As the clock ticks down to Thursday, the men’s Sweet 16 looms. After this weekend? We’ll be down to the Final Four teams left in the NCAA tournament who will fight for a national title.
Wondering who will be remaining and who will win it all? Just like we did last week, we’ve got those predictions from our staffers who know ball, with Final Four picks, along with who’s hoisting the trophy while confetti rains down in San Antonio.
So as you read up on the best survivor pool picks, the amount of perfect brackets left and some Sweet 16 power rankings, here’s a look at our expert predictions:
Florida over Duke (with Florida, Tennessee, Duke and Michigan State in the Final Four)
I said this would be the result in our first predictions post, and I’m sticking with it. Chalky but this should be epic. — Charles Curtis
Florida over Duke (with Florida, Houston, Duke and Michigan State in the Final Four)
Florida was my original pick for a champion, and I feel even better about it now after seeing the Gators play and survive a close game against the defending champ, UConn. — Prince Grimes
Duke over Florida (with Florida, Michigan, Tennessee and Duke in the Final Four)
You know what? Florida has shown just enough cracks for me to flip my pre-tournament pick. Also, thanks for nothing, Marquette. — Christian D’Andrea
Duke over Auburn (Auburn, Maryland, Duke and Tennessee in the Final Four)
I’m sticking with the same group I had before the tournament, except this time, I’m replacing the eliminated Zags with the dancing Vols. — Bryan Kalbrosky
Houston over Florida (Michigan State, BYU, Florida and Houston in the Final Four)
The Big Ten is incapable of winning a tournament since Y2K, BYU is a sneaky tough matchup for the Duke-Arizona winner, but ultimately the Big 12 reminds everyone it’s still the toughest conference in the country. — Blake Schuster
Duke over Auburn (Auburn, Florida, Duke and Tennessee in the Final Four)
As someone who starts watching any sort of college basketball in March, GIMME ALL THE CHALK, BABY. Let’s stick with the theme. — Robert Zeglinski
Maryland over Duke (Michigan, Maryland, Duke and Houston in the Final Four)
Coach K always said the only way Duke would ever play Maryland again after the Terps left the ACC was in the tournament. Here we go. For all the marbles. — Mike Sykes
Duke over Florida (Florida, Duke, Michigan State and Houston in the Final Four)
Duke is the most talented team in the tournament and meets all the historic criteria for past champions. So, I’m sticking with the Blue Devils. — Andrew Joseph
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Final Four expert predictions for 2025 Sweet 16: Winners, underdogs
