2026 March Madness Opening Odds: Houston, Duke Favored; Florida Competitive

Houston and Duke have +1000 odds to win 2026 March Madness.
Florida has +2000 odds to repeat as National Champions in 2026.

INDIANAPOLIS – The 2025 college basketball seasons officially comes to an end with the Florida Gators being crowned as National Champions after going into the season with +6000 odds in the preseason.

YOUR 2025 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS. pic.twitter.com/cFxOQ4NnJt

— Florida Gators Men’s Basketball (@GatorsMBK) April 8, 2025

Getting an early look at the 2026 odds to win March Madness, legal sports betting sites have the Gators remaining competitive, however, the runner up in 2025, Houston Cougars and Duke Blue Devils are the co-favorites to win.

2026 March Madness Odds

Duke +1000
Houston +1000
Connecticut +1400
Louisville +1400
Purdue +1400
BYU +1600
Kansas +1600
Alabama +1800
Arkansas +1800
Auburn +1800
Florida +2000
Kentucky +2000
Michigan +2500
St. John’s +2500
Texas Tech +2500
Gonzaga +3000
Iowa State +3000
Tennessee +3000
UCLA +3000
Arizona +3500
Michigan State +3500
Baylor +5000
Creighton +5000
Indiana +5000

Houston, Duke Lead The Charge

Houston opens favored on CBB betting sites to win the title next season based on their incredible recruiting class that features three top-20 freshmen as well as seasoned veterans in Emanuel Sharp and Joseph Tugler returning.

Duke might be losing Cooper Flagg as the number one pick in the NBA draft, however, three top-25 freshmen and the possibility of All-ACC caliber players in Tyrese Proctor and Isaiah Evans certainly helps. Not to mention, many are as high on five-star freshman Cameron Boozer as they were on Flagg coming into college.

Can Florida Repeat?

The defending National Champions should never be counted out to repeat, however, this would be a tough get for the Gators with some key departures. Amongst their departures are their top-3 offensive weapons in Walter Clayton (18.3 ppg), Alijah Martin (14.4 ppg), and Will Richard (13.3 ppg). The Gators will need to continue building on their recruiting class and need some breakout candidates next season to remain competitive.

Other Contenders To Watch

Purdue could have a decent bounce back season as they’ll have some of the top players in college basketball returning to their roster next season in Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, and Trey Kaufman-Renn. All who have plenty of March Madness experience and each who played in the National Championship game in 2023.

BYU should be seen as a competitor early on with the number one overall recruit in college basketball, A.J. Dybantsa joining an already elite offense.

UConn is also poised for a bounce back season with their returning production in Solo Ball and Tarris Reed to name a few as well as their top-5 recruiting class.

While they got off to a slow start, Arkansas showed their potential during March Madness and will look to build off of that in 2026 with some elite returning players in D.J. Wagner, Karter Knox, and Trevon Brazile. They also have two top-10 freshmen in Darius Acuff and Meleek Thomas coming in.

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Sam Profeta

Samuel has been writing professionally for 4 years. He comes from a sports writing background where he enjoys writing mostly about basketball and football both professional and collegiate. He is a recent graduate of Florida State University where he majored in Editing, Writing and Media with a minor in Communications. During his free time, you can find him watching or playing sports as well as playing videogames and listening to music.