It wouldn’t be March without former President Barack Obama’s NCAA bracket picks. He’s made his choices for the 2026 dance, and they’re sure to spark some debate.

For the men’s bracket, he has chosen Arizona to beat Duke in the finals, and for the women’s bracket, he has chosen UConn, which he believes will triumph.

With the women’s bracket, Obama went with the easy pickings. UConn is undefeated, racking up one win after another, and Geno Auriemma’s team looks to be on course to defend its championship successfully. But with the Arizona pick, he had to make a hard choice because many teams have been breathing down its neck.

Of course, the Wildcats have made a strong claim, and their recent Big 12 title win has validated their ranking, but there are still quite a few teams that could ruin their party. For once, Duke, Obama’s pick for runner-up, can too. Duke, ever since their loss to North Carolina, has extended its win streak to 11 games.

Powered by Cameron Boozer, this is one team that can flip the script on any given day. Surprisingly, Duke was Obama’s pick for last year’s men’s winners, but this time around, he has chosen to go against them.

Obama has correctly predicted the NCAA Tournament winner twice. Both came during his presidency. In his first presidential bracket in 2009, he predicted that North Carolina would take the title, and that actually came true. He guessed the Tar Heels again in 2017, and it was correct. So, is Arizona’s current dominance playing a factor in the former President’s decision?

The Wildcats Are No. 1 Seed In NCAA Tournament

Barack Obama might feel the Wildcats will win because they have positioned themselves well in the league. The West Region’s No. 1 seed is again only behind Duke in overall ratings, but that doesn’t seem to bother the former POTUS, who is confident in his pick.

When you come out on top, even after going through the nation’s second-hardest schedule with a 32-2 record, it shows the intensity that you have in you. The Wildcats have been incomparable in their own way, and their accolades this season attest that: Big 12 regular season and tournament champions, Jaden Bradley’s Big 12 Player of the Year award, Tommy Lloyd’s Big 12 Coach of the Year award, Tobe Awaka’s Big 12 Sixth Man Award, and multiple first-team All-Big 12 players.

As they get ready to prepare for Long Island, Arizona is getting one step closer to attaining a title that they have squandered over the last decade. Lloyd is understandably cautious in his approach because he knows the upcoming games will get tougher. Taking each game one at a time is a sentiment the coach has instilled in the team, and if they want to push past early tournament exits, they’ll have to keep following it.

“We’re treating everything the same,” Lloyd said a few days ago. “We’re not doing anything different this week. We’re not going to practice any differently this week. Yeah, just do everything the same.”

For the record, Obama missed his prediction of last year’s final winners. To his credit, though, he correctly predicted three of the four Final Four teams. Obama surely will be scanning Auriemma and Lloyd from now on and counting on them to prove him right.