Bracketology Projected Field: Gonzaga, Dayton earn committee respect

TUCSON, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 14: Filip Petrusev #3 and Killian Tillie #33 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs high five on the court during the second half against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center on December 14, 2019 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

3 of 5

DAYTON, OHIO – JANUARY 14: Dayton Flyers celebrate. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

Midwest Region (Indianapolis, IN)

(1) Kansas vs. (16) Prairie View A&M/Siena

(8) Michigan vs. (9) Northern Iowa

(4) Butler vs. (13) New Mexico State

(5) Kentucky vs. (12) Indiana/Virginia

(6) BYU vs. (11) Xavier

(3) Florida State vs. (14) Winthrop

(7) Ohio State vs. (10) Arkansas

(2) Dayton vs. (15) Little Rock

Let me start this region discussion by simply saying that BYU is a terror to seed. Considering the Cougars do not play on Sundays, finding a spot for them in the bracketology field this season has been extremely difficult. Most of the pods that BYU would likely be placed in play Friday/Sunday and therefore the team cannot be placed there. In fact, basically the only option given the current status of the field is for BYU to be either the No. 6 or No. 11 seed in the Midwest Region. I had the Cougars as a No. 7 seed on my S-Curve, so it made more sense to move them up part of a seed line than down several.

Dayton earned a No. 2 seed at the early Bracket Reveal by the selection committee during this past weekend. That shouldn’t have come as a surprise but being slotted as the 6th overall team might have been. The Flyers were treated with plenty of respect by the committee with this reveal and that is a great sign for their potential seeding in a month from now. Dayton is extremely impressive on the eye test and it appears as though the committee agrees that it belongs as one of the best in the nation. I was a little concerned that Dayton would be undervalued at the Bracket Reveal but that didn’t turn out to be the case.

Home/Bracketology