College Basketball Power Rankings: Top 5 Most Likely CBB National Champions for March Madness

With March Madness quickly approaching, we took a deep dive into our predictive analytics model's five most likely teams to win the NCAA Basketball national championship in the 2023 NCAA Tournament. One of the most difficult prizes in all of sports to win is the college basketball National Championship and these are the teams with the best chance of cutting down the nets at the end of March.

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2023 NCAA Basketball National Championship Probabilities

NCAAB TEAM	PROBABILITY	ODDS
Houston Cougars	8.6%	+700
Alabama Crimson Tide	6.8%	+900
Purdue Boilermakers	6.6%	+900
Kansas Jayhawks	5.1%	+1300
UCLA Bruins	4.6%	+1400

Who will win this year's College Basketball National Championship?

The 2022-2023 college basketball season has been one of the most wide open in the sport's recent memory. The main reason why? There are no elite teams this year.

Look no further than the difference between the top teams from the preseason AP Poll vs. our DimersBOT's current top five teams most likely to win the national championship. Only one of them (Houston) was ranked in the Top 5 in the preseason. The next two closest contenders, Purdue and Alabama were not even ranked in the top 15 at the beginning of the year.

That's not to say that there aren't good teams still. Just that the lack of any "elite" teams has opened the door for chaos. We may see another season where multiple teams make Cinderella runs to the Final Four in the NCAA Tournament.

Which makes it even harder on bettors looking to capitalize. With such an unpredictable tournament, it is important for bettors to monitor the metrics on a week-by-week basis between now and the end of the season.

Our DimersBOT model has locked in on five teams that have the best chance to win the national championship at the end of the college basketball season.

The top five teams that could win the College Basketball National Championship

1. Houston Cougars

Houston is our model's most probable champion. We give the Cougars an 8.6% probability to win the national championship. Sitting at +700 odds, they are the betting favorite as well.

The Cougars have the right mix of veteran players and future NBA stars, with freshman Jarace Walker playing like a lottery pick and senior Marcus Sasser leading the backcourt. Houston is the #1 team on Kenpom, and has a top-10 ranked offense and defense, which makes them balanced enough to win it all.  And as a bonus, the Final Four is in Houston this year, which could make for a storybook ending.

2. Alabama Crimson Tide

Alabama is our model's 2nd-most probable champion. We give the Crimson Tide a 6.8% probability to win the national championship. You can bet Alabama to win it all at +900 odds.

Alabama is incredibly three-point reliant, which makes them the most explosive team in the sport, but also prone to streaks and slumps based on their shooting in any given game. It helps that Nate Oats' team also has an elite defense (4th in the country) and the favorite to win Freshman of the Year - Brandon Miller.

3. Purdue Boilermakers

Purdue is our model's 3rd-most probable champion. We give the Boilermakers a 6.6% probability to win the national championship. You can bet Purdue to win it all at +900 odds.

Purdue has spent the most time in the polls atop the sport this season. They also emerged from out of nowhere, thanks to the unheralded freshman backcourt pairing of Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith, alongside likely National Player of the Year Zach Edey. Edey is the single most unstoppable force in sports right now, and if he can keep it up for six games in March and April, Purdue has a great chance to win it all.

4. Kansas Jayhawks

Kansas is our model's 4th-most probable champion. We give the Jayhawks a 5.1% probability to win the national championship. You can bet Kansas to win it all at +1300 odds.

A repeat national championship for Bill Self? It certainly could happen. After losing three consecutive games in the middle of conference play, Kansas has really turned things around in a positive way thanks to Jalen Wilson and freshman sharpshooter Gradey Dick. The Big 12 is a gauntlet this season, and if Kansas survives the conference as champions, it shouldn't surprise anyone if they win the biggest prize at the end of the season.

5. UCLA Bruins

UCLA is our model's 5th-most probable champion. We give the Bruins a 4.6% probability to win the national championship. You can bet UCLA to win it all at +1400 odds.

If you're into metrics, UCLA could be a great bet as Kenpom consistently has held the Bruins in his top 5 for much of the season. The Bruins have had tournament success under head coach Mick Cronin, and have the veteran stars needed in Tyger Campbell and Jaime Jaquez to come up clutch in tournament play.

Check back in with Dimers throughout the college basketball season, as we serve up daily best bets, player props and the best sportsbook offers! The "Bet $5, Get $200 in site credit" offer from DraftKings Sportsbook is a great way to bet college basketball.