March Madness 2016: Complete Odds and Final Four Picks for NCAA Tournament

A wild season morphs to madness with the bracket set, though would it really be a shock to see the old guard take charge when the games get underway?

Not really. Wild ride or not, with the buzzword "parity" increasing by the month, this feels like last year when folks thought maybe some fresh blood would get into the Final Four and pull off a shocker.

Whoops. It might seem boring to go with well-known programs when crafting a Final Four, but it's also the safe route to winning an office pool, and the old guard has such a status for good reason.

Below, let's look at the complete odds for the tournament and analyze which team should come out ahead in each region.

South

Team	Odds
Kansas	+130
Villanova	+275
Miami (Fla)	+700
Maryland	+700
California	+1000
Arizona	+1100
Iowa	+1100
UConn	+2500
Wichita State	+2500

The Pick: No. 1 Kansas

This is pretty straightforward. 

Anything can happen in the bracket and rah rah, but the Kansas Jayhawks sit first in ESPN's RPI rankings despite an eighth-ranked strength of schedule. It's a battle-tested squad if there ever was one, with a 9-3 mark against the RPI top 25, which climbs to 15-3, 21-3 and 22-3 in increments of 25.

In fact, the best weakness folks can seem to find centers on years and years ago, as ESPN Stats & Info pointed out:

These aren't the same old Jayhawks. At 16.7 points per game, Perry Ellis leads four players who average double-digit scoring. The team averages 82 points and not only hits on 49 percent of its shots from the field but 43 percent from deep.

Sure, the Jayhawks could have a bad night. Roadblocks such as an upset-minded UConn squad and strong teams such as Maryland and Villanova could cause problems.

But the Jayhawks are tough to beat even on a so-called off night. Numbers don't lie.

West

Team	Odds
Oklahoma	+210
Oregon	+275
Duke	+400
Texas A&M	+550
Texas	+650
Baylor	+1100
Cincinnati	+1400
Oregon State	+2800
VCU	+2800

The Pick: No. 1 Oregon

John Locher/Associated Press

Yes, that's two No. 1 seeds in a row, but welcome to another probable lesson of seeding getting things right before play begins. 

Oregon lands right behind Kansas in RPI after tallying 28 wins, with five of those against the RPI top 25, 12 against the top 50 and 22 against the top 100.

The high-flying Ducks actually rank better than the Jayhawks in adjusted offensive efficiency over at KenPom.com, coming in eighth place. At 16.8 points per game, Dillon Brooks also leads four guys in double-digit territory, all of whom shoot 46 percent or better from the field.

Oregon is a flashy team that loves to get out and run, which is fine. It helps the bracket is quite easy, too, so long as the Ducks don't run into a team such as Cincinnati, as Yahoo Sports' Jeff Eisenberg described:

Why? The Ducks don't do much on the defensive end or boards, ranking 50th in adjusted defensive efficiency. A team such as Cincinnati that loves to crash and control tempo has a tendency to clip wings, so to speak.

The good news? There is no guarantee a team that matches well with Oregon even advances, giving the Ducks one of the easier routes to the Final Four.

East

Team	Odds
North Carolina	+160
West Virginia	+375
Kentucky	+450
Xavier	+500
Indiana	+800
Notre Dame	+1200
Wisconsin	+1200
Pittsburgh	+2200
Providence	+2500
USC	+2800

The Pick: No. 4 Kentucky

Surprise?

The old guard, folks. In what is easily the second-toughest portion of the bracket, a team such as one led by John Calipari will emerge from the chaos.

While just 10th in RPI, the Wildcats came away with a 3-2 mark against the RPI top 25, and the two losses came by a combined eight points. A 15-6 mark against the RPI top 100 doesn't hurt, nor does a No. 1 adjusted offensive efficiency rating at KenPom.com.

If folks want to look at history to figure out the region, well, let SportsCenter do the talking with some notable recent outcomes:

Tough spot, sure, but who stops Kentucky if the team gets on a roll? Fifth-seeded Indiana and a 66th-ranked adjusted defensive efficiency with an iffy history? ESPN Stats & Info pointed out the history:

No. North Carolina maybe, but talent against talent, the on-paper analysis goes to Kentucky. The Wildcats would enter on absolute fire after winning five straight to close the season.

Some might figure it a surprise to see the Wildcats among the four left standings. Numbers, though, tell a different story.

Midwest

Team	Odds
Michigan State	+160
Virginia	+210
Purdue	+600
Iowa State	+750
Utah	+900
Gonzaga	+1400
Dayton	+1800
Butler	+2000
Seton Hall	+2000
Syracuse	+2500

The Pick: No. 2 Michigan State

Say hello to what might stand as the biggest consensus pick around. 

And why not? The same logic that follows a Calipari-directed team certainly applies to Tom Izzo. His Spartans sit 11th in RPI with a stellar 6-1 mark against the RPI top 25—the lone loss to Purdue in 82-81 fashion.

These Spartans not only define battle tested but average 80 points per game on 49 percent shooting from the floor and 44 percent from deep. Denzel Valentine (19.4 points per game) is arguably the best player in the tournament.

The history route favors the Spartans, too, as ESPN Stats & Info dug up:

This portion of the bracket seems polarizing in its degree of difficulty, but there's no debate about how location favors the Spartans, snubbed of a No. 1 seed or not.

Playing in front of a sea of green in the Midwest and handling a squad such as Virginia, as it has in the past, won't be overly difficult for a team as deep and talented as the Spartans.

Sign up and play Bleacher Report's Bracket Challenge now for a chance to win the Ultimate Sports Trip to four events of your choice.  And click here for B/R's Printable Bracket.

Stats and information courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified. Advanced metrics courtesy of ESPN and KenPom.com. Odds courtesy of Odds Shark as of Tuesday morning.