SelectionSunday
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BUBBLEVILLE, Minn. -- It’s been a bumpy road to get here, but we’ve finally arrived at the start of a much anticipated (with fingers crossed) 2020-21 college basketball season. Where it (and The Corona) takes us, we can’t exactly know, but after the shock of losing the 2020 NCAA Tournament, college basketball fans simply are just glad we’re here. It feels good just to say (type) that, when it was just March 12 we were watching in disbelief as March Madness became March Sadness.
So without further ado, here’s our final preseason “Field of 68” projection for the 2020-21 season. Locally, it starts Thanksgiving Eve at 6 p.m. CT (BTN+) when the Gophers (again, fingers crossed) are slated to take on Green Bay at a mostly empty (get used to that) Williams Arena.
I have the Gophers making the Field of 68 as one of the “last 4 in”, but I have to admit, that 4-game stretch to start the Big Ten season (@ Illinois, Iowa, Michigan State, @ Wisconsin) gives me serious pause. The Gophers need to avoid digging a hole that is too deep to crawl out of.
Please note, the Ivy League opted out of the season so – going on the assumption the Selection Committee sticks with a 68-team field (certainly not a given) – we will have 37 at-large bids instead of 36. Enjoy the season, in whatever shape and form it comes. Let the games begin!
An * denotes the projected conference champion in a multiple-bid conference.
Field of 68 Projection (11/20/20)
America East (1): Vermont
American (3): *Houston, Memphis, SMU
ACC (7): Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina, *Virginia
ASUN (1): Lipscomb
Atlantic 10 (3): Dayton, Richmond, *Saint Louis
Big East (4): Creighton, Providence, Seton Hall, *Villanova
Big Sky (1): Northern Colorado
Big South (1): Winthrop
Big Ten (9): *Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Purdue, Rutgers, Wisconsin
Big XII (6): Baylor, *Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech, West Virginia
Big West (1): UCSB
Colonial (1): College of Charleston
Conference USA (1): Western Kentucky
Horizon (1): Youngstown State
MAAC (1): Siena
MAC (1): Bowling Green
MEAC (1): NCCU
Missouri Valley (2): Bradley, *Loyola
Mountain West (2): *San Diego State, Utah State
NEC (1): Saint Francis-Pa.
OVC (1): Austin Peay
Pac 12 (4): Arizona State, Oregon, Stanford, *UCLA
Patriot (1): Colgate
SEC (6): Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, *Kentucky, LSU, Tennessee
SoCon (1): UNC-Greensboro
Southland (1): Stephen F. Austin
SWAC (1): Southern U
Summit (1): South Dakota State
Sun Belt (1): South Alabama
WCC (2): BYU, *Gonzaga
WAC (1): New Mexico State
_________________________________
Last 4 In: Bradley, Clemson, Minnesota, SMU
First 4 Out: Boise State, South Carolina, UConn, USC
Dozen to Watch: Auburn, Cincinnati, Colorado, Furman, Marquette, Maryland, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, Rhode Island, San Francisco, UNLV, Wright State
Non-Power 6 At-Large Bids (7): Bradley, BYU, Dayton, Memphis, Richmond, SMU, Utah State
The Slipper Fits (potential Sweet 16 Cinderellas from 1-Bid Leagues): Bowling Green, UNC-Greensboro, Western Kentucky, Winthrop
Final 4: Gonzaga, Kentucky, Michigan State, Virginia
Lurking: Baylor, Creighton, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Villanova
National Champion: Gonzaga
Conference Rankings (Multiple-Bid Leagues Only)
1 Big Ten
2 Big XII
3 ACC
4 SEC
5 Big East
6 Pac 12
7 Atlantic 10
8 American
9 Mountain West
10 WCC
11 Missouri Valley
So without further ado, here’s our final preseason “Field of 68” projection for the 2020-21 season. Locally, it starts Thanksgiving Eve at 6 p.m. CT (BTN+) when the Gophers (again, fingers crossed) are slated to take on Green Bay at a mostly empty (get used to that) Williams Arena.
I have the Gophers making the Field of 68 as one of the “last 4 in”, but I have to admit, that 4-game stretch to start the Big Ten season (@ Illinois, Iowa, Michigan State, @ Wisconsin) gives me serious pause. The Gophers need to avoid digging a hole that is too deep to crawl out of.
Please note, the Ivy League opted out of the season so – going on the assumption the Selection Committee sticks with a 68-team field (certainly not a given) – we will have 37 at-large bids instead of 36. Enjoy the season, in whatever shape and form it comes. Let the games begin!
An * denotes the projected conference champion in a multiple-bid conference.
Field of 68 Projection (11/20/20)
America East (1): Vermont
American (3): *Houston, Memphis, SMU
ACC (7): Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina, *Virginia
ASUN (1): Lipscomb
Atlantic 10 (3): Dayton, Richmond, *Saint Louis
Big East (4): Creighton, Providence, Seton Hall, *Villanova
Big Sky (1): Northern Colorado
Big South (1): Winthrop
Big Ten (9): *Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Purdue, Rutgers, Wisconsin
Big XII (6): Baylor, *Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech, West Virginia
Big West (1): UCSB
Colonial (1): College of Charleston
Conference USA (1): Western Kentucky
Horizon (1): Youngstown State
MAAC (1): Siena
MAC (1): Bowling Green
MEAC (1): NCCU
Missouri Valley (2): Bradley, *Loyola
Mountain West (2): *San Diego State, Utah State
NEC (1): Saint Francis-Pa.
OVC (1): Austin Peay
Pac 12 (4): Arizona State, Oregon, Stanford, *UCLA
Patriot (1): Colgate
SEC (6): Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, *Kentucky, LSU, Tennessee
SoCon (1): UNC-Greensboro
Southland (1): Stephen F. Austin
SWAC (1): Southern U
Summit (1): South Dakota State
Sun Belt (1): South Alabama
WCC (2): BYU, *Gonzaga
WAC (1): New Mexico State
_________________________________
Last 4 In: Bradley, Clemson, Minnesota, SMU
First 4 Out: Boise State, South Carolina, UConn, USC
Dozen to Watch: Auburn, Cincinnati, Colorado, Furman, Marquette, Maryland, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, Rhode Island, San Francisco, UNLV, Wright State
Non-Power 6 At-Large Bids (7): Bradley, BYU, Dayton, Memphis, Richmond, SMU, Utah State
The Slipper Fits (potential Sweet 16 Cinderellas from 1-Bid Leagues): Bowling Green, UNC-Greensboro, Western Kentucky, Winthrop
Final 4: Gonzaga, Kentucky, Michigan State, Virginia
Lurking: Baylor, Creighton, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Villanova
National Champion: Gonzaga
Conference Rankings (Multiple-Bid Leagues Only)
1 Big Ten
2 Big XII
3 ACC
4 SEC
5 Big East
6 Pac 12
7 Atlantic 10
8 American
9 Mountain West
10 WCC
11 Missouri Valley
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