NCAA Tournament 2019: Odds and Predictions for Final Four Bracket

Three games remain in the college basketball season—a pair of Final Four matchups and the national championship game.

With the NCAA tournament winding down, this weekend should have a few exciting games to wrap up March Madness. After the two semifinals on Saturday night, the national title will be on the line Monday.

The Final Four is taking place at U.S. Bank Stadium for the first time and was last staged in Minneapolis in 2001.

Bracket

Final Four Schedule, Odds (All Times ET)

Saturday

No. 5 Auburn vs. No. 1 Virginia (-5), 6:09 p.m., CBS

No. 3 Texas Tech vs. No. 2 Michigan State (-2.5), 8:49 p.m., CBS

Monday

National championship game, 9 p.m., CBS

Odds to Win National Championship

Virginia +150 (Bet $100 to win $150)

Michigan State +180

Texas Tech +400

Auburn +600

Final Four Predictions

Charlie Riedel/Associated Press

There are no Cinderella teams in this year's field. All four schools are from Power Five conferences, and each have had strong seasons.

Virginia (ACC), Michigan State (Big Ten), Texas Tech (Big 12) and Auburn (SEC) are all from different conferences. The Tigers are the biggest underdog among the group, as they're a No. 5 seed and were not expected to outlast some of their SEC rivals, such as Kentucky, Tennessee and LSU.

Auburn and Virginia will open the national semifinals on Saturday night, and the Tigers will be looking to knock off their second No. 1 seed of the tournament. They beat North Carolina in the Sweet 16, before going on to defeat No. 2 seed Kentucky in the Elite Eight.

But the Cavaliers will be the best defensive team the Tigers have faced so far, and it will be important for Auburn to make outside shots and try to pick up the tempo against a Virginia team that typically operates at a slow pace.

That's not the only thing Tigers coach Bruce Pearl wants his team to focus on.

"We've got to handle the moment," he said, according to 247sports.com. "We can’t change who we are, and that’s all of us. It’s going to be a big stage and an elevated floor, and are we going to play between the lines like we have been playing? Easier said than done."

Although Virginia is the favorite, Auburn should play a competitive game. In fact, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Tigers pull off another upset and continue the best season in program history.

The second matchup of the night features the two best players remaining in the tournament: Michigan State junior guard Cassius Winston and Texas Tech sophomore guard Jarrett Culver.

This game could be decided by which of these top players performs best. Winston is a playmaking point guard who can also get his teammates involved, while Culver is a wing player who excels at rebounding.

There are certainly some similarities between Michigan State and Texas Tech, and that could come from Red Raiders coach Chris Beard, who has emulated some of his teachings from longtime Spartans coach Tom Izzo.

"In our program, we have terminology, Michigan State toughness, Tom Izzo rebounding," Beard said, according to the Detroit News. "These are things we tell our teams. We have so much respect for his program. We're a program ourselves that tries to be blue collar and rebound and play defense and tries to be as tough as anyone."

However, Izzo will guide Michigan State past Texas Tech and into the national championship game for the first time since 2009.

So, in the national championship game, expect to see Auburn and Michigan State battling it out for the national title.

Picks: Auburn over Virginia; Michigan State over Texas Tech