March Madness Bracket 2015: Upset Predictions and Updated Odds

In less than 24 hours, the second round of the NCAA tournament will get underway. Sure, it feels like the first round for 64 teams in the bracket, but someone had to win a game before playing Kentucky.

While not many believe there will be an upset of Kentucky, at least not until the Final Four, there are several others ripe for the picking.

Whether it's a No. 12 seed knocking off a No. 5 seed or a No. 10 advancing over a No. 7, the result is always shocking. The tournament is called March Madness, and it always lives up to the name.

Prior to the tipoff in the second- and third-round games, here's a look at the upset predictions and updated odds. Full odds can be found at OddsShark.com.

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Matchup	Winner
No. 8 Cincinnati vs. No. 9 Purdue	Purdue
No. 6 Butler vs. No. 11 Texas	Texas
No. 6 Xavier vs. No. 11 Ole Miss	Ole Miss
No. 7 VCU vs. No. 10 Ohio State	Ohio State
No. 6 Providence vs. No. 11 Dayton	Dayton
No. 5 Utah vs. No. 12 Stephen F. Austin	Stephen F. Austin
No. 7 Iowa vs. No. 10 Davidson	Davidson

Team	Odds
Kentucky	6-5
Arizona	15-2
Wisconsin	17-2
Duke	9-1
Villanova	10-1
Virginia	10-1
Gonzaga	16-1
Notre Dame	25-1
Iowa State	33-1

Upset Pick That Will Make the Longest Run

Jeff Gross/Getty Images

OK, so that was a little wordy, but I wanted to make sure the point was made. With 64 teams making their way to the second round, it's difficult to figure out exactly which ones will make a George Mason- or Florida Gulf Coast-like run.

This year, it will be Stephen F. Austin breaking brackets everywhere—again.

Last season, the Lumberjacks pulled off one upset win over VCU as a No. 12 seed. Unfortunately, the ride quickly ended in the next round with a loss to UCLA.

Now that Stephen F. Austin is back in a similar position, the program plans on repeating that success. Senior forward Jacob Parker spoke about doing just that, via Kyle Goon of The Salt Lake Tribune:

"

We're not content to win our conference. The whole goal isn't just to get to the tournament but win a game. Me and Thomas, we came in the same year, and we wanted to put SFA on the map and let everyone know where Nacogdoches is. ...

We embrace the pressure. Throughout our conference, we're taking everybody's best shot.

"

Thanks to the scoring from Parker and Thomas Walkup, the Lumberjacks average 79.5 points per game this season. That's good enough for ninth in the country, which is due in large part to the 17.8 assists per game, which ranks No. 1 in the NCAA.

Taking all of that into account, Seth Davis of Sports Illustrated believes Stephen F. Austin will make a deep run:

Not only do the numbers look great, but the path couldn't have been set up better for the Lumberjacks. No. 5 Utah has underachieved against top opponents this season, losing twice to Oregon and Arizona along with losses to Kansas and San Diego State. The Utes are also 3-4 in their last seven games.

Next up would potentially be Georgetown and Duke before the Elite Eight. The Hoyas have failed to reach the Sweet 16 in their last five NCAA tournament appearances. Duke tends to crumble on the big stage—just ask Lehigh and Mercer.

Stephen F. Austin's path won't be easy, by any stretch, but it's certainly lined with winnable games. If the Lumberjacks can build some momentum against Utah, this might be a team that can reach 30 wins for a second straight season.

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