NCAAB
Jordan Ramsay
March 18, 2025

2025 NCAA Tournament Odds: Four Cinderella teams to help you win your March Madness bracket

What’s March without a little madness? That’s what we’re counting and we’re taking a look at the numbers to see what long shot teams could go on Cinderella runs at this year’s NCAA Tournament.

Let’s dive right in.

Don’t forget to check out our complete list of college basketball game odds, futures and specials/props.

No. 10 Utah State Aggies

First round opponent: No. 7 UCLA

Strong defence can be enough to earn a first-round upset, but it’s high level offence like Utah State employs that helps teams go on Cinderella runs. The Aggies average nine 3-pointers per game and they’ve already beat higher ranked teams like Iowa and Saint Mary’s in non-conference play this season. Leading scorer Ian Martinez is back and he’ll look to replicate his 21-point performance in last year’s first-round victory over TCU.

No. 12 UC San Diego Tritons

First round opponent: No. 5 Michigan

UC San Diego has come a long way, winning 30 games in their final Division II season just five seasons ago. Now the Tritons are in the Big Dance out of the Big West and they’re in the coveted 5 vs. 12 slot, a game known to produce upsets. Led by senior guard Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, UC San Diego has four players averaging double-digit points, while the team is making close to 11 3s per game. Of the four 12-seeds, this is the team with the most upset potential.

No. 13 Yale Bulldogs

First round opponent: No. 4 Texas A&M

Basketball IQ isn’t a question for Yale, who beat out Princeton in the final of the Ivy League tournament. The Bulldogs already played Purdue to a close game earlier this season and they have a returning John Poulakidas who scored 28 points in last year’s first-round upset when Yale beat Auburn as a 13-seed. The Bulldogs are an elite 3-point shooting team, which is generally what underdog teams rely on in this tournament to pull off an upset.

No. 14 Lipscomb Bisons

First round opponent: No. 3 Iowa State

With an average of nearly 10 triples per game, Lipscomb offers the most value as a Cinderella team of all the 14-seeds. The Bisons also have a better free throw percentage than all but two teams in the bracket, so defences will have to be cautious about sending them to the line. John Ognacevic has scored at least 20 points in eight of his last nine games, so he’ll be a key part of Lipscomb’s plan to bust brackets across the globe.