Busting Brackets
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Mid-major Basketball power rankings: Dayton, Gonzaga and ETSU rises up

By Tristan Freeman

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 01: Matt Mitchell #11 of the San Diego State Aztecs steals possession of the ball in the second half against the Utah State Aggies at Viejas Arena on February 01, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Kent Horner/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 01: Matt Mitchell #11 of the San Diego State Aztecs steals possession of the ball in the second half against the Utah State Aggies at Viejas Arena on February 01, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Kent Horner/Getty Images) /
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LAHAINA, HI – NOVEMBER 27: The BYU Cougars bench (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images)
LAHAINA, HI – NOVEMBER 27: The BYU Cougars bench (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images) /

4. BYU Cougars (24-7, 13-3)

The homerun hire of Mark Pope last offseason has paid major dividends this year, first by recruiting back Yoeli Childs after he originally declared for the draft. But he wasn’t able to play for the first nine games of the season, meaning that seniors TJ Haws and Jake Toolson had to shoulder the load to keep the Cougars as an at-large contender before league play.

That happened, beating teams such as Houston, Virginia Tech and UCLA without their star forward. Once he returned and got past an injury, BYU took off, becoming the No. 1 three-point shooting team and having Childs average 22.2 ppg and 8.9 rpg scoring a game-high 28 points against Gonzaga in the court-storming upset.

From being viewed as a bubble hopeful, the Cougars are now looking at a top-4 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They’re a 2 seed in the WCC Tournament and looking for the program’s first conference title in over 20 years. If that happens, don’t be surprised if they end up as a 3 seed in the Big Dance. With Gavin Baxter and hopefully Dalton Nixon back soon, this team has the frontcourt depth to compete with some of the top teams in the field. This offense with an elite big man makes this a darkhorse Final Four contender.

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