Andy Katz reveals surprising 'chaos' Final Four picks for March Madness

Andy Katz during Big Ten game involving Iowa and Purdue

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Matthew Couden

By Matthew Couden

Contributing Writer

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March Madness is known for its chaos, including thrilling comebacks and epic buzzer-beating moments that define what the multiple weeks of college basketball games are all about.

While upsets may abound in the NCAA bracket, there are many who believe it will be mostly No. 1 and No. 2 seeds getting to the Final Four, rather than some sort of unlikely Cinderella teams.

That would make a strong case for teams like the Duke Blue Devils, Michigan Wolverines, Florida Gators, and Arizona Wildcats to all advance, or a mix of those teams along with teams like the UConn Huskies, Houston Cougars, Purdue Boilermakers, and Iowa State Cyclones.

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On Wednesday, Big Ten college basketball analyst Andy Katz flipped the script by unveiling four surprising picks, should all-out madness occur.

Andy Katz during Big Ten game involving Iowa and Purdue

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Katz referred to his picks on X as his March Madness "Chaos Final Four" and included four Cinderella squads in an unlikely quartet of teams that would battle it out to claim the championship. Those picks are: the VCU Rams (27-7), University of South Florida Bulls (25-8), Utah State Aggies (28-6), and Akron Zips (29-5).

While Katz’s picks might seem unlikely, all four teams already have the potential to achieve upsets in the first round. The No. 11 seed VCU Rams take on a No. 6 North Carolina team that is without star Caleb Wilson.

South Florida, also a No. 11 seed, takes on No. 6 seed Louisville on Thursday. The Cardinals are without one of their star guards, Mikel Brown Jr., for the first two games of the tournament.

Utah State is a No. 9 seed taking on Villanova, giving them perhaps the strongest "upset" potential of the four teams, due to the closeness of the seeding.

However, the Zips could have a tough task as they'll face a Texas Tech Red Raiders team on Friday that finished third in the Big 12 and has defeated the likes of BYU, Houston, Arizona, and Iowa State.

In what could be a more realistic bracket that Katz discussed with Seth Davis recently, he chose Duke, Houston, Michigan, and Arizona, with Duke defeating Michigan to claim the National Championship.

Still, there exists the potential for some incredibly shocking upsets, and for random teams to catch fire and captivate attention. That's the beauty of March Madness, as each game is "one and done" for a team to either win or go home.