March Madness Betting Guide for 2025
Written by: Eddie Griffin
Last Updated: Tue Mar 18, 2025, 04:22 AM
Read Time: 9 minutes
It is now officially March Madness season, as the 2025 NCAA Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments tip off this week.
With 67 games to bet on in each tournament, there is plenty of action to bet on until the season wraps up early next month. And that’s not even taking into consideration the NIT and other men’s and women’s postseason tournaments for the teams that didn’t make it to the Big Dance.
BetOnline, where you can find both men’s and women’s NCAA Tournament odds, is one of the best March Madness betting sites, if not the best. There’s no better time to check them out than now, especially because of their $200,000 Bracket Madness contest, which offers a grand prize of at least $50,000.
Are you looking to bet on March Madness or participate in a bracket challenge this year? If so, we have plenty of information to help you along the way. Below, check out all of our content dedicated to NCAA Tournament betting.
Betting Guide Menu
- Betting News Bracket Mania →
- Best March Madness Betting Sites for 2025 →
- Men’s and Women’s March Madness Brackets →
- March Madness 2025 Odds →
- March Madness 2025 Picks →
- March Madness Betting Tips and Strategies →
- Who Are This Year’s March Madness Sleepers? →
- How to Pick March Madness Upsets in 2025 →
- Final Four 2025 Odds →
- Best 2025 March Madness Bracket Challenges →
Betting News Bracket Mania
Our very own March Madness bracket challenge will be back for a third year! Make your bracket picks and go up against the Betting News community, as well as our team of writers and content creators.
Betting News Bracket Mania is free to enter, and if you finish first, second, or third, you can win t-shirts and other prizes from the Betting News store.
Want to potentially add one of our swag pieces to your wardrobe? Hit the link and use the password “BNEWS2025” to enter Betting News Bracket Mania.
Do you need any help filling out your men’s March Madness bracket for our contest or others? Read on for our rundown of some of the best March Madness betting tips and strategies.
Best March Madness Betting Sites in 2025
March Madness betting is available at many online sportsbooks. But here are the top sports betting sites that we recommend and trust.
Read our sportsbook reviews to learn more about each of these sports betting sites, and bookmark our sportsbook offers page to keep up with special bonuses and promos that may be offered around March Madness time.
Men’s and Women’s 2025 March Madness Brackets
The field of 68 is now set for the men’s and women’s NCAA Division I basketball tournaments.
In the men’s tournament, the four #1 seeds are Auburn (top overall seed and #1 in the South Regional), Duke (East Regional), Houston (Midwest Regional), and Florida (West Regional).
There are four first timers in the 2025 men’s March Madness bracket. Leading the way is UC San Diego, who will be a popular upset pick after going 30-4 and winning the Big West’s automatic bid in their first season of NCAA Division I tournament eligibility. Additionally, High Point (Big South), Omaha (Summit League), and SIU Edwardsville (Ohio Valley) are debuting in the Big Dance.
In the women’s tournament, the four #1 seeds are UCLA (top overall seed and #1 in the Spokane 1 Regional), South Carolina (#1 in the Birmingham 2 Regional), Texas (#1 in the Birmingham 3 Regional), and USC (#1 in the Spokane 4 Regional).
UC San Diego’s women’s team is also a first timer in the 2025 women’s March Madness bracket, as are Arkansas State (Sun Belt), Fairleigh Dickinson (Northeast Conference), George Mason (Atlantic 10), Grand Canyon (WAC), and William & Mary (CAA).
There are many interesting potential matchups and storylines in each tournament.
In the men’s tournament, two Hall of Fame coaches could meet in the second round in the West Regional if Kansas (Bill Self) and St. John’s (Rick Pitino) both advance. In the women’s tournament, Hailey van Lith and TCU could face Louisville, where she played three seasons, in the second round after a record-breaking season for the Horned Frogs, who are the #2 seed in the Birmingham 3 Regional.
Check out the complete brackets, seeds, and schedules for both tournaments here.
Men’s and Women’s March Madness Futures Odds
Which teams are favored to cut down the nets in this year’s NCAA Division men’s and women’s basketball tournaments? Find updated odds and information about this year’s March Madness favorites here.
2025 March Madness Picks
During the course of March Madness this year, we will have picks and analysis for dozens of games. Here, you can find our round-by-round predictions and picks, starting with the First Four, which will begin on Tuesday, March 18 in Dayton, Ohio.
Our team of college basketball writers (Eddie Griffin, Nate Hornung, and Colby Marchio) will have predictions and picks for many men’s and women’s matchups over the course of the tournament, and we will also carry college basketball moneyline, spread, and over/under computer picks for each men’s tournament matchup from the First Four to the Final Four.
While we provide information we wholeheartedly believe in, we also don’t think we should be the only source you use for March Madness picks. With that in mind, there are a few sports handicapping services that we think are worth checking out.
March Madness Betting Tips and Strategies for 2025
There are a lot of things to take into consideration when betting on men’s and women’s March Madness games and March Madness futures odds.
But what are some of the most important pieces of information to keep in mind for your NCAA Tournament betting this year?
2025 March Madness Sleepers
The favorites may get most of the love, but every year, at least a few teams make some unexpected noise in the NCAA Tournament. Who could be this year’s March Madness dark horses?
How to Pick March Madness Upsets in 2025
Upsets are one of the most exciting parts of the NCAA Tournament each year.
Is there a strategy for picking upsets for your March Madness bets or bracket challenges, and how many upsets could take place this year?
Check out our look at March Madness upsets, which covers historical upset trends and offers valuable tips for identifying and picking potential upset spots.
Odds to Reach the 2025 Final Four
This year, the men’s Final Four will take place at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Some of the top Final Four contenders include Duke, Auburn, Houston, Florida, Michigan State, and Alabama, who reached the Final Four last year.
The women’s Final Four will be held at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, which previously hosted the women’s Final Four in 2019. That year, Notre Dame lost to Baylor in the championship game. This year, the Fighting Irish will be one of the Final Four favorites, as will defending champions South Carolina, Texas, UConn, and rivals UCLA and USC, who have dazzled in their Big Ten debuts.
Best March Madness Bracket Challenges in 2025
Our bracket challenge is just one of many out there. In addition to ours, here are a few March Madness bracket challenges that you can find at some of your favorite sportsbooks.
Other March Madness Information
Interested in Learning More About Betting on March Madness & NCAA Basketball?
If you are interested in learning more about betting on men’s or women’s NCAA basketball, check out our college basketball betting guide. It covers the basics of wagering on March Madness, the Mountain West, the MAAC, McNeese State, and beyond.
Also, follow Betting News on X/Twitter, Twitch, and TikTok to get more March Madness and NCAA basketball insight from myself and the rest of our team. We’re cooking up a lot of great NCAA Tournament content for both the men’s and women’s tournaments, so hit those links so you don’t miss out on any of it.
March Madness FAQ
Free Betting Picks
CREI
HPU
MONTMar 2012:30 PM ET
WIS
See 6 expert picks for MONT vs WIS »
ALST
MCN
UGA
WOFMar 205:50 PM ET
TENN
See 7 expert picks for WOF vs TENN »
ARK
YALE
DRKE
USU
UCSD
BAY
RMU
CSU
UNC
GCU
NORF
TROY
UNM
OU
XAV
BRY
LIB