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One of the groups in the West Region of the 2025 NCAA Tournament features No. 4 Maryland vs. No. 13 Grand Canyon and No. 5 Memphis vs. No. 12 Colorado State, with those winners facing off in the second round. Before you go with chalk in your 2025 March Madness predictions, you should be aware that these games take place in Seattle. Thus, it could favor the two worse-seeded teams that lie West of the Mississippi since their fans won't have to travel as far. Penciling in No. 12 Colorado State vs. No. 13 Grand Canyon into the second round of your 2025 March Madness bracket could make you look like a genius, provided that's the actual matchup. Location alone won't win any NCAA Tournament 2025 games, so which on-court factors should you look at? Before making any 2025 March Madness bracket predictions, be sure to check out the 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine. 

Their 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 percent 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. There's simply no reason to rely on luck when there's proven technology to help you dominate your 2025 March Madness pools. 

Now, with the 2025 NCAA bracket being revealed, the model is simulating the matchups and its results are in. You can only see it over at SportsLine.

2025 March Madness bracket games to watch

One of the 2025 March Madness matchups to keep an eye on: No. 8 seed Mississippi State vs. No. 9 seed Baylor in the East Region. MSU has lost five straight NCAA tourney games but has standout players who could end this streak. Josh Hubbard leads the team with 18.7 points and leads the SEC in assists-to-turnover ratio, while Cameron Matthews tops the SEC with 2.5 steals. As for Baylor, it has won its last six NCAA Tournament openers, so it has that edge over the Bulldogs, and Baylor has one of four players in a power conference averaging a double-double in Norchad Omier (15.9 points, 10.9 rebounds). However, the Bears' perimeter defense is lacking as it allows the highest 3-point percentage in the Big 12.

Also in the East Region, BYU vs. VCU figures to be a pivotal 6 vs. 11 matchup. BYU is a team that lives on the perimeter, and for good reason, as it ranks second in the Big 12 in both 3P attempts and 3P percentage. While it also leads the conference in 2P percentage, it ranks last in 2P attempts, in part, due to a lack of size. That contrasts with VCU, which ranks sixth in the country with 5.5 blocks per game thanks to the Twin Tower duo of Christian Fermin and Luke Bamgboye. The Rams attempt 3P shots at nearly the same rate as the Cougars but aren't as efficient from deep, so whoever's shot from beyond the arc is falling could be the team that advances.

The third matchup to watch in the East Region features No. 3 seed Wisconsin vs. No. 14 seed Montana. Montana is efficient on the offensive end of the floor. The Grizzlies boast a .568 effective field goal percentage, which ranks ninth in college basketball. Montana is led by guard Money Williams, who's averaging 13.3 points and 3.1 assists per game. Wisconsin, meanwhile, will be looking to get off to a fast start in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The Badgers have been prone to upsets in recent NCAA Tournaments under head coach Greg Gard as Wisconsin is 1-3 against double-digit seeds over its last four tournament appearances dating back to 2019. You can see how far all these teams go over at SportsLine.

How to make 2025 NCAA bracket predictions

How far will those major programs go? And which Cinderella 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 is calling this year before locking in any 2025 NCAA bracket picks.

So what's the optimal NCAA Tournament bracket 2025? And which 2025 March Madness underdogs will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which teams you can back with confidence, all from the model that's nailed 24 upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception and beat over 91% of players in four of the last six tournaments.