.
🏆 Updated March Madness bracket & NCAA Tournament odds
Here is the updated March Madness bracket following the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament:
📊 March Madness odds this week
Here are the live March Madness odds for the final 16 teams. The odds update in real time from our best March Madness betting sites.
Duke is currently getting both the highest ticket percentage to win the NCAA Tournament through BetMGM (13.2%) and highest handle (38.3%). Florida follows behind the Blue Devils (9.1% of the tickets, and 12.7% of the handle).
🗓️ March Madness Sweet 16 schedule & my early picks
Here is the March Madness Sweet 16 schedule and my early college basketball picks on each game.
Friday’s Sweet 16 schedule
🏀 No. 2 Michigan State vs. No. 6 Ole Miss, Friday at 7:09 p.m. ET (CBS)
- My pick: Ole Miss to cover the spread: +3.5 (-110 via BetMGM)
🏀 No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 3 Kentucky, Friday at 7:39 p.m. ET (TBS/truTV)
- My pick: Tennessee to cover the spread: -4.5 (-110 via BetMGM)
🏀 No. 1 Auburn vs. No. 5 Michigan, Friday at 9:39 p.m. ET (CBS)
- My pick: Auburn to cover the spread: -7.5 (-118 via DraftKings)
🏀 No. 1 Houston vs. No. 4 Purdue, Friday at 10:09 p.m. ET (TBS/truTV)
- My pick: Houston to cover the spread: -7.5 (-115 via BetMGM)
💰 Best Sweet 16 picks this week
Our NEW college basketball player prop odds tool can help you find the best odds for any March Madness market across legal sportsbooks in your area!
🏆 Alabama vs. BYU prediction: BYU +4.5 ❌
📊 Best odds: -110 via FanDuel
The advantage that Alabama has over most of its opponents is its unique style of play, blending an up-tempo attack with elite spacing and shooting, and getting almost all of its shots from 3-point range or at the rim.
The problem in this game is that BYU is almost a mirror image of Alabama (maybe with a little less athleticism), but the Crimson Tide will not surprise the Cougars with their tendencies.
BYU has won and covered its last six games where both teams have scored 80-plus points. Thus, not only am I supremely confident in taking the +4.5 points, but I will also sprinkle a little on the Cougars’ moneyline odds (+170 at DraftKings).
New customers only. Deposit min. $5. Place first bet of $5+ and win $250 in Bonus Bets, if your bet wins. (within 72 hours).
🏆 Texas Tech vs. Arkansas prediction: Arkansas +5.5 ✅
📊 Best odds: -105 via bet365
This line seems too low given how impressive Arkansas was in knocking off Big East regular season and tournament champion St. John’s.
The Razorbacks should only get better the longer they remain in the NCAA Tournament, as freshman guard Boogie Fland shook off the rust with an average of six points in 22 minutes per game over the weekend.
Arkansas is still holding out hope for good news from leading scorer Adou Thiero, who has been out with a knee injury since Feb. 22.
But even when not at full strength, John Calipari’s squad has overcome all its injuries and remains one of the most talented teams remaining. The ceiling remains very high for the Razorbacks, who now benefit from four days off to prepare for Texas Tech.
*Deposit required. Mobile app only. Bonus Bets wager excluded from returns. T&Cs, time limits and exclusions apply. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER
🏆 Michigan State vs. Ole Miss prediction: Ole Miss +3.5
📊 Best odds: -110 via BetMGM
Hold off on cashing those Michigan State tickets to win the South Region, as history is against the Spartans. Prior to this year, 37 AP top-10 teams who were unranked to start the season earned No. 1 or No. 2 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, but none of them made a Final Four.
I believe Richard Pitino Jr. and his Lobos gave Chris Beard a solid blueprint for containing Michigan State’s explosive attack and making this a rockfight that will be decided in a half-court setting.
Ole Miss is 7-1 ATS in neutral site games this season, and I am backing the Rebels at anything +3 or higher.
Bonus bets will expire in 7 days. One new customer offer only. Additional terms and conditions apply.
🏆 Houston vs. Purdue prediction: Houston -7.5
📊 Best odds: -115 via BetMGM
Much is being made of the geographic advantage Purdue will enjoy in this matchup with the game being played in Indianapolis. But I believe Kelvin Sampson’s squad will use that as motivation after playing a fantastic game against an underseeded Gonzaga.
In years past, the Cougars were always ridiculed for not having a fearsome enough offense to pair with an elite defense. Well, this year’s Houston squad leads the country in 3-point shooting and has the perfect defensive scheme and personnel to frustrate Purdue’s pick-and-roll combination of Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn.
Houston just held one of the best point guards in the country, Ryan Nembhard, to 10 points and five turnovers. Its ability to frustrate Smith in this matchup makes it the most attractive favorite in the Sweet 16.
👉 Want to bet on the NCAA Tournament? Check out the latest March Madness odds and Final Four odds.
🧠 Sweet 16 expert picks
- Sweet 16 picks & Final Four predictions
- March Madness Sweet 16 Cinderella watch
- March Madness second chance brackets
- March Madness Sweet 16 survivor picks
- March Madness MVP odds and predictions
- March Madness Sweet 16 picks
- March Madness Sweet 16 predictions
- Latest March Madness odds
- March Madness Final Four odds
- 2025 March Madness stats
- March Madness long shots
- Who are the best players in the 2025 NCAA Tournament?
- One of these 8 teams will win the NCAA Tournament
🆚 Sweet 16 game predictions
- Michigan State vs. Ole Miss prediction
- Tennessee vs. Kentucky prediction
- Auburn vs. Michigan prediction
- Houston vs. Purdue prediction
💰 March Madness betting odds pages
| March Madness odds | March Madness MVP odds |
| Women's March Madness odds | March Madness MVP predictions |
| Final Four odds | March Madness prop bets |
👑 Best March Madness betting sites
Ready to place your March Madness bets? Check out the best March Madness betting promos from the best March Madness betting sites as determined by our expert team at Sportsbook Review.
- Caesars Promo Code: SBRBONUSDYW | Read our Caesars Review
- BetMGM Bonus Code: SBRBONUS | Read our BetMGM Review
- bet365 Bonus Code: SBRBONUS | Read our bet365 Review
- FanDuel Promo Code | Read our FanDuel Review
- DraftKings Promo Code | Read our DraftKings Review
(21+. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER)
* Bonuses not applicable in Ontario.
Not intended for use in MA.
Each betting site featured on SBR has been meticulously researched and selected by our team of experts. If you sign up through our links, we may get a commission
Related Articles
