College Basketball Predictions: 2026-27 National Championship Best Bets & Longshots
We’re back! Believe it or not, the college basketball season starts in just a few days. To kick things off, there’s a standalone game between the Villanova Wildcats and Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Sunday morning at 9:30 ET from Rome, Italy, but the action really gets underway late Sunday night and into Monday morning with the 24-hour Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon in Rock Hill, South Carolina.
For much of last season, Michigan was the team to beat, and the Wolverines were able to cap their season off with a title. However, things look different in Ann Arbor with Dusty May, Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara off to the Association. This year, there seems to be a ton of parity at the top, which is great for us college hoops fans. The hard part is navigating that parity to find betting value in the futures market.
With the season right around the corner, it’s time to take a look at the college basketball betting board to see if we can find said value in the futures market. Let’s start with the national title odds for the 2026-2027 season, courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook at the time of publishing, and cap it off with a few best bets before the action gets underway.
Don’t forget to check out our CBB predictions for tips and analysis on all of the biggest hoops games throughout the season!
2026-2027 College Basketball National Championship Odds
- Duke Blue Devils +450
- Florida Gators +650
- UConn Huskies +1200
- Illinois Fighting Illini +1400
- Arizona Wildcats +1600
- Michigan State Spartans +2000
- Texas Longhorns +2200
- Texas Tech Red Raiders +2200
- Louisville Cardinals +2500
- Arkansas Razorbacks +2500
- St. John’s Red Storm +3000
- Virginia Cavaliers +3000
- Houston Cougars +3000
- Gonzaga Bulldogs +3000
- Kansas Jayhawks +3000
- Vanderbilt Commodores +3500
- Iowa State Cyclones +3500
- Alabama Crimson Tide +3500
- Miami Hurricanes +3500
- UCLA Bruins +4500
- Kentucky Wildcats +4500
- Michigan Wolverines +4500
- Tennessee Volunteers +4500
- LSU Tigers +5000
- Missouri Tigers +5000
- Everyone else +6500 or longer
The college basketball season is a grind, and starting this year, it will be even longer with the expansion of the NCAA Tournament – which introduces more variance into an already extremely volatile market. I usually try to stay away from the top of the oddsboard at this time of year, as a preseason investment at +600 doesn’t have as much upside as one at +6000 or even +2000.
Obviously, it’s harder to hit the bets with longer odds, but with so many moving pieces in the current landscape of college basketball, the closing-line opportunity from now until the start of conference play is massive. Putting yourself in profitable position is the name of the game, and it’s something I’ve found success in over the last few years, including bets on the 2021-2022 Auburn team at 100/1 (closed around 10/1), 2022-2023 Alabama team at 25/1 (closed around 7/1) and the 2024-2025 Florida team at 40/1 (closed as favorite) – each at some point in the preseason or prior to Christmas. Only one of those teams actually went on to win the title, but as a bettor, you can only control what you can control. Considering this approach, here are my favorite preseason futures to make ahead of the 2026-2027 college basketball season.
CBB National Championship Best Bet: Virginia Cavaliers +3500
Odds available at bet365 at the time of publishing. Playable to +3000.
There’s a lot to love about what Ryan Odom has brewing in Charlottesville, starting with what he brought back this season. Chance Mallory, Thijs de Ridder, Johann Grünloh and Sam Lewis are all back this year, which should ease the pain of losing key contributors like Malik Thomas, Dallin Hall, Jacari White and Ugonna Onyenso. That said, Mallory and Ridder are ready to take the next step as stars at the collegiate level, and the Cavaliers have both at their disposal.
Odom is quite the coach. He’s been to the NCAA Tournament with four different programs, and he was even UMBC’s coach when the Retrievers became the first #16 to upset a #1. As you probably know, that #1 seed was Virginia. Talking about full circle! With him in charge and Mallory running point, expect the Hoos to play with pace and space, crash the offensive glass and take intelligent shots.
Defensively, the loss of Onyenso hurts, but replacing him with Grünloh is about as good as it gets. In fact, both were top-10 nationally in block rate last year (KenPom), while Grünloh was top-four in the ACC in EvanMiya’s defensive player rating. Combine that with another top-10 ACC defender in de Ridder, and you have a dynamic frontcourt pairing on which opponents will have trouble scoring.
The Hoos may have depth issues in the backcourt, but not enough to balk at a 35/1 price tag. Virginia has championship upside this year and could easily go into the tournament with odds one-third this price if they play to their ceiling in the ACC and in non-conference play against Arkansas, Kentucky and UConn.
CBB National Championship Longshot: Alabama Crimson Tide +6000
Odds available at Caesars Sportsbook at the time of publishing. Playable to +4000.
In the current age of college sports, I consider anything longer than 50/1 a longshot, so here we are, adding the Alabama Crimson Tide to the portfolio before the season starts. Always make sure you shop around because FanDuel has the worst price on the Tide. There are much better numbers out there, like at DraftKings and Caesars.
Of course, the main storyline is Aden Holloway’s arrest last year, but those charges were dismissed with his participation in a diversion program. He will miss a couple games due to suspension, but that’s about it. When he’s on the floor, he’s simply one of the best point guards in the game, possessing an innate ability to score. Alongside him is the return of Amari Allen, which is someone Tide fans can get excited about after averaging more than 11 points per game as a freshman with nearly seven boards and three assists.
Alabama coach Nate Oats bolstered the frontcourt in the offseason, which was a weakness last year. Aiden Sherrell will be missed, but Drew Fielder (Boise State), Brandon Garrison (Kentucky) and Jamarion Davis-Fleming (Mississippi State) add some much needed depth down low and improve the Tide’s rebounding presence, which was much needed. Defense is somewhat of a concern, but Allen is a plus defender, as is London Jemison on the perimeter. The arrival of Garrison should help deter shots around the basket as well.
Oats has been a great recruiter over the years, so I trust some of the freshmen like Qayden Samuels or Jaxon Richardson will fit right in and contribute in some fashion right away.
The Tide are pretty thin behind Holloway, but projecting injuries or, in his case, felonious charges is a fool’s errand. Given what Oats has at his disposal in T-Town this year, expect more of the same from the Tide: up-and-down, high-scoring and tons of threes. There’s Final Four upside with this squad, which is exactly what we’re looking for at this price point.
