March Madness 2015 Bracket: Latest Picks, Odds Advice Before Saturday's Elite 8

The 2015 NCAA tournament has been narrowed down to just eight teams ahead of Saturday's tipoff of regional final action.

Only two games will be played in each of the next two days, so it leaves plenty of incentive to focus in on these exclusive, Elite Eight matchups. Saturday sees a captivating rematch unfold between Wisconsin and Arizona, capped by mighty Kentucky's latest test against Notre Dame.

An updated bracket is available below, as is the viewing information and odds listings for Saturday's showdowns that will determine half of the Final Four participants.

More detailed analysis follows on each of the games, how to bet with regard to the spreads from Odds Shark and who will ultimately emerge victorious.

Matchup (Region)	Time (ET)	Spread	Outright Winner
No. 1 Wisconsin vs. No. 2 Arizona (West)	6:09 p.m.	Arizona -1.5	Arizona, 75-71
No. 1 Kentucky vs. No. 3 Notre Dame (Midwest)	8:49 p.m.	Kentucky -11	Kentucky, 70-57

Saturday Elite Eight Odds Advice

Last year's thrilling March Madness showdown between Wisconsin and Arizona saw the Badgers move on to the national semifinals with a 65-64 overtime victory.

ESPN Stats & Info points to how historic Saturday's impending clash is:

Based on how driven the Wildcats will be for revenge and how strong Wisconsin has looked throughout the course of this year's Big Dance, it's no surprise the spread for this game is essentially a toss-up. There are reasons Arizona has the edge, though.

The fact that the Badgers are an underdog at all, despite being the higher seed in the West Region, is quite telling in and of itself, as ESPN'S RJ Bell observes:

Skip Bayless of ESPN praised Wisconsin's style of play but also hinted at what will likely allow the Wildcats to cover and win:

Arizona didn't have freshman phenom Stanley Johnson during 2014's Big Dance run, nor did it hold the services of star forward Brandon Ashley, who was injured. Johnson and Ashley are the Wildcats' two leading scorers—among six who average at least nine points per contest.

Frank Kaminsky is a matchup nightmare because of his versatile, all-around game, but Arizona's team defense is strong enough across the board to neutralize everyone else.

Wildcats standout Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is a legitimate stopper who will shut down whoever coach Sean Miller decides to put him on.

Despite probably looking ahead to this Wisconsin rematch a bit, Arizona managed to get past Xavier, a team that had to be familiar with Miller's ways since he used to coach the Musketeers. The Wildcats have upgraded their talent from last year and are a better team, which should translate to exacting vengeance on Wisconsin.

Then there's Kentucky, which dismantled West Virginia 78-39, doubling up a Mountaineers squad whose uptempo style and defense both were mitigated by the Wildcats' amazing overall superiority.

Daxter Miles Jr. guaranteed a West Virginia win to the media. That didn't exactly pan out, so one can bet Notre Dame won't make any such bold proclamations in its bid to pull off the upset.

Especially with head coach John Calipari pushing his Wildcats, no matter how lopsided the final score comes out in their favor, according to The Associated Press' Tom Withers:

Since the Fighting Irish came out of the halftime locker room firing on all cylinders against Wichita State and drained 16 of 20 shots to begin the second half in their last win, they can't be counted out. West Virginia didn't have that type of offensive firepower, and hot perimeter shooting can help anyone compete with even the best teams.

What makes Kentucky so tough is its depth of athletic bigs in the frontcourt and its length on the perimeter to contest those outside shots. It inevitably results in reduced proficiency due to a greater degree of difficulty—bad news for Notre Dame, in other words.

The Fighting Irish have improved on the other end of the court, but this stat from The Big Lead's Jason McIntyre is telling:

Chris Fisher of 247Sports highlights how stout Kentucky has been in the NCAA tournament:

As great as Jerian Grant is at creating offense for himself and his Irish teammates off the dribble, he won't be able to finish at the rim with any consistency against the likes of Willie Cauley-Stein and Karl-Anthony Towns.

Although the Wildcats haven't faced an offense quite as formidable as Notre Dame's, they should still be able to win with relative ease. Kentucky has too much depth, size and fresh bodies to throw at the Irish.

Having such a strong bench rotation that plays with alacrity and a sense of urgency makes this loaded Wildcats squad truly unique. Calipari has gotten everyone to buy in, and based on how the West Virginia game turned out, there's no reason to doubt Kentucky can cover any spread.