March Madness odds: Houston, Alabama, Kansas favored to win NCAA Tournament

Alabama is the No. 1 overall seed for the 2023 NCAA Tournament, but the Crimson Tide aren’t the favorites to cut down the nets. The Houston Cougars finished the regular season 31-3 and are the favorites (+550) at BetMGM. On Sunday, Memphis beat the Cougars, 75-65, in the American Athletic Conference title game. Kansas (+800), Alabama (+800), Purdue (+1100) and UCLA (+1200) are the other teams near the top of the odds.

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The 2023 Final Four will be held Saturday, April 1, and the championship game is on Monday, April 3, in Houston at NRG Stadium. The oddsmakers like Houston to win a national title in their hometown.

Houston opened at +2000 to win the national title after last year’s NCAA Tournament. A team from the non-Big 6 conferences hasn’t won a national title since UNLV in 1990.

Cougars guard Marcus Sasser suffered an injury in the conference tournament semifinal but said on Sunday that he’s confident he will be able to play in the NCAA Tournament.

Alabama won the SEC Tournament and finished the season with a 29-5 record. Arizona is the No. 2 seed in Alabama’s region.

Defending national champion Kansas is +800 and the No. 1 seed in the West region. Coach Bill Self is expected to re-join the team for the NCAA Tournament after missing the Big 12 Tournament with a health issue. The Jayhawks are the No. 3 overall seed, and they missed getting to play a “home” game in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight if they were the No. 2 overall seed, as Kansas City is hosting the Midwest regional final.

UCLA has the fifth-highest odds at +1200 to win the national title and they’re the No. 2 seed in the West region. The Sweet 16 and Elite Eight for the West will be held in Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.

Could this be the year Gonzaga finally wins a national title? The Bulldogs still have Drew Timme and are +1800 to win it all. Gonzaga is the No. 3 seed in the West region.

Purdue is the No. 1 seed in the East region. The Big Ten hasn’t had a team win the national championship since Michigan State in 2000, and that’s the conference’s only championship since 1990. So while the Big Ten always has some contenders and is considered a great college basketball conference, it doesn’t produce championship teams.

The Boilermakers odds have improved from +3000 to +1100 throughout the season.

The Marquette Golden Eagles are the No. 2 seed in the East region and just won the Big East Conference Tournament in their second year under coach Shaka Smart. If Marquette advances to the Sweet 16, it’ll again play at Madison Square Garden, where they just won the conference tournament.

(Photo of Marcus Sasser: Justin Ford / Getty Images)