March Madness predictions 2022: Instant picks with men’s NCAA bracket revealed

Here are our instant predictions for the 2022 men’s NCAA tournament.

March Madness is the greatest event on the American sports calendar. This year’s field in the men’s NCAA tournament looks ready to carry on that tradition with the perfect mix of heavyweights at the top and potential Cinderellas throughout the bracket. It’s almost impossible to correctly predict the tournament before it happens, but that won’t stop us from trying.

Last year, we nailed the championship matchup between Gonzaga and Baylor in our pre-tournament predictions. There was only one problem: we expected the Zags to cut down the nets before Baylor shocked them to win the title. This year’s field doesn’t feel as top heavy. There’s at least seven or eight teams that can credibly claim to be a favorite, but there’s no overwhelming pick to win it all like the Zags were last year.

We’re going to be giving our instant picks as the bracket is revealed. Is this the year Gonzaga finally wins it all? Find out what we think will happen below. Bet on the winners over at DraftKings Sportsbook.

Get your full printable bracket here.

West Region

The first region revealed already feels like it’s going to be the most difficult one. Gonzaga is the No. 1 overall seed in the bracket, but they have what feels like a ridiculously difficult path to the Final Four.

I was tempted to pick Memphis to go to the Final Four before the bracket was revealed. Now I’ll say Gonzaga takes out the Tigers to reach the Sweet 16. I like UConn over Arkansas in the round of 32, and then UConn over the Zags to reach the Elite Eight.

The bottom half of the bracket is also loaded. I like Texas Tech over play-in team Notre Dame to reach the Sweet 16. Duke is also going to the Sweet 16 by knocking off Davidson in the round of 32. We’ll take Texas Tech over Duke in the Sweet 16.

We’ll take Texas Tech over UConn to make the Final Four.

South Region

Arizona is on top of the South bracket, and the matchups are favorable for a trip to the Final Four. We’ll take the Wildcats over TCU to reach the Sweet 16.

We’ll pick Houston to Sweet 16 as well with a win over Chattanooga, who will upset Illinois in round one. We also like Loyola-Chicago over Ohio State and then to beat No. 2 seed Villanova. We’ll take Loyola over the Vols to reach the Elite Eight.

Then we like Arizona over the Ramblers to reach the Final Four.

Midwest Region

This feels like the easiest region for any top seed. Can Kansas get it done?

The Jayhawks will face a tough round of 32 matchup against San Diego State.

We’ll go Iowa over a tough Richmond team, and then South Dakota State over Providence. Iowa over the Jackrabbits to reach the Sweet 16.

We like LSU over Iowa State, and Wisconsin over LSU to reach the Sweet 16 while playing in Milwaukee. We’ll take USC over Auburn in a big upset in the round of 32. I like Kansas over Iowa in the Sweet 16, and the Jayhawks over Wisconsin in the Elite Eight to reach the Final Four.

East Region

The reigning champs have a tough draw in the bracket. We’ll take North Carolina over Baylor to reach the Sweet 16.

We’ll take UCLA to get back to the Sweet 16 by beating Saint Mary’s. We’ll take UCLA over UNC in the Elite Eight.

We’ll take Purdue over Virginia Tech to reach the Sweet 16. Kentucky will make it through to the second weekend, and then beat Purdue to reach the Elite Eight.

We like Kentucky over UCLA to make the Final Four.

Final Four

We’ll take Arizona over Kansas in the Final Four. And then Kentucky over Texas Tech for an all Wildcats national title game.

The Wildcats will win it all. Just kidding, we can’t do that to y’all.

We’ll take Arizona as the national champion.