NCAA Tournament National Championship Odds: UConn Remain the Favorites

The NCAA Tournament has been rapidly moving along, and we have already reached the Sweet 16. There were a handful of upsets that took place in the first two rounds of the tourney, but there are plenty of talented teams still remaining.

With the pool of teams being trimmed down from 68 to 16, FanDuel Sportsbook is still offering National Championship winner odds. Will the UConn Huskies win their sixth title in program history, or will another team emerge from the pack and take down the reigning champs?

Let's take a look at the current National Championship odds and discuss the top contenders to cut down the nets at the end of this year's NCAA Tournament.

NCAA Tournament National Championship Odds

UConn Huskies (+210)

What is there to say about the Huskies that hasn't been said already? Head coach Dan Hurley has his team firing on all cylinders to begin the tournament, earning wins of at least 17 points in each of the team's first two games against the Stetson Hatters and the Northwestern Wildcats.

Next up for UConn is a meeting with a familiar foe in the Sweet 16 as they're set to take on the San Diego State Aztecs -- who they beat in the National Championship last year. The Huskies will certainly need to focus on slowing down Jaedon LeDee (21.5 PPG, 8.4 RPG) when they face the Aztecs on Thursday.

For a team that has the sixth-best effective field-goal percentage (57.1%), via Bart Torvik's stats, UConn has shot an efficient 53.2% from the field in their first two games despite making just 3 of their 22 three-point attempts versus Northwestern. Given how dominant Tristen Newton (15.3 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 6.2 APG) and Donovan Clingan (12.8 PPG, 7.4 RPG) have been to begin the tourney, it's easy to see why the Huskies are still the favorites to win it all.

Houston Cougars (+550)

The Houston Cougars are one of two teams in the Big 12 that is still alive in the NCAA Tournament. The Cougars are considered the favorites to be the team who can prevent the Huskies from winning back-to-back titles -- although the two teams wouldn't meet until the National Championship if both advance.

In the first two rounds of the tourney, Houston has shown it can win in a variety of ways. After cruising to an 86-46 victory over the Longwood Lancers in the Round of 64 in a dominant defensive effort, the Cougars outscored the Texas A&M Aggies 100-95 in the Second Round.

During the win against Texas A&M, Houston got 20-plus points from LJ Cryer (15.5 PPG), Jamal Shead (13.2 PPG, 6.4 APG), and Emanuel Sharp (12.8 PPG). If the Cougars want to have a chance the first title in their program's history, then they'll need to beat the Duke Blue Devils in a game that could be a defensive battle with the lowest projected total (133.5) of the Sweet 16 contests.

Purdue Boilermakers (+600)

Following an early exit as a No. 1 seed in the 2023 NCAA Tournament, the Purdue Boilermakers look motivated to make everyone forget about that loss. Amid a two-game stretch where they've defeated the Grambling State Tigers and the Utah State Aggies by at least 28 points each, Zach Edey (24.5 PPG, 12.1 RPG) has been nearly unstoppable.

Edey produced 30 points, 21 rebounds, and three blocks against Grambling State, and he proceeded to follow that up with 23 points, 14 rebounds, and three blocks versus Utah State. Rebounding can be an issue against a Purdue team that is eighth in offensive rebound rate (37.4%) and 23rd in defensive rebound rate allowed (24.7%).

Next up for the Boilermakers is the Gonzaga Bulldogs, who have advanced to the Sweet 16 in nine consecutive tournaments under head coach Mark Few. With how assertive Edey has been to begin the tournament, Purdue is proving they have what it takes to be crowned national champions.

Arizona Wildcats (+850)

The only non-1 seed to be in the top four in odds to win the National Championship is the Arizona Wildcats. The 2 seed Wildcats secured double-digit wins against the Long Beach State Beach and the Dayton Flyers in their first two games in the NCAA Tournament.

Ahead of a matchup with the Clemson Tigers in the Sweet Sixteen, Arizona has the shortest odds to win the West region (+110), putting them ahead of the 1 seed North Carolina Tar Heels. Up to this point, the Wildcats have gotten fantastic contributions from Caleb Love (18.1 PPG), Pelle Larsson (12.9 PPG), Oumar Bello (12.9 PPG, 10.0 RPG), and Keshad Johnson (11.7 PPG, 5.7 RPG).

Offense isn't an issue for Arizona with the 24th-best effective field-goal percentage (55.0%) and a 39.6% three-point percentage on 53 three-point shots in the first two rounds of the tourney. The Wildcats are hoping to be the first Pac-12 team to win the National Championship since 1997 when they defeated the Kentucky Wildcats.

Looking for more college basketball betting opportunities? Head over to FanDuel Sportsbook to check out all of the upcoming college basketball odds.

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