It only took 24 years for the Connecticut Huskies to win their first five national championships in class history – essentially the most by any program in that span and tied for the second-most in all of school basketball.
They’re already favored to win a sixth.
Even before dominating San Diego State in Monday’s 76-59 win within the national title game, the Huskies were already dealing because the early favorites (+1100) to win all of it in 2023-24, in line with the opening odds at FanDuel.
They’re priced just ahead of Duke (+1300), which is the highest selection at some books, while Arizona, Alabama and Kentucky are all tied for the third-shortest odds at 15/1.
2023-24 NCAA championship opening odds (via FanDuel)
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Connecticut | +1100 |
| Duke | +1300 |
| Arizona | +1500 |
| Alabama | +1500 |
| Kentucky | +1500 |
| Purdue | +1600 |
| Creighton | +2000 |
| Marquette | +2000 |
| Michigan State | +2000 |
| North Carolina | +2400 |
| UCLA | +2500 |
| Arkansas | +2500 |
| Kansas | +2500 |
| Houston | +2500 |
| Gonzaga | +2500 |
| Florida Atlantic | +3000 |
| Miami | +3000 |
| Texas | +3400 |
| Tennessee | +3500 |
| TCU | +3500 |
| USC | +4500 |
| Auburn | +4500 |
| Baylor | +4500 |
| Maryland | +4500 |
| Ohio State | +4500 |
| Iowa State | +5000 |
| Colorado | +5500 |
| Oregon | +5500 |
| Texas Tech | +5500 |
| Kansas State | +5500 |
| Villanova | +6000 |
| Wisconsin | +6000 |
| Stanford | +7500 |
| Windfall | +7500 |
| Xaver | +7500 |
| Florida State | +7500 |
| St. John’s | +7500 |
| Virginia | +7500 |
| Texas A&M | +7500 |
| Missouri | +7500 |
| Oklahoma State | +7500 |
| West Virginia | +7500 |
| Oklahoma State | +7500 |
| Indiana | +7500 |
| Michigan State | +7500 |
| Illinois | +7500 |
| Saint Mary’s | +7500 |
UConn favored to repeat as NCAA champions
It shouldn’t surprise anyone to see the Huskies atop the early oddsboard after the way in which they dominated the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
UConn became just the fifth team because the tournament expanded in 1985 to win all six games by double digits, having trailed for just 5:22 throughout your complete tournament and just 53 seconds within the second half.
Assuming one or each of Adama Sanogo and Donovan Clingan return, the Huskies’ potent frontcourt can be tough to stop in 2023-24.
Duke may have to exchange Dereck Full of life and Dariq Whitehead, however the Blue Devils will return budding star Tyrese Proctor and potentially leading scorers Kyle Filipowski (15.1 PPG) and Jeremy Roach (13.6 PPG) for coach Jon Scheyer’s second yr on the helm.
With a top-five recruiting class coming in, too, this team could possibly be the consensus favorite by the point the season starts.
Just down the road, North Carolina (+2400) will return star big man Armando Bacot because the centerpiece of a new-look lineup just two years after reaching the national title game.
And don’t sleep on Marquette (+2000) and Michigan State (+2000), two teams which are already drawing top-five buzz in early rankings.
FAU amongst dark-horse title contenders
Florida Atlantic was the final word underdog story on this yr’s NCAA Tournament, however the Owls (+3000) won’t be sneaking up on anyone within the 2023-24 season.
Dusty May should return all but one player from this yr’s Final 4 team, which finished seventeenth in adjusted net efficiency and boasted the very best record (35-4) in all of school basketball.
With a semifinal run on their resume, the Owls should profit from higher seeding in 2024 in the event that they maintain business within the regular season.
It’s the same story for Miami (+3000), one other team that reached its first Final 4 and is hungry for more.
The Hurricanes could potentially return all five starters from a gaggle that ranked sixth in offensive efficiency and won the ACC regular-season title in 2023, and Miami is a really perfect spot for transfers in the present NIL environment.
Speaking of transfers, control Maryland (+7000), which is a rumored spot for top transfer Hunter Dickinson (Michigan) after hiring his former highschool coach Mike Jones as an assistant.
If the Terrapins can reunite Dickinson with leading scorer Jahmir Young (15.8 PPG) – who played with the Wolverines star in highschool – their long-shot price won’t last for long.
SDSU amongst biggest long shots
Even after their Cinderella run to the title game, the Aztecs aren’t garnering much respect within the betting market ahead of next season.
San Diego State is dealing at 100/1 at FanDuel as of Tuesday morning, tied with six other teams that either didn’t make the tournament or didn’t make it past the primary round.
Sure, the Aztecs will lose leading scorer Matt Bradley (12.6 PPG), amongst others, but SDSU has grow to be a notable presence within the transfer market and could possibly be price a speculative play at these odds.
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One other long shot to focus on early is Dayton, which must be higher than its 250/1 odds suggest.
The Flyers struggled through injuries in 2022-23 but still won 22 games and posted top-10 numbers in opponent effective field-goal percentage (45%) and 3-point percentage (29.3%), they usually could potentially return every player from a rotation that ranked fourth last season in minutes continuity (77.2%).
