Best 2025 March Madness Cinderella Teams

Texas Longhorns (+100000)

The Longhorns had a forgettable regular season, but they turned things around quickly in the SEC playoffs. Texas entered the SEC Tournament as the 13th seed but took down Vanderbilt and Texas A&M to make the quarterfinals.

🚨 LONGHORNS SURVIVE 🚨

With their backs against the wall and the season on the line, the Longhorns fight through two overtimes, 17 lead changes and 9 ties to take down the Aggies

Texas may have just played their way back into the NCAA tournament…#Texas | #HookEm pic.twitter.com/UtHV6Wxb8d

— anne-parker coleman (@anneparkercole1) March 13, 2025

Despite their playoff success, the Longhorns are listed at +100000 in the latest March Madness betting odds and barely made the cut after Selection Sunday. They will need to play in the First Four to make the main bracket.

In last year’s tournament, March Madness entered as a #7 seed and easily took down #10 Colorado State. However, the Longhorns lost a close game in Round 2, falling 62-58 to #2 Tennessee.

I believe Texas can make a deeper run this year, even if winning the whole thing will be close to impossible. Let’s see why.

Record:

Texas finished the regular season with a 16-14 record and had a losing record in conference play. That’s the reason the Selection Committee sent the Longhorns to the First Four. Despite their struggles, the Longhorns pulled off multiple upsets in the SEC tournament and are ranked in the top 40 of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Net Rankings.

This is a team ready to exceed expectations and produce a Cinderella run entering March Madness. The Longhorns will embrace the underdog label and fight hard in every game.

Star Player:

Four different Longhorns averaged double digits this season, but freshman guard Tre Johnson led the way with 20.2 PPG.

Relying on a freshman is a risk that usually ends poorly. However, Texas has plenty of experienced players, including seniors Arthur Kaluma and Tramon Mark and junior Jordan Pope.

Verdict:

Texas is an experienced team led by a young star, Tre Johnson. The keys to their success in March will be Johnson’s ability to rise to the occasion and the team’s ability to stay hot from three.

Texas has five players who averaged 20+ minutes this season and shot at least 36% from downtown. If one of their upperclassmen can step up alongside Johnson, the Longhorns will make plenty of noise and are among potential March Madness Cinderella teams in 2025.

North Carolina (+25000)

North Carolina is no stranger to Cinderella runs in March Madness. In 2022, the Tar Heels entered the tournament as an eighth seed and made it all the way to the title game. They took down fellow underdogs, #15 St. Peter’s, in the Elite Eight.

BIG DUBS 😁@UNC_Basketball is headed back to the ACC Tournament Semifinals. pic.twitter.com/eASIdreO5x

— ACC Men's Basketball (@accmbb) March 13, 2025

In 2024, UNC was a #1 seed, but the Tar Heels are back to being underdogs this year. Their 20-12 record was good enough to be a fifth seed in the ACC Tournament. UNC won their first two playoff games, including beating Wake Forest 68-59 in the quarterfinals.

Record:

UNC went 20-12 this regular season, including a 13-7 record against conference opponents. They also won their first two games in the ACC Tournament, taking down Notre Dame and Wake Forest.

The Tarheels’ record is far from the worst on this list, but their struggles against ranked teams are concerning. UNC lost its two regular-season matchups against Duke by a combined 30 points.

They were also blown out by #4 Auburn (85-72), #10 Alabama (94-79), and #23 Clemson (85-65). This poor run was the reason North Carolina barely made it to the NCAA Division 1 Tournament in 2025.

On the bright side, UNC beat #18 UCLA, 76-74, and the Tarheels won six of their final seven regular-season contests. This team found momentum right when it matters, so this could translate into a surprising March Madness run.

Star Player:

North Carolina’s offense has been spearheaded by fifth-year senior RJ Davis. Davis has spent his entire collegiate career at UNC and leads the team with 17.3 PPG this year.

The undersized guard’s scoring is down from his career-best 21.2 PPG last year. Only two other players, Ian Jackson (12.7 PPG) and Seth Trimble (11.5 PPG), also guards, are averaging double-digits this season.

Jackson is the best three-point shooter of the guard trio, sinking 40.1% of his long-distance shots this year. Jae’Lyn Withers, a senior forward who played in all 34 games this season, led the team in 3P% with 45.6% on 79 attempts this year.

Verdict:

The Tarheels’ best players are all guards, and their lack of skilled big men could be their undoing. On the other hand, UNC is an experienced team that was in the title game in 2022.

Many of the players from the dep run are gone, but RJ Davis is still there and has become a leader for the Tarheels. They have plenty of other veteran players, too, including Jae’Lyn Withers and Ven-Allen Lubin. If they can force teams to play their style of basketball, the Tarheels could go on another Cinderella run this year.

Gonzaga (+5000)

Historically, Gonzaga has been a postseason powerhouse for the past decade plus. While it feels odd for the Bulldogs only to be an eight seed, we need to remember how easily they turn it on once March Madness begins!

Record

Gonzaga ended the regular season with a 25-8 record. Despite their success, they only finished second in the WCC behind Saint Mary’s with a 14-4 conference record.

During the regular season, they produced wins against major programs like Indiana, Baylor, and San Diego State. Like usual, they shined in conference tournament play by winning another WCC championship with a 58-51 win over Saint Mary’s.

Star Player

The Bulldogs were led by senior forward Graham Ike this season. Ike averaged 17.1 points per game with 7.5 rebounds.

In their biggest matchups this year, Ike has also exploded for massive point totals to carry their offensive production. In a one-point overtime loss to Kentucky in December, Ike totaled 28 points and 11 rebounds. He also ripped off 13 20-point or more performances throughout the season.

Potential Road to the Title

Their path opens up with a battle with an overranked Georgia squad living off the hype of beating Florida a few weeks ago. In the following round, they’d square off with Big 12 champion and number 1 seed Houston.

The remaining top teams they’d face in the Midwest region are fifth-seeded Clemson, fourth-seeded Purdue, third-seeded Kentucky, and second-seeded Tennessee. If they were to reach the Final Four, they’d be challenged with needing to knock off a program like Duke or Alabama coming out of the East region.

Verdict

While Gonzaga may not look like their usual elite selves, this Bulldog squad still has a lot of bite. They’re rated with the ninth-highest net rating on Kenpom.com and the ninth-best offensive efficiency. Most importantly, Mark Few has been through the gauntlet of March Madness before and could rally his team for a run.

Kansas (+12500)

It feels gross to pitch a blue-blood program like Kansas to go on a national championship run during a down year. However, typically, when lower-seeded teams pick up steam, it’s because they have a great coach and a talented roster but underperformed during the regular season.

This Kansas squad faced a gauntlet of a schedule and will be able to use that adversity in their favor.

Record:

This season has been the most disappointing for the Jayhawks under Bill Self. During the Big 12 conference tournament, Arizona knocked Kansas out in the quarterfinals 88-77.

During the regular season, they only mustered an 11-9 conference record and a 21-12 record overall. They registered a win over Duke in November and beat teams like Iowa State, Arizona, and Michigan State.

Star Player:

Hunter Dickinson and Zeke Mayo were the best players for Kansas this year. Dickinson led the team in scoring and rebounding with 17.7 points per game and 10.0 rebounds per game. Mayo totaled 14.5 points per game, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.0 assists.

Most importantly, Dickinson and Mayo have not only been two of the best players in the Big 12 this year but have been the best at their positions in the country. It’s hard to find seven-footers who can heat up in the post the way Dickinson can and a guard who can cook from three-point range the way May can.

Potential Road to the Title:

Kansas opens up with a matchup with Arkansas in the West region. Afterward, they’d have to battle with second seed St. John’s. The rest of their region features first-seed Florida, fourth-seed Maryland, and third-seed Texas Tech.

If Kansas succeeded in that stretch, they’d square off with teams like Michigan State or Auburn from the South region.

Verdict:

Kansas’ record may not look great, but they’re one of the most battle-tested teams in the country. Per Kenpom.com, Kansas is the 21st-best team in net rating and has the 11th-best defensive efficiency rating.

Bill Self has reached championship games, so this is no foreign territory. This Jayhawks squad may not stack up with other memorable squads Self has coached, but they have the scrappiness to stun teams on their way to a title.