NCAA Basketball: Connecticut at Villanova
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Duke had to replace its top five leading scorers from last season, but that did not stop the Blue Devils from earning the No. 1 overall seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket. They became the second team since 2000 to achieve that feat, joining the 2018-19 Duke team. Head coach Jon Scheyer (38) can become the youngest head coach to win a national title since Jim Valvano. Should you have the Blue Devils cutting down the nets at the end of the 2026 March Madness bracket with your 2026 NCAA Tournament picks?

They will first have to get through an East Region that also features No. 2 seed UConn, No. 3 seed Michigan State and No. 4 seed Kansas. The other No. 1 seeds in the 2026 NCAA bracket are Florida, Michigan and Arizona. Before making any 2026 March Madness bracket predictions, be sure to check out the 2026 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 seven tournaments. It was all over UConn's championship run two years ago and nailed 12 teams in the Sweet 16 last year. It also correctly predicted all four Final Four teams in 2025.

It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 25 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016.

Now, with the 2026 NCAA bracket being revealed, the model is simulating the matchups and its results are in. You can only see it over at SportsLine.

2026 March Madness bracket games to watch

One of the 2026 March Madness matchups to keep an eye on: No. 8 seed Villanova vs. No. 9 seed Utah State in the West Region. Nova has won eight straight first-round games and has balance with six players averaging at least 9 ppg. The last time the Wildcats had half-a-dozen players averaging 9 ppg, they won the national title in 2018. As for Utah State, it swept both the Mountain West regular season and tournament while leading the conference with 82.5 ppg. The Aggies are also a perfect 6-0 in neutral-site games, though they'll have a bit of a geographical edge over the Philly-based Wildcats with this matchup taking place in San Diego.

Also in the West Region, Miami vs. Missouri figures to be a pivotal 7 vs. 10 matchup. The Tigers get a break in terms of location as this contest will take place in St. Louis. But Mizzou has its own merits to stand on with wins over Florida, Vanderbilt and Tennessee. A sub-70% free throw percentage may be Mizzou's biggest weakness, while Miami struggles from beyond the arc, ranking 296th in D1 in made 3-pointers per game. What the Canes do exceptionally well is convert near the basket, ranking fifth in made 2-pointers per game and 12th overall in field goal percentage.

The third matchup to watch in the West Region features No. 4 seed Arkansas vs. No. 13 seed Hawaii. Arkansas head coach John Calipari is trying to avoid becoming the first head coach to lose three straight Round of 64 games as a No. 4 seed or better, as he lost as a No. 3 seed with Kentucky (vs. Oakland) in 2024 and as a No. 2 seed with Kentucky (vs. Saint Peter's) in 2022. The Razorbacks have the third-most points from freshmen in the field this season, while Hawaii has the second-most points from upperclassmen. This is the third all-time meeting between these schools; the other two meetings occurred on back-to-back days in 1977.  You can see how far all these teams go over at SportsLine.

How to make 2026 NCAA bracket predictions

How far will those major programs go? And which Cinderella teams will make surprising runs through the 2026 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 2026 NCAA bracket picks.

So what's the optimal NCAA Tournament bracket 2026? And which 2026 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 25 upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception and beat over 91% of players in four of the last seven tournaments.