Who Will Win March Madness? Experts Reveal 2025 NCAAB Championship Bracket Betting Strategy

It's almost Tournament Time in the 2024-45 college basketball season and we're gearing up for a big March Madness here at Dimers. Bracket predictions, expanded prop projections and round-by-round upset picks are just a few of the things we have cooking in the Dimers lab ahead of the finalized tournament selection.

In the meantime, many bettors are looking ahead to the end of the tournament, when one of the 68 teams will be crowned champion. Not just so they can dominate their work pool brackets and earn bragging rights, but so they can get the best value on a potential tournament champion by way of NCAAB futures bets.

With the single elimination aspect of the tournament front and center, there's rarely a time to get an improved price on a team to win the title once the tournament starts, as their odds are almost guaranteed to only get shorter as the pool thins out.

That's why we're bringing you a comprehensive look at futures betting, with a focus on attacking the 2025 NCAAB Basketball Tournament in March.

We'll break down futures betting as a whole, plus strategy, tips and some current examples of positive and negative value in the 2025 Men's NCAAB tournament odds as they are now. Plus, we'll take a rewind and look back at some past success we've had betting on futures with Dimers predictions as we try to do so again in the tournament. For more tournament strategy, check out our guide on how to pick upsets in March Madness.

What is a March Madness Futures Bet?

Futures bets allow you to invest your bankroll in outcomes over an entire season, tournament, or major award race. Futures betting is perfect for bettors who prefer to focus on the long-term potential of a team rather than wagering on individual games, instead of the day-in, day-out process required for betting on single matchups.

For college basketball fans, this means placing bets on which team will win the 2025 men's NCAAB Tournament, which squad will secure a conference title in the lead-up to Selection Sunday, or how far a particular team will make it in the tournament.

Some of the most common futures bets in college basketball include:

• NCAAB Tournament Winner: Betting on which team will cut down the nets in March Madness. Will it be Auburn (+350), Duke (+425) or a longshot like UConn (+8000)?

• Conference Champions: Wagering on teams like Maryland or Kansas to win their respective conference titles.

• Over/Under Win Totals: Predicting whether a team will exceed or fall short of a set number of wins during the regular season.

• Player Awards: Betting on the winner of the Naismith College Player of the Year or Wooden Award.

Futures bets can be placed before the season starts or during the season and continue throughout the year, with odds and potential cash-out options adjusting based on team performance and other factors.

How Do March Madness Futures Bets Work?

March Madness futures odds are set before the season but fluctuate as teams progress. For example, before the season begins, UConn was favored at +900 to win the NCAA Tournament when the season opened, but have dropped to +8000 after an up-and-down season. Meanwhile, Duke opened as co-favorites with UConn and now sit at +425, second shortest of all teams, after a dominant year.

For reference, a $10 bet on Duke's current odds to win the championship would win $42.50, while UConn would pay out $800 on a $10 bet.

These odds shift based on injuries, team performance, and other factors. If a team starts strong, like Duke, their odds may shorten (e.g., from +1200 to +600), making early bets potentially more valuable.

March Madness Futures Betting Strategies

As mentioned, one key strategy for betting futures is monitoring how odds change throughout the season.

If you placed a $100 bet on Duke to win March Madness at +800 before the season, you'd be looking at a profit of $800. Your original bet remains at those odds even though their current price has dropped to +425, giving you a great position compared to someone betting later in the season, who would have to lay nearly twice as much as your original wager to achieve the same payout.

On the flipside, a team struggles early but has the potential to rebound, betting mid-season can yield higher payouts. Take the UConn example, where their current odds are 10x as high, meaning a $10 bet now would pay out the same as a $100 bet at the start of the season. This would be a great opportunity to jump in if you believe they can turn things around before the tournament and make a run late in the tournament.

Additionally, shopping around at different sportsbooks ensures you get the best possible odds. A team might be listed at +1000 at one book but at +1200 or longer at another, making a significant difference in potential payouts.

RELATED: Dimers' Biggest Futures Wins

Hedging a March Madness Futures Bet

Hedging is a common strategy to secure profit when a futures bet has a strong chance of cashing. Suppose you bet on Duke at +800 to win the NCAA Tournament before the season, and they reach the Final Four. If their opponent in the semifinals is a strong contender like Florida, you might bet on Florida to win that game as a hedge.

For example:

• Your original $100 bet on Duke at +800 could profit $800 if they win the tournament.

• You place a $200 hedge bet on Kansas at +150 to win the semifinal.

• If Duke wins, you are still in play for the full $800 payout minus your $200 hedge.

• If Kansas wins, your hedge bet yields $300 in winnings, covering the original $100 loss on Duke and still securing profit.

Hedging can guarantee a return no matter the outcome, minimizing risk and locking in profits, but it's important to consider your total investment and not wager too much that your reducing your potential return on profit too much.

Why Dimers is The Expert When it Comes to Futures Betting

Now that we've covered the basics of futures betting in regards to the 2025 NCAAB Basketball Tournament, let's show you just how valuable those futures bets can be when used as betting investments with a look at one of our biggest futures predictions in recent history, and see an expanded list of our best calls and profitable wins here.

Eagles Beat Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX (+6600)

The winner of Super Bowl LIX is still fresh in everyone's mind, right?

Before the 2024-25 NFL Season, we released a comprehensive Preseason Futures Betting Guide for our Dimers Pro subscribers, packed with immense data and predictions for 12 different futures markets, including Win Totals, Division Results and multiple Super Bowl markets.

One of those was the Exact Result, predicting the two teams that would reach Super Bowl LIX as well as the winner of the game.

The Eagles to beat the Chiefs was a Top 10 most likely result, but more importantly, revealed a value bet. Priced at +6600, our model gave fair odds of +6300. That's a $30 difference for a $10 bettor, a $300 difference for a $100 bettor and so on.

We identified nine edges in this market - if you placed a $10 bet on each one, you would have been up $580 after the other 8 losses.

At big odds and with powerful data in your pocket, sometimes you just need one.

It was always the Eagles over the Chiefs - and at +6600!

🗓️ Way back in August, we published a Dimers Pro exclusive Preseason Futures Guide.

🏆 One of the markets we simulated was the exact #SuperBowlLIX result, with Eagles beating the Chiefs a betting edge at +6600.

💰 A $5… pic.twitter.com/ax0rtiFbhz

— Dimers.com (@DimersCom) February 10, 2025

Conclusion - Get The Best NCAAB Tournament Predictions

You’ve seen how futures betting can unlock major value. You’ve witnessed how Dimers' data-driven predictions turn long-term bets into massive payouts.

Now, take your 2025 NCAAB Tournament betting to the next level with Dimers Pro—yours for less than $1/day.

From the First Four to the final buzzer, you'll have access to elite Best CBB Bets, valuable CBB Player Props, NCAAB Tournament Predictions, player prop trends,—all backed by proven analytics.

With Dimers Pro, every bet is smarter, every pick is sharper, and every game is an opportunity - all tournament long.

Dimers' College Basketball Betting Resources for the 2024-25 Season

• CBB Predictions: Our data-backed previews for every game, every day
• CBB Best Bets: Our Top Picks for every individual matchup
• Best CBB Props: Player edges and projections from our predictive analytics model
• CBB Futures Odds: Who will win the 2025 March Madness Tournament?
• CBB Betting News: The latest promos, storylines and more around the league

Responsible Gambling

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