With the end of February rapidly approaching, the start of March Madness is just around the corner. On Mar. 17, the first men’s game of this year’s NCAA tournament is set to begin. After the teams and seeds are revealed on Selection Sunday, taking place on Mar. 15, 68 Division I men’s basketball teams are set to compete in a seven-round single-elimination tournament.
Each year, March Madness takes the nation by storm, captivating audiences. Last year, the national championship game between Florida and Houston broadcast peaked at 21.1 million viewers, the biggest championship audience since 2019. Additionally, the 2025 tournament’s overall attendance exceeded 700,000 attendees for the third consecutive year and is expected to do the same this year.
After Duke’s recent win over Michigan, they now sit at the number one spot. While the matchup ended in a five point game, Duke proved to be the better team. The Blue Devils came out strong and led the game in rebounds and points in the paint. Duke also has a national player of the year contender backing them. Freshman power forward Cameron Boozer has been a standout throughout the season. In their Michigan win alone, Boozer led Duke in rebounds, points and assists. Because of Duke’s regular season performance, they have quickly emerged as a fan favorite to win out.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that Michigan only fell to Duke by five points, so they can’t be ruled out just yet. Even with their loss, they still hold strong at the third spot. While a win against Duke would have strengthened their record, they are still strong contenders and likely one-seeds in the March Madness bracket. They still hold wins over Illinois and Michigan State, both highly ranked teams, but Michigan struggled against Duke’s defense, only scoring 24% of three-pointers and scoring the lowest number of points of their season. It’s possible that they will have a hard time against teams later in the tournament.
Arizona has also quickly emerged as an early favorite. With two weeks left in the regular season and a big win over Houston, the Wildcats have become a contender along with Duke and Michigan. Houston was previously ranked second and also were finalists last year, so a win against them for Arizona was promising. Arizona is now ranked second and is clearly a strong team with national championship hope.
Students are weighing in on who they think this year’s national champion will be. People are sticking with the current frontrunners for who they believe will win it all. “In my opinion, Duke definitely has a great chance to win this year. They have an elite defense, solid offense that averages over 80 points a game and have Cameron Boozer leading their team. I also think he has a good shot at national player of the year,” senior Nikolai Prykupenko said.
Other students have chosen to go a different route with their predicted winner. After a victory in the 2025 March Madness tournament last year, Florida looks to defend their title of national champions. Florida has seen late-season momentum and currently lead their conference by two games. Additionally, after poll movement in the AP Top 25 this week, the Gators jumped to the seventh spot. Their next games will play a huge role in determining their tournament seeding. “I think it would be so cool to see the University of Florida have back-to-back national championship wins. They’re a super exciting and fun team to watch. I’ll definitely be trying to watch them as much as I can,” senior Diya Khetan said.
That being said, March Madness is known for its unpredictability and unexpected upsets, so an action-packed month is ahead.
