Bracketology 2020 Projected Field: Colorado rises, Virginia plummets

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 26: The Colorado Buffaloes, including Tyler Bey #1, celebrate their 71-67 victory over the Clemson Tigers to win the MGM Resorts Main Event basketball tournament at T-Mobile Arena on November 26, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

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LAHAINA, HI – NOVEMBER 27: Coach Pope of BYU gives direction. (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images) /

Midwest Region

(1) Ohio State vs. (16) St. Francis-PA/Oral Roberts

(8) BYU vs. (9) Northern Iowa

(4) Florida State vs. (13) Belmont

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

(6) Stanford vs. (11) Arkansas

(3) West Virginia vs. (14) Akron

(7) Liberty vs. (10) Oklahoma State

(2) Butler vs. (15) Eastern Washington

As the No. 1 ranked KenPom team in the country, Ohio State has earned a spot atop a region right now. The Buckeyes have arguably been the nation’s most impressive team so far this season even with their double-digit road loss to Minnesota. Wins over Villanova and Penn State headline their resume while it is possible that their victories against North Carolina and Kentucky will improve over time. Ohio State will finish its non-conference schedule with a neutral-site meeting with West Virginia before returning to Big Ten play.

Liberty, though, is possibly the most interesting team in this region. Many people had high hopes for the Flames coming into this season but the Flames are definitely exceeding those expectations while rising nearly 30 spots since the preseason KenPom rankings. Even though Liberty has played one of the easiest schedules in the country this year, that shouldn’t take away from its 14-0 record. That is difficult to do no matter who you play. Looking ahead, though, Liberty’s toughest non-conference game approaches with a road matchup against LSU.

Rounding out this region, BYU is warranting attention as a potential at-large team from the WCC. Even though Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s are the most-commonly discussed teams from the conference, the Cougars have been quite impressive this season. Despite having to play without star forward Yoeli Childs for eight games, this team sits at 10-4 with wins over Houston, Virginia Tech, Nevada, and Utah State. The Cougars’ overtime losses to Boise State and Utah (both on the road) certainly hurt their resume but this looks like an NCAAT team.

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