Millions of fans across the country are filling out their brackets ahead of the men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments this week.
But who are they picking to win it all? And are they worth listening to as you fill out yours?
Here’s a breakdown of who Yahoo Sports users are selecting so far in their NCAA tournament brackets.
(Data used in this post is updated as of Thursday morning.)
[Yahoo Fantasy Bracket Mayhem: Make your picks for $50K in total prizes]
Duke, Arizona split on the men’s side
The men’s side is fairly balanced. At least it is at the very top.
About 27% of Yahoo Sports users have selected Duke to win the national championship in their brackets. The Blue Devils were also the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament after they went 32-2 on the year and won both ACC titles.
But Arizona isn’t far behind. The Wildcats were selected to win the national championship in about 23% of brackets. Arizona also has narrowed the gap from Duke over the past 24 hours.
The top 10 looks like this:
1. Duke (27.3%)
2. Arizona (23%)
3. Michigan (14.4%)
4. Florida (6.3%)
5. Houston (6.0%)
6. UConn (3.6%)
7. Purdue (3.0%)
8. Iowa State (2.0%)
9. Gonzaga (1.8%)
10. Michigan State (1.5%)
Duke, with star freshman Cameron Boozer leading the way, won 11 straight games to end the regular season. Boozer, who is widely expected to be a top lottery pick in the NBA draft in a few months, has averaged 22.5 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.
Arizona, though, posted a 32-3 record and ended the year on a nine-game win streak. The Wildcats beat Houston and Iowa State twice during that stretch, too, and picked up a blowout win over Kansas. They’re led by a pair of star freshmen in Koa Peat and Brayden Burries.
If the Wildcats can pull off the national championship, they’ll be the first team from the West coast to do so since 1997. Arizona won that year under head coach Lute Olson, too.
Michigan State moved into the top 10, slightly ahead of Kansas.
More men’s NCAA tournament data
Top 5 Least Common Title Picks:
Furman: 0.025%
Wright State: 0.025%
Kennesaw State: 0.026%
Troy: 0.026%
California Baptist: 0.027%
Top 10 Most Common Final Four Teams:
Duke: 63.4%
Michigan: 61.2%
Arizona: 60.0%
Florida: 41.6%
Houston: 36.2%
Iowa State: 19.0%
Purdue: 15.9%
UConn: 13.8%
Illinois: 10.4%
Gonzaga: 9.5%
Top 5 Most Common Double-Digit Seeds in Final Four:
Texas A&M: 0.47%
Penn: 0.43%
Missouri: 0.30%
SCU: 0.28%
USF: 0.27%
Top 5 Most Picked Teams To Get Upset in First Round
(Excluding 8v9 and 7v10)
No. 6 Louisville: 37.33% of brackets picking No. 11 South Florida
No. 6 North Carolina: 30.86% of brackets picking No. 11 VCU
No. 5 Texas Tech: 23.3% of brackets picking No. 12 Akron
No. 6 BYU: 17.85% of brackets picking No. 11 Texas
No. 5 Wisconsin: 15.32% of brackets picking No. 12 High Point
UConn is the overwhelming favorite on the women’s side
This one is not even close, and it makes a lot of sense as to why.
The Huskies, who earned the No. 1 overall seed in this year’s tournament after their undefeated campaign, have been picked to win the national championship by just more than half of all Yahoo Sports users. About 50.2% of users have UConn winning it all.
Lauren Betts and UCLA are the next closest, though they are well back. About 13.7% of users have the Bruins winning the national championship. South Carolina is the only other team to hit double digits with about 10.2% of users selecting the Gamecocks as their title winner.
The top 10 looks like this:
1. UConn (50.4%)
2. UCLA (14%)
3. South Carolina (10.2%)
4. Texas (6.4%)
5. LSU (3.3%)
6. Michigan (2.3%)
7. Iowa (1.6%)
8. Duke (1.2%)
9. Vanderbilt (1.0%)
10. Ohio State (0.7%)
UConn had only one game this season that finished within single digits. Otherwise, the Huskies rolled to blowout win after blowout win. They went a perfect 34-0 to run the table and carried a 38.4-point margin of victory. They’re second in the country in points per game, and they lead the way in scoring defense. Naturally, they are a massive favorite to win the national championship. BetMGM has them listed at -275 to win it all.
UConn will take on UT-San Antonio in the first round at home on Saturday. No. 8 Iowa State and No. 9 Syracuse will square off on the other side of that four-team pod.
While a national championship isn’t guaranteed for the Huskies by any means, fans are clearly on board after seeing what they’ve accomplished thus far.
On both the men’s and women’s side, all of the No. 1 seeds were the top choices to win the national championship. If Yahoo Sports’ users are right, both tournaments are going to be very chalky.
More women’s NCAA tournament data
Top 5 Least Common Title Picks:
FDU: 0.033%
Southern/Samford: 0.035%
Missouri State/Stephen F. Austin: 0.037%
Fairfield: 0.040%
Howard: 0.041%
Top 10 Most Common Final Four Teams:
UConn: 82.8%
South Carolina: 71.6%
Texas: 64.8%
UCLA: 62.7%
LSU: 19.6%
Michigan: 17.8%
Iowa: 12.1%
Duke: 8.9%
Louisville: 5.7%
Vanderbilt: 5.6%
Top 5 Most Common Double-Digit Seeds in Final Four:
Tennessee: 2.30%
Gonzaga: 0.60%
Colorado: 0.41%
Rhode Island: 0.38%
Holy Cross: 0.34%
Top 5 Most Picked Teams To Get Upset in First Round
(Excluding 8v9 and 7v10)
No. 5 Ole Miss: 19.33% of brackets picking No. 12 Gonzaga
No. 6 Washington: 18.47% of brackets picking No. 11 South Dakota State
No. 6 Alabama: 14.13% of brackets picking No. 11 Rhode Island
No. 5 Kentucky: 12.26% of brackets picking No. 12 James Madison
No. 5 Maryland: 10.40% of brackets picking No. 12 Murray State
