🏀 March Madness Survivor Picks Today 2026: Best Friday Strategy (March 20)
If you survived and advanced through the first day of an NCAA Tournament that included a few shockers, there are several different options for your March Madness survivor picks today as we jump into Day 2.
Yesterday, I rode with Arkansas and Vanderbilt in my survivor pools, and I didn't have to sweat it out too much, so hopefully it's a similar situation with my March Madness survivor pool picks for Friday's slate.
Don't miss our March Madness bracket predictions for the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
📊 Friday Survivor Pool Power Rankings: Day 2
For more on survivor pools, check out my March Madness survivor pool strategy guide.
| Rank | Team | Opponent |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | No. 4 Kansas | No. 13 Cal Baptist |
| 2 | No. 5 St. John's | No. 12 Northern Iowa |
| 3 | No. 3 Virginia | No. 14 Wright State |
| 4 | No. 7 UCLA | No. 10 UCF |
| 5 | No. 9 Utah State | No. 8 Villanova |
| 6 | No. 6 Tennessee | No. 11 Miami (OH) |
| 7 | No. 2 UConn | No. 15 Furman |
| 8 | No. 9 Iowa | No. 8 Clemson |
| 9 | No. 7 Miami | No. 10 Missouri |
| 10 | No. 2 Purdue | No. 15 Queens |
| 11 | No. 10 Santa Clara | No. 7 Kentucky |
| 12 | No. 2 Iowa State | No. 15 Tennessee State |
| 13 | No. 12 Akron | No. 5 Texas Tech |
| 14 | No. 13 Hofstra | No. 4 Alabama |
| 15 | No. 1 Florida | No. 16 Prairie View A&M |
| 16 | No. 1 Arizona | No. 16 LIU |
🎯 Best Friday March Madness survivor picks
Best survivor pool pick today: Kansas
The Jayhawks are a March Madness odds contender when everything is clicking. Bill Self's team played the No. 1-ranked schedule in strength of schedule rating (+16.95), so a Cal Baptist team that's outside the top 100 in net shouldn't make much of a dent.
The Lancers rely heavily on Dominique Daniels Jr. (31% possession share), who's just 5-foot-10 and has to deal with a Kansas guard trio that averages 6-foot-5 and is led by projected top-three pick Darryn Peterson.
Cal Baptist is the third-shortest team in the NCAA Tournament, and Kansas' defense is long and proven (No. 10 in efficiency).
😎 Don't fear the cover in survivor
While our Cal Baptist vs. Kansas prediction and Northern Iowa vs. St. John's prediction have the underdogs covering, that shouldn't dissuade us from taking the Jayhawks or Red Storm in a survivor pool.
Maybe we're a little more stressed out if the Lancers or Panthers keep it close (like I was yesterday for a bit with Vandy), but a win is a win in a survivor pool.
Safest survivor pool pick today: Virginia
Though Kansas is the best option today, with the Jayhawks likely having to play St. John's in Round 2, this surging Virginia team looks like the safest play.
The Cavaliers are No. 14 in net rating (+26.51) and lead the country in blocks per game (6.5) with the highest block rate of any team in the NCAA Tournament (18.7%).
That makes this a tough draw for a Wright State team that does most of its damage inside the arc, sitting No. 301 in 3-point rate (33.7%). Virginia's allowing the seventh-lowest 2-point percentage in the country (44.7%).
Our Wright State vs. Virginia prediction has UVA winning by 18, and there's not a ton of reason to save the No. 3-seed Cavs, either, with a tough road to the Elite Eight.
Riskiest survivor pool pick today: Utah State
One of the biggest blowouts from Day 1 of March Madness came when an underseeded mid-major (Saint Louis) demolished an overseeded team from a power conference (Georgia).
I think the Aggies, who have the most Quad 1 and 2 wins among mid-major programs (13), can give a No. 9 that should have been a No. 7 another decisive win.
With guards Mason Falslev and MJ Collins, Utah State is top 15 in the country in effective field goal percentage (56.5%) and can light up a Villanova defense that's slipped to No. 66 in efficiency over the last month.
However, for as confident as I am in the Aggies, taking a No. 9 seed is a little too risky in Round 1, but we are riding with their moneyline in our Utah State vs. Villanova prediction.
🚫 Friday survivor picks to avoid (March 20)
Have questions, like what is a March Madness survivor pool? We've got answers.
| Rank | Team | Opponent |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | No. 1 Arizona | No. 16 LIU |
| 2 | No. 1 Florida | No. 16 Prairie View A&M |
| 3 | No. 2 Iowa State | No. 15 Tennessee State |
| 4 | No. 13 Hofstra | No. 4 Alabama |
| 5 | No. 12 Akron | No. 5 Texas Tech |
❌ Worst survivor pool pick today: Arizona
You should never burn a top two seed in Round 1 of the NCAA Tournament, especially one that's as dominant as Arizona.
The Wildcats are No. 1 in the country in kill shots conceded per game with 0.06 (a kill shot is a double-digit scoring run) and are a 31.5-point favorite, which our Long Island vs. Arizona prediction expects them to cover.
Yes, the Wildcats are going to win. But to win a survivor pool, you have to save teams like Arizona, Florida, and Iowa State until at least Round 2. And who knows, maybe LIU and its "fins up" craze will help give the Wildcats a scare like Siena did to Duke.
After all, the Sharks have the highest luck rating of any team in the NCAA Tournament (+0.104).
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