Final Four predictions for 2025 men’s NCAA tournament, from our college basketball expert

Could we see an all-No. 1 seed Final Four for just the second time ever?

The madness returns Thursday night and figures to give us some of the most competitive showdowns we’ve ever seen during the tournament’s second weekend.

Let’s make some predictions.

East Region

Action resumes on Thursday night and the first game to tip-off might be the most entertaining of the entire tournament so far. Alabama and BYU are two of the highest-scoring teams in the sport, and a combined point total of around 200 isn’t off the table in this one. Nate Oats’ team has been here before. Kevin Young’s hasn’t. That proves to be the difference as the Tide pulls away late and wins by a misleadingly solid final margin.

In the history of the NCAA Tournament, we’ve never had a scenario where a team lost at home to another team by double-digits in the regular season, and then got revenge in the Big Dance. Arizona, which dropped a 69-55 contest to Duke in Tucson back in November, has an opportunity to change that. They won’t, but they will give Duke the proverbial “big scare game” as the Blue Devils continue their march to the Final Four. Duke wins one of the best games of the tournament.

Everyone got excited about the potential of Duke playing ‘Bama in the Elite Eight when the brackets were released. Now that excitement gets to be realized. The game lives up to the hype, but the Blue Devils ultimately make the plays down the stretch to punch their ticket to San Antonio.

Prediction: Duke over Alabama

West Region

Florida feels like the 1-seed that’s in the best position for the regional semifinal round. The matchup with Maryland already seemed to be a favorable one, and now you have Terrapin head coach Kevin Willard seeming to have one and-a-half feet out the door on his way to Villanova. The Gators already got their fear of God game last weekend against UConn. They roll into Elite Eight.

In the nightcap, midnight strikes for the least appropriate “Cinderella” in NCAA Tournament history. Arkansas beat St. John’s without having to play particularly well. The same type of effort won’t get it done against Texas Tech. The Red Raiders win and win fairly convincingly to knock the last remaining double-digit seed out of the tournament.

Florida-Texas Tech is the regional final everyone says they care the least about and it winds up being a total banger. The Red Raiders have been flying too far under the radar all season long, and they finally make the sports world take notice by opening up a big early lead on the Gators. Walter Clayton Jr. continues his heroic March and saves Florida’s season with an unreal late individual rally.

Prediction: Florida over Texas Tech

South Region

Ole Miss was wildly impressive in its second round victory over Iowa State, and is a team that has serious advantages over Michigan State in areas. Expect the talk about Chris Beard to go from simmering to off the charts as the Rebels pull off the upset and advance to a regional final for the first time in program history.

Auburn rolls over Michigan in the second game. By a lot. The Tigers were a bit shaky at times in the first weekend, and now more than a few folks are doubting their status as a national championship favorite. That changes significantly after this performance where the Tigers showcase that when they’re at the top of their game, there’s still no team more dangerous in the sport.

The All-SEC regional final is a good one for the first 32 minutes before Auburn pulls away and gets to the spot where it seemed its season was always heading.

Prediction: Auburn over Ole Miss

Midwest Region

Kentucky has already beaten Tennessee twice this season, but finds itself as a 4.5-point underdog heading into Friday night’s regional semifinal. That feels wrong. The Wildcats were wildly impressive in their second round win over Illinois and they’ve got more than enough juice to take down a Volunteer team that seems to get in its own head once it reaches the second weekend. Cats over Vols for a third time this year.

Even with a very pro-Purdue crowd at Lucas Oil Stadium, Houston feels like it’s going to be too much for the Boilermakers in the nightcap. Kelvin Sampson’s monster defense suffocates Braden Smith and company, while LJ Cryer does more than enough on the other end to get the Cougars back to the Elite Eight.

Houston is the 1-seed everyone seems to have the least confidence in when it comes to their ability to win a national championship. People start questioning whether or not they’ve been wrong to overlook the Cougars after their defense dominates a Kentucky team that had been lighting up the scoreboard through the tournament’s first three rounds. UH gets the job done, and the tournament has four No. 1 seeds headed to the national semifinals for just the second time ever.

Prediction: Houston over Kentucky