NCAA Bracket 2015: Updated National Championship Odds After Selection Sunday

In just over 24 hours, the madness of March will finally tip off with the First Four matchups in Dayton, Ohio. After a Selection Sunday that left some shocked for different reasons—UCLA? Really?—the field of 68 is finally set.

By the start of Thursday's slate, there will be just 64 teams in the running. But, for now, there is still hope and optimism for every team to make a huge run to the national championship.

Of course, the biggest favorite coming into the tournament is Kentucky, who finished the regular season and SEC tournament with a 34-0 record. At 1-1 odds to win the national championship before it even begins, the Wildcats are also the odds-on favorite to win it all.

Following Selection Sunday, here's a full look at the national championship odds and a breakdown of who will win the title. Full odds can be found at OddsShark.com.

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Team	Odds
Kentucky	1-1
Wisconsin	13-2
Duke	13-2
Villanova	8-1
Arizona	12-1
Virginia	17-1
Gonzaga	22-1
North Carolina	25-1
Iowa State	35-1

Predicted Winner: Kentucky

Sure, this may seem like a safe pick, but it's also the obvious one. The Wildcats have been far and away the best team in the country and have the 34 wins to prove why they should be the favorite.

I'm not the only one making this prediction, as the Wildcats will likely be chosen in thousands of brackets across the country. Nearly all of ESPN's analysts chose the Wildcats to win it all, as ESPN College Basketball points out:

"

The GameDay crew makes their championship picks. Bilas: Kentucky Greenberg: Kentucky JWill: Arizona Rece: Kentucky pic.twitter.com/J1QkDARYD2

— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) March 16, 2015"

What makes Kentucky so special is it has a collection of stars like no other team in the country. Even with a full roster of potential talent for the next level, John Calipari has tempered any egos that come along with being a top high school prospect.

If Willie Cauley-Stein is having an off-game, Karl-Anthony Towns can pick him up. A down game for Andrew Harrison is typically balanced out by a standout performance from Aaron Harrison. It's a great problem to have at the college level with young players who are still being groomed.

Aaron Harrison put it simply when talking about what makes the team so special, via Kyle Tucker of the Courier-Journal:

"

I think because we do have the best players in the country, if we play hard, it all comes together. If we play unselfishly, that's what happens when you do have all the talent.

I think it's tougher for us, because you do have so much talent. For us to be unselfish is different than for other teams. [But] I think that we want to win more than anything. I think that's what fuels the unselfishness.

"

While so many teams around the country were hoping for a good seed or to land in a favorable bracket, Kentucky wasn't worried. Calipari offered his take on the draw with Matt Jones of Kentucky Sports Radio:

The final aspect that makes this team different from prior Kentucky teams is it has experience on the biggest stage. Dakari Johnson, Willie Cauley-Stein and the Harrison twins are among some of the current Kentucky players to have logged minutes last March, making them seasoned veterans of the Big Dance.

Taking all of that into account, this year's Kentucky team is prepared to finish as an undefeated national champion. Even with potential teams like Maryland, Wichita State, Wisconsin and a slew of No. 1 seeds hoping to make the national championship game, the Wildcats will be hoisting the trophy at the end.

Follow @RCorySmith on Twitter.