March Madness: Top Seeds Favored, Underdogs Face Uphill Battle

0:00On March 19th, March Madness always brings those classic Cinderella stories with lower seas pulling off huge upsets. But this year, spotting likely first round shocks looks tough, especially with massive points breads favoring the top teams on Thursday and Friday. Take the number five seeds like Wisconsin in the West and Vanderbilt in the South, both favored by at least ten and a half points over there, twelve seed opponents. Number four, seeds such as Nebraska against Troy Kansas over Cal Baptist and Arkansas facing Hawaii, sit at thirteen and a half points or more. Even Midwest number six seed, Tennessee leads Miami of Ohio by eleven and a half points after the Red Hawks' first four win. Last year, March just the second time since seeding started in 1979, that all four number one seeds reached the final four, with Florida, Houston, Auburn, and Duke making it there. That chalky run contrast sharply with the wilded tournaments right after the COVID pandemic.

1:02The shift comes from player movement in the transfer portal plus the new revenue-sharing rules letting top programs pay athletes directly on top of. Name, image, and likeness deals. This funnels elite talent to the big schools, leaving mid-major short on firepower. And still hope for those mindset-driven surprises from underdogs, but with talent so stacked at the top, expect the favorites to roll through early. And keep the bracket predictable for now.