March Madness 2016: Updated Bracket, Championship Odds Ahead of Sweet 16

With Michigan State out of the picture and the Sweet 16 inching closer, bettors have one less reliable payout on the table.

Not that much about the Big Dance is reliable. The Spartans, who were conquered by Middle Tennessee, aren't the only familiar faces out of the running with Kentucky now sitting on the sidelines after a loss to Indiana.

Sleeper picks still abound, too. It makes for a fun but difficult betting environment, and fewer teams don't necessarily make for an easier time.

With the Sweet 16 around the corner, here is how Las Vegas feels about the bracket.

Championship Odds Ahead of Sweet 16

Team	Odds
Kansas	5-1
North Carolina	9-1
Oklahoma	12-1
Villanova	14-1
Virginia	14-1
Maryland	20-1
Duke	20-1
Wisconsin	25-1
Miami	28-1
Oregon	33-1
Indiana	33-1
Iowa State	33-1
Texas A&M	66-1
Syracuse	100-1
Gonzaga	150-1

Full list of odds available at Odds Shark.

Odds Analysis

Favorite to Ride: Kansas (5-1)

Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Boring? Maybe. Reliable? Absolutely. 

Well, hopefully. The Kansas Jayhawks lived up to their reputation over the first two rounds of the tournament, taking care of business against 16th-seeded Austin Peay, 105-79, then hitting UConn with a 73-61 result.

In the routine game against the Huskies, Wayne Selden Jr. poured in a game-high 22 points, while the Jayhawks shot 49 percent from the field and won the rebounding battle with ease, 44-24.

Selden gets most of the credit so far, and it's not hard to see why, as CBSSports.com' Jon Rothstein helped to point out:

Whereas another favorite such as North Carolina still has to deal with Indiana and perhaps a team like Xavier, Kansas' bracket isn't so difficult unless it runs into Villanova.

Even then, the No. 1 team in RPI, ranked ninth in adjusted offensive efficiency and fifth in adjusted defensive efficiency at KenPom.com, doesn't figure to have much in the way of problems.

For those who want to massage potential losses on sleepers by backing a favorite, Kansas remains the way to go with how the Sweet 16 has taken shape.

Don't Count Them Out: Duke (20-1)

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Some of the old guard like Michigan State and Kentucky might be out of the bracket, but Duke's still hanging by a thread.

The Blue Devils have obvious issues, mainly an adjusted defensive efficiency that comes in at 114th at KenPom.com, as opposed to an offensive efficiency sitting fourth in the nation.

Said defensive issues reared their ugly heads in the second round against 12th-seeded Yale, as the Blue Devils couldn't help but cough up a 27-point lead before pulling away late.

"Our house is on a cliff, and we hope it doesn't rain," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said, according to ESPN.com. "That's who we've been. And so I really have an appreciation for that."

Folks know the deal with Duke, a young team without much in the way of veteran direction.  Brandon Ingram might wind up the top pick in the upcoming NBA draft, and Grayson Allen paces the team with 21.8 points per game. The duo helps the offense average 81 points while shooting 46 percent from the floor and 39 percent from deep.

The bracket isn't so kind, but Duke's offense can run with No. 1 Oregon in the Sweet 16, if not the rest of the region.

Young or not, a team that can get as hot as Duke is always worth a look. So is a Krzyzewski-led team. It makes for one of the more attractive potential payout options.

Intriguing Payout to Consider: Gonzaga (150-1)

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

One of the most popular bracket-busting picks once the bracket formed, Gonzaga has lived up to the expectation in a big way. 

The 26-win Bulldogs, 46th in RPI, opened the tournament with a 68-52 dismissal of sixth-seeded Seton Hall and followed it up by not blinking in the face of third-seeded Utah, 82-59.

There, the Bulldogs did what they do best, getting four double-digit performances from the starting lineup and shooting 56 percent from the floor and 47 percent from deep while winning the battle on the glass by a 10-board margin.

CBSSports.com's Sam Vecenie put it best:

ESPN Stats & Info put it into numerical context:

Indeed, Gonzaga doesn't appear to have much of a test at face value against 10th-seeded Syracuse, with an encounter against No. 1 Virginia figuring to follow after that.

With the way this Gonzaga team is playing, though, the opposition's seed doesn't matter much. It should scare the rest of the bracket while at the same time enticing bettors to take the risk on what would be an incredible payout.

Check out Bleacher Report's live updating bracket to track your picks along the road to the Final Four.

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