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The first round of the NCAA Tournament 2025 begins on Thursday, so time is running out to fill out your 2025 March Madness bracket picks. Understanding the 2025 NCAA Tournament matchups is the most important aspect of winning your 2025 NCAA bracket picks. With most pools utilizing a multiplier format, you have to identify the teams most capable of making deep runs. The St. John’s Red Storm are a No. 2 seed in the West Region after going 30-4 during the regular season, and the Big East Tournament and Rick Pitino’s squad looks like a threat to win it all. However, they also have back-to-back defending national champions UConn, Florida, Texas Tech and Kansas to contend with in their quadrant of the 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket.

What should your 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket strategy be for your March Madness 2025 pools and what are some of the potential 2025 NCAA Tournament upsets that you need to be aware of? Before making any predictions for games in the 2025 NCAA Tournament, see the March Madness bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

SportsLine’s proven projection model has simulated every game in the tournament 10,000 times. It has absolutely crushed its March Madness picks recently, beating over 91% of all CBS Sports brackets in four of the past six tournaments. It was all over UConn’s championship run a year ago and nailed 13 teams in the Sweet 16. It also nailed Alabama’s Cinderella run to the Final Four as a 4-seed.

It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 24 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016.

Now, SportsLine’s advanced computer model has simulated the entire 2025 NCAA Tournament 10,000 times to come up with the perfect 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket and find out which teams will pull off the biggest upsets. You shouldn’t even think about making a pick without seeing what their model has to say.

Top 2025 NCAA Basketball Tournament bracket upset picks

One of the matchups from the Midwest Region that could ultimately shape the 2025 NCAA bracket outcome: No. 8 Gonzaga vs. No. 9 Georgia. Gonzaga fought its way to a 26th consecutive NCAA Tournament, and now the Zags will try to avoid going one and done for the first time in 17 years. Gonzaga has made it to the Sweet 16 in each of the past nine seasons, but Mark Few’s men will have a tough test against the Georgia Bulldogs on Thursday. Georgia is 4-1 in its last five games and features a proven playmaker in Asa Newell. The freshman forward enters March Madness averaging 15.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, while knocking down 54.1% of his field goals. Georgia was 4-10 against ranked opponents this year but did record victories over Florida and St. John’s, who are No. 1 and No. 2 seeds in their respective regions.

Another pivotal Midwest Region matchup: No. 5 Clemson vs. No. 12 McNeese State. Both of these teams are peaking at the right time as Clemson is 15-2 over its last 17, while McNeese State has won 22 of its last 23 games. The Cowboys won both the Southland regular season and tournament championship behind a deep, veteran squad as they have seven players averaging over 7 points, and all are upperclassmen. They are looking for their first tourney victory, in their fourth attempt, and the Southland is just 5-31 all-time in March Madness. Clemson’s top seven scorers are also all upperclassmen, but it is relatively untested for a major conference team as it played just three games (2-1) versus top 25 teams.

Finally, the matchup between No. 4 Purdue and No. 13 High Point will be a fascinating one to watch in the Midwest. The Boilermakers lost in the national championship game to UConn last season and had to replace national player of the year Zach Edey, but Braden Smith and Fletcher Loyer were both back in the lineup to give Purdue one of the most experienced backcourts in the country. Smith is averaging 16.1 points and 8.7 assists per game this season while Loyer is averaging 13.8 points and shooting 46.4% from the 3-point line. However, High Point is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance and has already set a new program record with 29 wins. The Big South regular-season and tournament champions rank top 25 in the nation in both scoring average (82.2 ppg) and KenPom adjusted offensive efficiency (118.5). You can see the model’s 2025 NCAA bracket picks here. 

How to make 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket predictions

Who wins every tournament-defining matchup, and which teams will make surprising runs through the 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket? With the model’s track record of calling bracket-busting upsets, you’ll want to see which stunners it’s calling this year before locking in any 2025 NCAA bracket picks.

So what’s the optimal NCAA Tournament 2025 bracket, and which NCAA Tournament Cinderella teams will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which region features three must-have upsets, including a play-in team that absolutely stuns its first-round opponent, all from the model that’s beaten 91% of bracket players in four of the last six tournaments.