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2026 NCAA Tournament Survivor Pool Advice: Elite 8 (Saturday)

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As we embark upon the Elite 8 of the NCAA Tournament, staying alive in an NCAA Tournament survivor pool becomes less about strategy (that is what you should have planned for through the first three rounds) and more about navigating which teams you have left to use. If you have teams to select from each half of the bracket, now would be a good time to project how you expect the rest of March Madness to play out, while leaving your National Champion for your very last pick.

By following our advice in each column, here is an example of how one could have made it to this point in survivor pools:

  • Round 1 (Thursday): Nebraska -1000
  • Round 1 (Friday): Kansas -1200
  • Round 2 (Saturday): Arkansas -650
  • Round 2 (Sunday): UConn -185
  • Sweet 16 (Thursday): Purdue -360
  • Sweet 16 (Friday): Iowa State -192 (TBD)

Let’s dive into how we can keep advancing in survivor pools.

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    2026 NCAA Tournament Survivor Pool Advice: Elite 8 (Saturday)

    In case you are a part of an NCAA Tournament survivor pool that forces competitors to select a team from each day of the weekend, I am breaking down my columns into two days. But if you just need to make one selection from the Elite 8, be sure to check back on Saturday morning for my breakdown and analysis of Sunday’s two Elite 8 games from the East and Midwest Regions.

    Here is a list of odds for both favorites to win their Elite 8 matchups on Saturday. It would also be wise to consult the folks at PoolGenius as well for their NCAA survivor data.

    Elite 8 Odds

    (Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)

    Best Elite 8 Survivor Picks (Ranked in Order)

    Illinois Fighting Illini

    As tends to happen, one of the regions in the bracket breaks well for a team, making their path for a deep run much easier than if it went chalk. That happened for Illinois, who earned every bit of its Elite 8 berth by knocking off Houston in what felt like a true road game. But now the only team standing in its way of a Final Four is a Big Ten rival in Iowa, whom they beat 75-69 on the road on January 11th.

    In that first meeting, Illinois built as much as an 18-point lead before seeing Iowa get as close as four in the game’s final minute. Thanks to 12 Illinois turnovers and 10 Iowa offensive rebounds, the Hawkeyes actually won the shot volume in that contest with nine more total field-goal attempts. But the Fighting Illini outscored the Hawkeyes from three-point range and at the free-throw line. Iowa couldn’t keep Kylan Boswell and Andrej Stojakovic out of the lane, as the two combined to go 12-of-19 from inside the arc.

    Illinois is not the most aggressive pick-and-roll defense, which means Bennett Stirtz should have room to operate for Iowa. But if forced to choose between these two favorites, I would back the Fighting Illini to end the Hawkeyes’ surprising run.

    Arizona Wildcats

    As I have said from the opening round, Arizona is my pick to win it all. The fact that it hasn’t trailed for a single second through three NCAA Tournament wins has done nothing to make me waver from that pick.

    Arizona would also be a likely favorite over Michigan, or whoever comes out of the Midwest Region, in the Final Four. But since I have the Wildcats as the last team standing, and also out of fear of facing an experienced Purdue team after returning 86% of the scoring from last year’s Sweet 16 run, I cannot advise using Arizona in survivor poolst his weekend.

    Mike Spector is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeSpector01.

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