Bracketology 2024: Arizona leapfrogs back to a No. 1 seed in the latest field of 68 bracket projection

Midwest Region (Detroit)

1.) Purdue vs. 16.) Morehead State

8.) Texas Tech vs. 9.) Boise State

5.) Clemson vs. 12.) Grand Canyon

4.) Dayton vs. 13.) UC-Irvine

6.) Saint Mary's vs. 11.) Nevada/Cincinnati

3.) Alabama vs. 14.) High Point

7.) Utah State vs. 10.) Michigan State

2.) Kansas vs. 15.) South Dakota State

There has been a change in the No. 1 seeds since the last projection, but that certainly hasn’t happened with the No. 1 overall seed. The Purdue Boilermakers keep chugging along and are the top seed in the Midwest Region. Purdue is 15-2 in the first two quads including a whopping seven quad 1A wins, which are wins that land in the top half of the quad’s parameters. They have the country’s best strength of schedule and 8th-best non-conference schedule and will continue to be in the catbird’s seat for the top seed in the field with every win they amass.

The Midwest region could be dubbed the “mid-major” region with strong Cinderella candidates all over the bracket. From Dayton at the No. 4 seed to Grand Canyon and UC-Irvine at seeds No. 12 and No. 13 respectively. Also in this region is Mountain West leader Utah State as the No. 7 seed. The Aggies bounced back from back-to-back double-digit losses to San Diego State and Nevada by handling Boise State at home.

The team to watch in the Midwest is the No. 3 seed Alabama. The Crimson Tide find themselves in a first-place tie in the SEC with South Carolina. If you like to watch the ball go through the basket, then the Crimson Tide is the team for you. Nate Oats’ squad averages over 90 points per game on the back of the nation’s top offensive efficiency team. Alabama also has the 5th-best effective field goal percentage and a top-15 team in shooting percentage at all three levels on the floor. When they do miss a shot, the Crimson Tide are also 26th in offensive rebounding percentage.