The Florida Gators are reigning national champions and look like contenders in the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket. The Gators are a No. 1 seed in the South Region of the 2026 March Madness bracket after winning the SEC regular-season title. Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh were key contributors on last year’s team and returned to lead the Gators in 2026. In addition, they’ll be playing close to home during the first weekend of the 2026 NCAA bracket in Tampa.

Florida is one of 10 teams from the SEC included in the 2026 NCAA Tournament field this season and the conference is hoping for another strong showing during March Madness after putting a record seven teams in the Sweet 16 last season. Now that 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket is out, you have until Thursday to enter 2026 March Madness bracket picks. Before making any 2026 March Madness bracket predictions, be sure to check out the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

Their proven projection model has simulated every game in the tournament 10,000 times. It has absolutely crushed its March Madness picks recently, beating over 91 percent of all CBS Sports brackets in four of the past seven tournaments. It was all over UConn’s championship run two years ago and nailed 12 teams in the Sweet 16 last year. It also correctly predicted all four Final Four teams in 2025.

It knows how to spot an upset as well. The same model has produced brackets that have nailed 25 first-round upsets by double-digit seeds since its inception in 2016.

Now, with the 2026 NCAA bracket revealed, the model is simulating the matchups and its results are in. You can only see it over at SportsLine.

Three 2026 March Madness bracket games to watch

One of the most intriguing 2026 March Madness matchups to watch: No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 9 TCU in the East region. Jake Diebler guided the Buckeyes to their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2022 in his second season at the helm. Ohio State went 21-12 overall on the season and was 12-8 in Big Ten play. Meanwhile, the Jaime Dixon will be making his fifth NCAA Tournament appearance since taking over the Horned Frogs in 2016. TCU went 22-11 overall this season and was 11-7 in Big 12 play and has won six of its last seven games entering the 2026 NCAA Tournament.

Another 2026 NCAA Tournament matchup to keep an eye on is No. 7 UCLA vs. No. 10 UCF in the East Region. UCLA will be making its 54th all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament and this is the fifth time in seven years that Mick Cronin has taken the Bruins dancing since taking over. UCLA went 23-11 overall this season and was 13-7 in the Big Ten while UCF went 21-11 and was 9-9 in the Big 12. Head coach Johnny Dawkins will be leading the Knights to just their second March Madness appearance in his 10th season at the helm in Orlando.

Another 2026 March Madness game to watch out for: No. 6 Louisville vs. No. 11 South Florida in the East Region. Pat Kelsey ended a five-year NCAA Tournament drought in his first season at the helm at Louisville last season and he’s taking the Cardinals dancing once again. Louisville went 23-10 overall this season and was 11-7 in the ACC while South Florida went 25-8 overall and won the AAC regular-season and tournament titles. This is Bryan Hodgson’s first season at the helm for the Bulls and the programs first tourney appearance since 2013. You can only see the model’s 2026 NCAA bracket picks here.

How to make 2026 NCAA bracket predictions

Who wins every tournament-defining matchup? And which teams will make surprising runs through the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket? With the model’s track record of calling bracket-busting upsets, you’ll want to see which stunners it’s calling this year before locking in any 2026 NCAA bracket picks.

So what’s the optimal NCAA Tournament 2026 bracket? And which NCAA Tournament Cinderella teams will shock college basketball? Visit SportsLine now to see which double-digit seeds you can back with confidence, all from the model that called all four Final Four teams in 2025.