NCAA

ESPN’s March Madness Bracket, Predictions, and Expert Picks

ESPN March Madness Bracket, Predictions, and Expert Picks

The ESPN staff has released an intriguing March Madness bracket, posted predictions, and researched expert picks for the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Staff writer Jeff Borzello believes the National Championship matchup will be No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 1 Houston at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. BetOnline odds and picks are featured below.


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ESPN March Madness 2023 Bracket

ESPN writer Jeff Borzello is high on No. 1 Houston to win this year’s championship. The Cougars should have no problem controlling the Midwest Region. “This is Houston’s region to lose, though,” explained Borzello.

“The Cougars are physical, well coached, capable of forcing their style on any opponent, and they have more talent than recent seasons… Assuming Marcus Sasser is healthy for the tournament, Houston will be the heavy favorite to come out of this region.” Continue scrolling for picks and predictions.

 

ESPN March Madness 2023 Predictions & Picks

ESPN’s March Madness picks are in. ESPN anchor Joe Lunardi has No. 5 Duke advancing to the Final Four. Writer Kyle Soppe is riding with No. 6 Creighton to at least make it to the Elite Eight. Plus, Jeff Borzello feels No. 1 Alabama will once again defeat No. 1 Houston, and this time it will be in the 2023 NCAA Tournament National Championship.

No. 5 Duke to Final Four (+1500)

ESPN anchor Joe Lunardi is counting on No. 5 Duke to upset a couple of teams along the way of reaching the Final Four. Lunardi is expecting the Blue Devils to defeat No. 12 Oral Roberts in the First Round this Thursday. And then Duke will play No. 4 Tennessee in the Second Round. Because of injuries, the ESPN analyst is riding with Duke for this matchup.

As for the Sweet 16, Lunardi has Duke upsetting No. 1 Purdue. In the Elite Eight, the Blue Devils will win against No. 2 Marquette. “Duke playing as well as anybody in the country,” said Lunardi. “But can they stop Brandon Miller? I don’t think so.” The ESPN analyst has No. 1 Alabama defeating Duke in the Final Four.

No. 6 Creighton to Elite Eight (+1200)

Moreover, ESPN writer Kyle Soppe likes No. 6 Creighton to at least qualify for the Elite Eight. He’s not anticipating the Bluejays to win the national title, but they’ll be in the mix. “Remember that team we all liked three months ago? Well, they’re back and disguised as a 5-seed in this exercise,” said Soppe.

“They’ve held the top-spot in my power rankings since Christmas and I regret nothing. The path that comes with being a lower seed is why I don’t have the Bluejays winning the whole thing.

“The Bluejays have lost just twice since the 7-foot-1 Ryan Kalkbrenner returned in late December from injury, and even those losses were each the result of a single uncharacteristic minor scoring drought. One bounce here or there, and they’d be unbeaten for two months: we’d be having a very different discussion. This is the ‘don’t get sidetracked by the full body of work’ résumé team.” Other predictions based on the March Madness bracket are on the main page.

No. 1 Alabama over No. 1 Houston to win National Championship (+550) | ESPN Picks

Equally important, Jeff Borzello is picking No. 1 Houston to defeat No. 1 Alabama at NRG Stadium in Houston. This could very well happen. However, multiple top-ranked teams lose each year during March Madness.

“I’m going Houston over UConn in the Final Four,” said Borzello. “At that point, Sasser will be 100 percent. They’re playing in their home city. I’m setting up what I think have been the two best teams since the start of the year.

“It’s a rematch of a game I think we saw at the beginning of the year, and Alabama won that one on Houston’s home floor. I think they’re [Alabama] going to repeat that. It’s not on their home floor, but I’m going to go Alabama over Houston in the title game.”

Will Alabama and Houston advance to the Final Four? It seems the Crimson Tide might be the best bet to make it to the end. At least Alabama won its conference tournament championship. So, some predictions from the ESPN staff are just more logical.


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