March Madness upset picks 2024: Predicting every First Round upset

March Madness Upsets — Midwest Region

No. 13 Samford Over No. 4 Kansas

The Jayhawks are limping into March Madness with two of their best players, Kevin McCullar and Hunter Dickinson, battling injuries. It is unclear if either will be fully healthy for Kansas' first-round game, which comes at altitude in Salt Lake City against a dangerous 13-seed in Samford.

The Bulldogs are an elite offensive unit that goes 10 deep and knocks down a ton of threes, which is a great formula to counter a thinner Kansas team. Forget an upset, this game could well turn into a blowout as Samford looks primed to move on.

No. 11 Oregon Over No. 6 South Carolina

Whenever we have bid thieves in March Madness, we usually see one or two of them keep the momentum rolling and move on. Oregon is primed to do just that as they drew a favorable 6-11 matchup against a South Carolina team that has stumbled down the stretch as expectations have built.

The Gamecocks have done well to overachieve as they were projected to finish last in the SEC's preseason poll but have looked more mortal down the stretch. The momentum the Ducks have built will carry them past South Carolina into the Round of 32.