The first round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament bracket will commence on Thursday at 12:15 p.m. ET, featuring the No. 8 seed Louisville against the No. 9 seed Creighton in a South Region contest. As the tournament approaches, it’s vital to finalize your brackets and predictions. A notable underdog could be the No. 11 seed VCU from the East Region, whose coaching style under Ryan Odom differs from past strategies but maintains strong offensive and defensive efficiency, ranking in the top 41 nationally.

Can VCU make headlines by upsetting the No. 6 seed BYU on Thursday? Before making any predictions, check the expert analysis available through SportsLine.

SportsLine’s model, having simulated the tournament 10,000 times, has consistently outperformed traditional bracket strategies in recent years, demonstrating a remarkable ability to identify first-round upsets, particularly among double-digit seeds, since its inception in 2016.

As for key matchups to watch, one electrifying game is the No. 8 UConn against No. 9 Oklahoma. Even though UConn ended the season with a 23-10 record and lost in the Big East semifinals, they are still vying for a historic third consecutive national title, while Oklahoma comes off a promising run against formidable ranked teams.

Another must-watch game features No. 7 Kansas versus No. 10 Arkansas, with Kansas looking to capitalize on its early season ranking while Arkansas aims to rebound from a five-game mid-season slump.

The stakes are high as No. 5 Memphis faces No. 12 Colorado State. Memphis leads in scoring with standout player PJ Haggerty, while CSU arrives with a 10-game win streak.

More insights can be explored through the expert bracket picks at SportsLine, noting that this model has accurately predicted many surprising outcomes in previous tournaments.