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The Kentucky Wildcats will try to add to their trophy collection when the 2025 NCAA Tournament gets underway. The Wildcats rank second among all college basketball teams with eight NCAA titles, one of which was in 1996 when current head coach Mark Pope was a player. Pope led the Wildcats to a No. 3 seed in his first season at the helm in Lexington. Kentucky will take on No. 14 Troy on Friday in the first round of the 2025 March Madness bracket.

The Wildcats suffered a loss in the first round as a No. 3 seed last season, so are they a team you want to avoid when crafting your 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket strategy? Kentucky is one of 14 SEC teams to make the NCAA Tournament 2025, but will one of those teams cut down the nets in San Antonio? Before making any 2025 March Madness bracket predictions, be sure to check out the 2025 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 six tournaments. It was all over UConn's championship run a year ago and nailed 13 teams in the Sweet 16. It also nailed Alabama's Cinderella run to the Final Four as a 4-seed.

It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 24 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016. There's simply no reason to rely on luck when there's proven technology to help you dominate your 2025 March Madness pools. 

Now, with the 2025 NCAA bracket being revealed, the model is simulating the matchups and its results are in. You can only see it over at SportsLine.

2025 March Madness bracket games to watch

One of the 2025 March Madness matchups to keep an eye on: No. 8 seed Mississippi State vs. No. 9 seed Baylor in the East Region. Baylor was 13-3 on its home court this season, but the Bears were just 3-8 on the road. However, the Bears will enter this matchup confident they can secure the victory given the fact they're 8-2 in their last 10 meetings against an opponent from the SEC. Mississippi State, meanwhile, has lost five of its last seven games overall but the Bulldogs have the veteran leadership needed to win. MSU is led by guard Josh Hubbard, who's averaging 18.7 points per game. Forward KeShawn Murphy is also productive for the Bulldogs, averaging 11.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game.

Also in the East Region, BYU vs. VCU figures to be a pivotal 6 vs. 11 matchup. BYU can rack up points in a hurry thanks to its prolific shooting from 3-point range. The Cougars are connecting on 37.08% of their 3-point attempts this season, a big reason why they're averaging 81.0 points per contest. BYU is led by forward Richie Saunders, who's averaging 16.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game. VCU, meanwhile, is one of the best defensive teams in the country, holding opponents to just 62.4 points per game, the eighth-best mark in college basketball. The Rams also rank 20th in 3-point percentage defense (30.4%), making this an intriguing first-round matchup.

The third matchup to watch in the East Region features No. 3 seed Wisconsin vs. No. 14 seed Montana. The Badgers are coming off a loss to Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament title game on Sunday, which likely cost them a chance to play in Milwaukee rather than Denver. They are led by John Tonje, who averages 19.2 points per game and is a Player of the Year candidate. He is facing a Montana team that is making its 14th trip to the NCAA Tournament and is eyeing its first win since 2006. The Grizzlies came up short against the Badgers by a final score of 73-49 in a 13-4 matchup in 2012. You can see how far all these teams go over at SportsLine.

How to make 2025 NCAA bracket predictions

How far will those major programs go? And which Cinderella teams will make surprising runs through the 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket? With the model's track record of calling bracket-busting upsets, you'll want to see which stunners it is calling this year before locking in any 2025 NCAA bracket picks.

So what's the optimal NCAA Tournament bracket 2025? And which 2025 March Madness underdogs will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which teams you can back with confidence, all from the model that's nailed 24 upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception and beat over 91% of players in four of the last six tournaments.