The Final Four will feature four No. 1 seeds for the first time since 2008 and only the second time since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
Duke is a consensus 4½-point favorite over Houston in the national semifinals Saturday night at the Alamodome in San Antonio. The consensus total is 137 and the Cougars are +185 on the money line.
Florida is a 2½-point favorite over Auburn in the first national semifinal. The total is 161½ and the Tigers are +125 on the money line.
The Blue Devils beat Arizona 100-93 in the Sweet 16 on Thursday, but didn’t cover as 9½-point favorites. Duke rewarded its backers in an 85-65 blowout of Alabama in the Elite Eight on Saturday, cruising to a cover as a 7½-point favorite.
Houston escaped with a 62-60 win over Purdue on Friday, failing to cover as an 8½-point favorite, but easily covered as a 3-point favorite in Sunday’s 69-50 win over Tennessee.
The Gators rolled to an 87-71 victory and cover over Maryland as 7½-point favorites Thursday before escaping with an 84-79 comeback win over Texas Tech on Saturday. Florida erased a nine-point deficit in the final three minutes against the Red Raiders.
Auburn beat Michigan 78-65 and covered as an 8½-point favorite Friday before defeating Michigan State 70-64 on Sunday and covering as a 5-point favorite.
Duke is a +105 favorite to win it all and Florida is the +270 second choice. Houston is +420 and Auburn is 5-1.
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at [email protected]. Follow @tdewey33 on X.
