Busting Brackets
Fansided

Bracketology 2020: Way-too-early NCAA Tournament projected field

By Lukas Harkins

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 20: A detailed view of a March Madness branded basketball is seen during a practice session before the First Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 20, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - MARCH 20: A detailed view of a March Madness branded basketball is seen during a practice session before the First Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 20, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 7
Next
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 29: Jones of the Blue Devils celebrates. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 29: Jones of the Blue Devils celebrates. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

South Region

(1) Duke vs. (16) Rider

(8) Alabama vs. (9) Michigan

(4) Memphis vs. (13) Vermont

(5) Washington vs. (12) Western Kentucky

(6) Oregon vs. (11) Illinois/Iowa State

(3) Virginia vs. (14) Akron

(7) Marquette vs. (10) Dayton

(2) Florida vs. (15) Colgate

Is anyone surprised to see Duke land a preseason No. 1 seed? Well, considering their immense level of success over the last several years and their elite recruiting class coming in, it is reasonable to think the Blue Devils will once again be one of the top teams in the country. Even though they lost the majority of their rotation from last season, Coach K snagged some top-level incoming freshmen from the 2019 class to play alongside talented sophomore point guard Tre Jones, who will be the leader of this team on and off the court.

Florida holds down the next seed in this region. I am extremely high on the Gators heading into this season and even considered them for the last No. 1 seed. In addition to returning an elite sophomore trio of Andrew Nembhard, Noah Locke, and Keyontae Johnson, the Gators are bringing in an incredible recruiting class headlined by two top-20 prospects. This is definitely a young core, but it is incredibly important to mention that head coach Mike White also managed to shore up his frontcourt by adding Kerry Blackshear Jr. as arguably the top graduate transfer available on the market this offseason.

Illinois is the last team that I want to make a specific note on. The Fighting Illini have struggled mightily in recent years but it seems as though head coach Brad Underwood has the program trending in the right direction. With this season in mind, Illinois could make a big leap thanks to the efforts of Trent Frazier, Ayo Dosunmu, and Giorgi Bezhanishvili. The Fighting Illini could easily struggle to another missed tournament but that core could lead them to a major improvement.

Home/Bracketology