Several schools will eye their first trip to the Final Four during the 2026 NCAA Tournament, including Nebraska, Tennessee and BYU. The Cornhuskers have never won a game in the March Madness bracket, but they earned a No. 4 seed this season. BYU has the most appearances (33) in the Big Dance without a Final Four, while Tennessee has the fourth-most appearances (27) without one. Are those three teams to avoid with your 2026 March Madness picks?

Meanwhile, No. 1 seed Florida is the defending national champion, while No. 2 seed UConn won the two titles prior to the Gators’ championship. The Gators and Huskies could be among the most popular 2026 NCAA Tournament picks, joining Duke, Michigan and Arizona. Before making any 2026 March Madness bracket predictions, be sure to check out the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

Their proven projection model has simulated every game in the tournament 10,000 times. It has absolutely crushed its March Madness picks recently, beating over 91 percent of all CBS Sports brackets in four of the past seven tournaments. It was all over UConn’s championship run two years ago and nailed 12 teams in the Sweet 16 last year. It also correctly predicted all four Final Four teams in 2025.

It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 25 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016.

Now, with the 2026 NCAA bracket revealed, the model is simulating the matchups and its results are in. You can only see it over at SportsLine.

Three 2026 March Madness bracket games to watch

One of the most intriguing 2026 March Madness matchups to watch: No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 9 TCU in the East region. Ohio State is 4-0 all-time versus TCU, and this year’s Buckeyes are heavily reliant on their starters. Nearly 86% of their points come from the starting five, which is the third-highest percentage among NCAA tourney teams. TCU, meanwhile, has quite the resume with wins over No. 1 Florida and No. 2 Iowa State. It also has depth that Ohio State lacks as Jamie Dixon’s squad boasts seven players who average 8.0 points or more, including David Punch, who’s scored 24-plus in back-to-back games.

Another 2026 NCAA Tournament matchup to keep an eye on is No. 7 UCLA vs. No. 10 UCF in the East Region. UCLA is in the Big Dance for the 54th time, which is tied for the third-most all-time. The Bruins have the sixth-most experienced roster in college basketball and are led by head coach Mick Cronin, who took them to the 2021 Final Four as a No. 11 seed. UCF is just 1-5 in NCAA Tournament games all-time, with its lone win coming against VCU in the Round of 64 in 2019.  

Another 2026 March Madness game to watch out for: No. 6 Louisville vs. No. 11 South Florida in the East Region. The Cardinals can lean on a 29-4 all-time record versus USF, but Louisville HC Pat Kelsey is also 0-5 all-time in the Round of 64. The status of star Mikel Brown Jr. (back) looms large as he missed the last four games, and UofL is 16-5 with him compared to 7-5 without him. As for South Florida, it swept the American regular season and tournament titles and is riding an 11-game win streak. The Bulls also have five players averaging 11-plus ppg, which is tied for the most in Division I. You can only see the model’s 2026 NCAA bracket picks here.

How to make 2026 NCAA bracket predictions

Who wins every tournament-defining matchup? And which teams will make surprising runs through the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket? With the model’s track record of calling bracket-busting upsets, you’ll want to see which stunners it’s calling this year before locking in any 2026 NCAA bracket picks.

So what’s the optimal NCAA Tournament 2026 bracket? And which NCAA Tournament Cinderella teams will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which double-digit seeds you can back with confidence, all from the model that called all four Final Four teams in 2025.