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Before the 68 teams in the NCAA Tournament are revealed on Selection Sunday, there are five conference championship games on the college basketball schedule. Championship Sunday will award automatic bids to the winners of the Ivy League, A-10, SEC, AAC and Big Ten, and there could be major seeding implications as well. Tennessee vs. Florida in the 2025 SEC Championship Game could be for a No. 1 seed and the Gators are 5.5-point favorites in the latest college basketball odds from FanDuel Sportsbook. Meanwhile, UAB could be a bid-stealer as it takes on Memphis (-4.5) in the 2025 AAC Championship Game, so every bubble team will be watching closely. Before you make your college basketball picks on Sunday with a five-line college basketball parlay paying almost 22-1, be sure to check out the Championship Sunday predictions from the advanced computer model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection model simulates every game 10,000 times and is on a 225-165 betting roll (+1873) on all top-rated college basketball picks. Now, here are the top spread picks for Championship Sunday, according to the model.
Cornell (+5.5) to cover vs. Yale (-110 at FanDuel)
Score prediction: Yale 82, Cornell 79
In Jon Jacques’ first season at the helm for Cornell, the Big Red are sixth in the nation in scoring (85.6 ppg) and fourth in team field-goal percentage (49.9%). Cornell is on a five-game winning streak entering Sunday and has won its last four games by at least 16 points. Yale will present a much tougher challenge, but the Bulldogs barely survived a rock fight against Princeton (59-57) on Saturday night and suffered its only Ivy League loss at Harvard on March 1. FanDuel, Caesars Sportsbook and Bet365 all have Cornell to cover priced at -110.
Tennessee (+5.5) to cover vs. Florida (-108 at DraftKings)
Score prediction: Florida 74, Tennessee 73
The Gators scored a season-high 104 points in a 22-point win over Alabama on Saturday, but they’ll run into one of the best defensive teams in the nation on Sunday. Tennessee is coming off a 70-65 upset of Auburn and ranks eighth in the nation in points allowed (62.3 ppg), third in field-goal percentage allowed (38.0%), first in three-point shooting percentage allowed (first) and third in adjusted defensive efficiency (88.5). These two teams split their season series and the model predicts that Tennessee slows Florida down enough to cover, with DraftKings Sportsbook offering the best odds at -108.
George Mason (+8.5) to cover vs. VCU (-110 at Caesars)
Score prediction: VCU 73, George Mason 65
The 2025 Atlantic 10 Tournament will conclude with the league’s two best teams going head-to-head on Sunday. Both teams went 15-3 in the conference while George Mason is 26-7 overall and VCU is 27-6 overall. The two programs had similar overall strength of schedules and both teams are top-12 in the nation in points allowed per game. So why is this the most lopsided spread of Championship Sunday? The model expects the George Mason defense to do just enough to keep this within the number and Caesars is one of a handful of books where you can get GMU at -110.
UAB (+4.5) to cover vs. Memphis (-105 at FanDuel)
Score prediction: Memphis 80, UAB 78
Memphis is a nationally-ranked (No. 16), 28-win team, so it will very comfortably receive an invite to the 2025 NCAA Tournament win or lose. However, UAB’s only route to March Madness is with a win and the Blazers are the only bubble burster out there. Andy Kennedy’s squad was rolled 100-77 in Memphis but then played a more respectably in an 88-81 loss to the Tigers at home. The Blazers have won both their conference tournament games by double-digits and the model predicts a hotly-contested battle on Sunday, with FanDuel offering the best price on UAB at -105.
Wisconsin (-3.5) to cover vs. Michigan (-110 at Bet365)
Score prediction: Wisconsin 78, Michigan 73
Wisconsin guard John Tonje dominated the action on Saturday night, scoring 32 points, grabbing seven rebounds and blocking a potential game-tying shot as time expired to secure a 77-74 win over Michigan State and a spot in the 2025 Big Ten Championship Game. Michigan had its own dramatic finish, with Tre Donaldson going coast-to-coast for a layup in the final second to win 81-80 over Maryland. Michigan won in Madison early this year but the model expects Tonje to be the difference-maker and Bet365 SportsBook is offering the best price on the Badgers.
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