March Madness 2015 Brackets: Favorites, Sleepers, Cinderellas and More Advice

The lines of battle are drawn, the stakes are high, and the hopefuls are bountiful.

Madness ensues.

Selection Sunday is in the books and the participants in stone, and those who hope to gain something ranging from bragging rights to financial gain had better fill things out in pencil, not pen.

A total of 67 teams are gunning to pull off the unthinkable, while one has its eyes set on history. As always, the bracket is a breeding ground for upsets, wow-worthy individual performances and more.

To stand at an advantage in the bracket pools, preparation must start now.

Key Tournament Information

Dates: March 17—April 6

Channels: CBS, TBS, TNT and TruTV

Live Stream: March Madness Live

All Your Bracket Essentials

• Download the Printable Bracket

• Play the Free Bracket Challenge

Highlighting the Favorites 

Kentucky

The word "favorite" doesn't get tossed around without bringing up the undefeated Kentucky Wildcats.

Undisputed at No. 1 in ESPN's RPI rankings with 21 wins against opponents ranked in the RPI Top 100, John Calipari's team blew through the SEC tournament. The final contest in the torrid sequence of events was an easy 78-63 victory against No. 21 Arkansas.

After, the players refused to cut down the nets. 

"We all looked at each other, and we all said that this is not over," said Karl-Anthony Towns, per ESPN.com's Myron Medcalf. "We have a lot more to strive for."

Thanks to Towns and Willie Cauley-Stein underneath the basket, not to mention Aaron Harrison, Andrew Harrison and Devin Booker in the backcourt, the Wildcats figure to take down the nets after winning the national title soon enough.

The draw of the bracket doesn't hurt. A fourth-seeded Maryland might put up a fight, but no team until perhaps No. 2 Kansas, if it can survive a side with Notre Dame, Butler and Texas, strikes fear into Kentucky's chances.

Eric Rosenthal of HoundSports.com puts it best:

Sometimes the rich get richer. Kentucky is a good example.

Duke

Gerry Broome/Associated Press

What, think Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils weren't going to take home a No. 1 seed?

Sure, Duke didn't win the regular-season title or the ACC tournament, but it has a 17-4 mark against the RPI Top 100 and a 7-2 mark against the RPI Top 25.

As of late, Duke has played a bit on edge, the sometimes-spotty defense a big reason the team dipped out of the ACC tournament at the hands of Notre Dame. There, the Fighting Irish encountered little resistance and shot 50 percent from the field.

Still, the offense makes Duke such a serious threat. Freshman Jahlil Okafor leads the way with 17.7 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.

As far as the path to the Final Four goes, Duke might have it even easier than Kentucky unless a third-seeded Iowa State goes on a tear. Then again, up-and-down defense may leave the Blue Devils vulnerable at any point.

At first pass, though, it's hard not to like Duke's chances.

Sleepers to Watch

Indiana

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

Tom Crean's team is a part of the madness.

Call it a pleasant surprise, as an 8-12 mark against the RPI Top 100 was a bit of a tough sell in the resume department. Add in a rough 75-69 season-ending loss to Maryland in which Yogi Ferrell's team-high 18 points wasn't enough, and things looked a tad bleak.

Here the Hoosiers are, though, and it's great news for those hunting for a great sleeper pick.

Part of it is the Hoosiers themselves. Ferrell is a great scorer, and the Hoosiers as a whole shoot a superb 47 percent from the field while spreading it around, averaging 14 assists per game.

In a single-elimination tournament, Indiana's selfless play isn't a hard sell.

Neither is the bracket, which is quite favorable from a geography standpoint, as the Hoosiers will feel right at home in the state. An interesting duel with Wichita State may lead to an encounter with second-seeded Kansas, matchups perhaps made easier by what is sure to be home-court advantage.

Dayton

USA TODAY Sports

Speaking of geography playing a large part in the bracket, how about Dayton?

The Flyers enter off a crushing loss at the hands of VCU in the A-10 title game, but Jordan Sibert (16.6 points per game) and the rest of the experienced roster have enough ammunition to make a run—even more so in what should also be home-court advantage.

Bill Rabinowitz of The Columbus Dispatch breaks down a situation with "sleeper in the making" written all over it:

Play-in game or not, the Flyers should clean up against Boise State before hitting on a tear in a part of the bracket featuring a few slumping teams.

Sibert is the sort of player who can hoist a team on his back against the best of the best, although it sure doesn't hurt that the Flyers as a whole shoot 47 percent from the field.

Honorable Mentions: UCLA, Davidson, Oregon. 

Cinderella Watch: Stephen F. Austin

Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Take a dip into the Southland Conference for a Cinderella this year, folks.

Brad Underwood's team is no fluke, as it ranks among the top 10 teams in the nation at 79.5 points per game and is the absolute best in assists at 17.8, which has a way of helping any team to rank among the top five with a .491 shooting percentage.

Sports Illustrated's Seth Davis is right on the money:

The Lumberjacks rank 35th in RPI and are already in a bit of an advantageous position thanks to the way the bracket dominoes fell. USA Today's Nicole Auerbach explains:

A win against Oklahoma and the Lumberjacks may be off, perhaps to a duel with a shaky Georgetown team and then Duke, which as mentioned features its defensive lapses at times.

Believe it or not, quality team basketball may lead to something special this year. Keep an eye on Stephen F. Austin.

Honorable Mentions: Albany, Wofford.

Stats and info are courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.