Bracketology 2020 Projected Field: Ohio State dominates, Texas Tech falls

COLUMBUS, OHIO - NOVEMBER 22: D.J. Carton #3 and the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrate after a play in the game against the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons during the second half at Value City Arena on November 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /

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COLUMBUS, OHIO – NOVEMBER 22: Ohio State Buckeyes react. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /

Midwest Region

(1) Ohio State vs. (16) Bethune-Cookman/Radford

(8) Tennessee vs. (9) Saint Mary’s

(4) Butler vs. (13) Northern Iowa

(5) Dayton vs. (12) East Tennessee State

(6) DePaul vs. (11) Houston/Stanford

(3) Baylor vs. (14) New Mexico State

(7) Utah State vs. (10) VCU

(2) Auburn vs. (15) South Dakota

Ohio State entered this season with high expectations of being a top-15 team in the country. Through the first few weeks, though, it feels as though even that was setting the bar too low. The Buckeyes have started this campaign on an absolute tear. Under the leadership of head coach Chris Holtmann, this young team is performing at an elite level while handling their business against a relatively tough schedule. Ohio State has earned the No. 1 overall seed in the projected field at the moment considering its undefeated record, high metric rankings, and wins over Cincinnati, Villanova, and North Carolina – that latter two in convincing fashion.

Moving further down this region, Butler and DePaul have both been major surprises out of the Big East with undefeated records. For Butler, an improved defense and the All-American-level play of Kamar Baldwin has led to this hot start. Head coach LaVall Jordan is showcasing his skills on the sidelines with a more cohesive roster this season and it was resulted in an 8-0 record featuring wins over Minnesota, Missouri, Stanford, and Ole Miss – three of them away from home.

DePaul has started similarly well thanks to their versatile and physical defense. Transfer guard Charlie Moore has quickly emerged as a star while freshman Romeo Weems brings so much that does not show up in the box score. The Blue Demons are for real and their wins to date showcase that. Head coach Dave Leitao’s squad already holds victories over Iowa (A), Boston College (A), Minnesota (A), and Texas Tech (H). They have climbed 26 spots in KenPom since the preseason.

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