The 2025 Midwest Region champion will be crowned this weekend in Indianapolis. Top sports betting sites have Elite Eight odds available now. Houston (+550) is among the favorites at March Madness odds to win the championship. Check out Midwest Region Final odds for the Tennessee Volunteers vs. Houston Cougars..
This year’s Midwest Regional final will occur at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Midwest Region odds
Below, we will examine Midwest Region odds and March Madness odds for the Elite Eight round of this year’s NCAA Tournament. The Midwest Region final game will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana on Sunday, March 30.
2. Tennessee vs. 1. Houston | Sunday, March 30 (Indianapolis, IN)
Sunday’s Midwest Region final pits the No. 1 Houston Cougars (33-4) vs. No. 2 Tennessee Volunteers (30-7). Houston opened as a -4.5 favorite with a game total of 123.5. Tip is scheduled for 2:20 p.m. ET (CBS).
Check out odds for the other regions here:
Midwest Region history
Last season, Zach Edey and the Purdue Boilermakers earned the No. 1 seed and defeated No. 2 Tennessee in the Midwest Final. It marked the first time since 1980 that Purdue advanced to the Final Four. The Boilermakers played UConn in the national championship game but lost 75-60.
Two years ago, No. 5 Miami was the big story out of the Midwest Region last spring as they punched their ticket to the Final Four. The great run included an 89-75 victory over No. 1 Houston in the Sweet 16. Eventual champion UConn knocked out the Canes in the national semifinal.
No. 1 Kansas lived up to its top billing in the Midwest Region in 2022 as the Jayhawks took down No. 10 Miami, 76-50, in the Regional Final.
While the Kansas win was expected, the earlier Midwest Region rounds included several upsets. Iowa State, an 11 seed, advanced to the Sweet 16 with wins over No. 6 LSU, 59-54, and Wisconsin, a 3 seed, 54-49. And it’s hard to ignore the Miami Hurricanes who advanced to the Elite Eight by upsetting No. 7 USC, 68-66, and No. 2 Auburn, 79-61. This set up a rare 10 vs. 11 regional semifinal between Miami and Iowa State, with the Canes winning, 70-56.
Houston, a 2 seed, won the Midwest Region in 2021 as it toppled Oregon State, 67-61, in the Regional Final. The biggest upset in the Midwest in 2021 came in the second round when Loyola-Chicago cast its upset magic upon the 1 seed in the region, Illinois.
Auburn, the 5 seed, emerged as the Midwest Region champ in 2019, beating Kentucky 77-71 in OT in the Regional Final. What the Tigers accomplished three years ago was mighty impressive considering they had to topple traditional college basketball powers like Kansas, North Carolina, and Kentucky along the way. The Jayhawks, Tar Heels, and Wildcats all had better seeds than Auburn.
Midwest Region First round upsets
Call this the “feast or famine region” when it comes to upsets. In 2015, for instance, the region did not have a single first-round upset. The next year in 2016, a 15 knocked off a 2 seed, a 12 beat a 5, an 11 toppled a 6, a 10 beat a 7 and a 9 upended an 8.
Middle Tennessee was the 15 seed in the Midwest in that crazy tournament six years ago. They toppled No. 2 seed Michigan State.
In the past 22 years, there have also been two 14 seeds that have shocked the world. Mercer took down No. 3 seeded Duke in 2014 and No. 14 Ohio upset No. 3 Georgetown in 2010. The Midwest region has been kind to Ohio as two years after the Bobcats beat the Hoyas, they knocked off Michigan as a 13 seed.
Here is a list of upsets in the Midwest since 2000:
- 2025: No. 12 McNeese State over No. 5 Clemson,
- 2024: No. 11 Oregon over No. 6 South Carolina
- 2023: No. 9 Auburn over No. 8 Iowa, No. 11 Pittsburgh over No. 6 Iowa St., No. 10 Penn State over No. 7 Texas A&M
- 2022: No. 12 Richmond over No. 5 Iowa, No. 11 Iowa State over No. 6 LSU, No. 10 Miami over No. 7 USC, No. 9 Creighton over. No. 8 SDSU
- 2021: No. 12 Oregon State over No. 5 Tennessee, No. 11 Syracuse over No. 6 San Diego State, No. 10 Rutgers over No. 7 Clemson
- 2019: No. 11 Ohio State over Iowa State, No. 9 Washington over No. 8 Utah State
- 2018: No. 11 Syracuse over No. 6 TCU
- 2017: No. 11 Rhode Island over No. 6 Creighton, No. 9 Michigan State over No. 8 Miami
- 2016: No. 15 Middle Tennessee over No. 2 Michigan State, No. 12 Little Rock over No. 5 Purdue, No. 11 Gonzaga over No. 6 Seton Hall, No. 10 Syracuse over No. 7 Dayton, No. 9 Butler over No. 8 Texas Tech
- 2015: None
- 2014: No. 14 Mercer over No. 3 Duke, No. 11 Tennessee over No. 6 UMass
- 2013: No. 12 Oregon over No. 5 Oklahoma State
- 2012: No. 13 Ohio over No. 4 Michigan, No. 12 South Florida over No. 5 Temple, No. 11 North Carolina State over No. 6 San Diego State, No. 10 Purdue over Saint Mary’s
- 2011*: N/A
- 2010: No. 14 Ohio over No. 3 Georgetown, No. 10 Georgia Tech over No. 7 Oklahoma State, No. 9 Northern Iowa over No. 8 UNLV
- 2009: No. 13 Cleveland State over No. 4 Wake Forest, No. 12 Arizona over No. 5 Utah, No. 11 Dayton over No. 6 West Virginia, No. 10 USC over No. 7 Boston College, No. 9 Siena over No. 8 Ohio State
- 2008: No. 13 Siena over No. 4 Vanderbilt, No. 12 Villanova over No. 5 Clemson, No. 11 Kansas State over No. 6 USC, No. 10 Davidson over No. 7 Gonzaga
- 2007: No. 11 Winthrop over No. 6 Notre Dame, No. 9 Purdue over No. 8 Arizona
- 2006: No. 12 Montana over No. 5 Nevada, No. 11 UW-Milwaukee over No. 6 Oklahoma
- 2005: No. 12 UW-Milwaukee over No. 5 Alabama, No. 11 UAB over No. 6 LSU, No. 9 Nevada over No. 8 Texas
- 2004: No. 12 Pacific over No. 5 Providence, No. 10 Nevada over No. 7 Michigan State, No. 9 UAB over No. 8 Washington
- 2003: No. 13 Tulsa over No. 4 Dayton, No. 9 Utah over No. 8 Oregon
- 2002: No. 12 Creighton over No. 5 Florida
- 2001: No. 10 Butler over No. 7 Wake Forest, No. 9 Charlotte over No. 8 Tennessee
- 2000: None
*In 2011, the NCAA Div. 1 men’s basketball tournament did not feature a traditional Midwest Region. It instead had an East, West, Southeast and Southwest Region.
NCAA Champions from the Midwest Region
There have been 10 NCAA champions from the Midwest Region since 1990, tied for the second most. The South Region has produced 10 title teams and the East Region has also had eight teams win it all in that time.
Prior to Kansas winning in 2022, you’d have to go back to 2013 when Louisville won it all.
The “glory years” for the region came in the 2000s when teams from the Midwest won three titles in a row. The Florida Gators won in 2006 and 2007, and then Kansas cut the nets in 2008.
Here is a list of March Madness champions by region and seed going back to 1990:
| Year | NCAA Champion | Region | Seed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | UConn | East | 1 |
| 2023 | UConn | West | 4 |
| 2022 | Kansas | Midwest | 1 |
| 2021 | Baylor | South | 1 |
| 2020 | *Tournament canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic | N/A | N/A |
| 2019 | Virginia | South | 1 |
| 2018 | Villanova | East | 1 |
| 2017 | North Carolina | South | 1 |
| 2016 | Villanova | South | 2 |
| 2015 | Duke | South | 1 |
| 2014 | UConn | East | 7 |
| 2013 | Louisville | Midwest | 1 |
| 2012 | Kentucky | South | 1 |
| 2011 | UConn | West | 3 |
| 2010 | Duke | South | 1 |
| 2009 | North Carolina | South | 1 |
| 2008 | Kansas | Midwest | 1 |
| 2007 | Florida | Midwest | 1 |
| 2006 | Florida | Midwest | 3 |
| 2005 | North Carolina | East | 1 |
| 2004 | UConn | West | 2 |
| 2003 | Syracuse | East | 3 |
| 2002 | Maryland | East | 1 |
| 2001 | Duke | East | 1 |
| 2000 | Michigan State | Midwest | 1 |
| 1999 | UConn | West | 1 |
| 1998 | Kentucky | South | 2 |
| 1997 | Arizona | South | 4 |
| 1996 | Kentucky | Midwest | 1 |
| 1995 | UCLA | West | 1 |
| 1994 | Arkansas | Midwest | 1 |
| 1993 | North Carolina | East | 1 |
| 1992 | Duke | East | 1 |
| 1991 | Duke | Midwest | 2 |
| 1990 | UNLV | West | 1 |
How the Midwest Region is selected
Seeding is the first priority for the Selection Committee each year. For instance if there are four clear-cut No. 1 seeds but two of them are from East Coast, one is from the South and the other is from the West Coast – an East Coast team might wind up as the top seed in the Midwest Region.
Typically, though – the Midwest is represented at the top of the bracket by a team geographically close to the Midwest. For instance, Purdue was the top seed last year, Kansas was the top seed in 2017 and 2018 and Wichita State was the 1 seed in 2014.
UNC Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham is the current chairman of the Div. I men’s basketball committee. Thirty-two teams receive automatic bids by virtue of winning their respective conference tournament. The committee is in charge of choosing the teams who receive “at-large” bids.
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