Best NCAA Basketball Picks and Predictions: Saturday’s Semifinals
Written by: Nate Hornung
Published: Sat Mar 14, 2026, 11:35 am ET
Read Time: 5 minutes
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We have made it to Championship Weekend for college hoops as there are three Power Five conference title games today, but we also have several other contests going off. For starters, the Big Ten and SEC host their semifinals this afternoon, as well as some smaller conference championship games with teams punching their ticket to the Big Dance. Let's breakdown all of our favorite NCAA Basketball picks for Saturday!
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Best NCAA Basketball Picks and Predictions March 14
#23 Wisconsin Badgers vs. #3 Michigan Wolverines NCAA Basketball Picks
Michigan's big men will be too much for the Badgers to handle in this Big Ten Semifinal
Best Bet: Michigan Team Total Over 86.5 (-116) Lucky Rebel Sportsbook
We will be on the Wolverines' team total as they face Wisconsin in this revenge spot in the Big Ten Semifinals. The Badgers beat Michigan in Ann Arbor earlier this year in a 179 point thriller, which might be the single best win of the season. Now, after going to overtime with Illinois yesterday, Nick Boyd and John Blackwell will try to recreate their 30+ point performance and knock off the top seeded Wolverines.
It won't happen.
Michigan's front court will be too much to handle, they will turn this game into a shootout by speeding things up, and defensively, they just need to lockdown Boyd and Blackwell. I believe the Michigan guards are capable of doing so, plus I trust Dusty May to get creative on defense after watching those two put up 48 in Ann Arbor earlier this year.
Ole Miss Rebels vs. #17 Arkansas Razorbacks NCAA Basketball Picks
Darius Acuff Jr. put up 37 points last night in a win against Oklahoma
Best Bets: Arkansas -9.5 (-110) Lucky Rebel Sportsbook
The Rebels' Cinderella run is coming to a close. Yes, they just knocked off the second ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, and yes, they need to win the SEC Tournament in order to make it to the Big Dance. But all good things must come to an end. I do not see Arkansas playing with their food, and they have the man that might be playing better basketball than anyone in the country.
Darius Acuff Jr. has proven he can singlehandedly will this Hogs' team to victory when they need it, and the Rebels' offense is due for regression. They've shot over 46% from the field in both SEC tourney games so far, and have shot above 42% from deep in both games as well. This team only shoots 33% from deep this season. They are playing out of their minds and need to come back down to Earth. Woo Pig Sooie.
#18 Purdue Boilermakers vs. UCLA Bruins NCAA Basketball Picks
Donovan Dent is playing out of his mind recently, but he's just one guy. Can the rest of the Bruins step up?
Best Bets: Purdue/UCLA Under 147.5 (-110) Lucky Rebel Sportsbook
We aren't taking this because Purdue is stellar at defense, but rather I like the pace to stay slow in this game. UCLA is a defensive minded team whose offense is due for some regression. They've played too good outside of the Pacific Time Zone in two Big Ten tournament games, and the Boilermakers are in a revenge spot, much closer to their home court.
Purdue fails to get to the free throw line that often (bottom 15 in the country) and are also bottom 50 in possessions per game. UCLA is right there with them (bottom 55). We saw this exact total when the two teams went head to head out in Los Angeles, and that game stayed under, with just 138 total points scored. Could this line be telling since it hasn't ticked down? Possibly. But the Bruins will want to keep this matchup as low scoring as possible, as Purdue clearly has the better offense. Give me defense to dominate this matchup.
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Nate has been a recreational sports bettor for about 5 years. In that time, he has grown to love the pursuit of winners and sticking it to The Man. Nate loves data and uses his understanding of numbers to help him be a more profitable sports gambler, however he will be the first to tell you this game is about more than just stats.
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