February 29, 2020 Bracketology for Leap Day
Bracketology to Kick Off a Big Weekend of College Basketball
A good amount of changes this week in bracketology as teams that were idle mid-week moved up due to other teams in similar hubs losing games. Not much has changed in terms of the Top Seven, but Duke's loss to Wake Forest ended up taking them down to a #3 seed, but they still get a very favorable location. Seeding is not necessarily a reward, the locations and matchups do matter. It is better to play closer to home and face a team that is not close to home.
The highlights aside from Duke's fall to a #3 seed:
- Stanford is out, other teams rose up and even though the Cardinal have won three straight, the competition has not provided a boost.
- Kentucky is now a #5 seed and this is a general trend for the SEC as all of the teams bumped up a seed line.
- However, in the case of Auburn, the #7 seed is a massive punishment as they stand a very slim chance of escaping Spokane.
- Indiana, Providence, USC, and Richmond are the last four in. The next two out are Stanford and Arkansas, which may seem like good news for Hawg fans, but they are walking a very fine line to being knocked completely out of consideration. A loss in Athens would put Arkansas would be devastating.
- Colorado was punished by various metrics providers for their recent losses. They are now a #7 seed.
- West Virginia is buoyed by strong non-conference wins, but if they continue to struggle, they may fall faster as the Big Ten teams are catching up.
- Wisconsin moves up to a #6 seed and they have continued to impress.
- Saint Mary's would have received a #8 seed, but their reward was a #9 seed and a more favorable location.
- Florida State and Villanova are #2 seeds now.
- North Dakota State's win over South Dakota State puts them in front of South Dakota State to win the Summit.
| Conference | Conference | |||
| SOUTH – Houston | MIDWEST – Indianapolis | |||
| St. Louis | Omaha | |||
| 1) Baylor | Big XII | 1) Kansas | Big XII | |
| 16) NC A&T/Prairie View A&M | MEAC/SWAC | 16) Siena/St. Francis (PA) | MAAC/NEC | |
| 8) LSU | SEC | 8) Marquette | Big East | |
| 9) Utah St. | MWC | 9) Arizona St. | Pac-12 | |
| Sacramento | Tampa | |||
| 5) West Virginia | Big XII | 5) Kentucky | SEC | |
| 12) Liberty | A-Sun | 12) USC/Richmond | Pac-12/A-10 | |
| 4) Penn St. | Big Ten | 4) Ohio St. | Big Ten | |
| 13) Stephen F. Austin | Southland | 13) North Texas | C-USA | |
| Cleveland | Greensboro | |||
| 6) Iowa | Big Ten | 6) Houston | American | |
| 11) Xavier | Big East | 11) Oklahoma | Big XII | |
| 3) Louisville | ACC | 3) Maryland | Big Ten | |
| 14) Belmont | OVC | 14) UC-Irvine | Big West | |
| Tampa | St. Louis | |||
| 7) Florida | SEC | 7) Colorado | Pac-12 | |
| 10) Rutgers | Big Ten | 10) Wichita St. | American | |
| 2) Florida St. | ACC | 2) Creighton | Big East | |
| 15) North Dakota St. | Summit | 15) Wright St. | Horizon | |
| EAST – New York | WEST – Los Angeles | |||
| Cleveland | Sacramento | |||
| 1) Dayton | A-10 | 1) San Diego St. | MWC | |
| 16) Radford | Big South | 16) Montana | Big Sky | |
| 8) Butler | Big East | 8) Texas Tech | Big XII | |
| 9) Virginia | ACC | 9) Saint Mary's | WCC | |
| Albany | Spokane | |||
| 5) Michigan St. | Big Ten | 5) Michigan | Big Ten | |
| 12) ETSU | SoCon | 12) Yale | Ivy | |
| 4) Seton Hall | Big East | 4) Oregon | Pac-12 | |
| 13) Akron | MAC | 13) New Mexico St. | WAC | |
| Greensboro | Omaha | |||
| 6) Wisconsin | Big Ten | 6) Arizona | Pac-12 | |
| 11) Northern Iowa | MVC | 11) Indiana/Providence | Big Ten/Big East | |
| 3) Duke | ACC | 3) BYU | WCC | |
| 14) Vermont | America East | 14) Hofstra | Colonial | |
| Albany | Spokane | |||
| 7) Illinois | Big Ten | 7) Auburn | SEC | |
| 10) Rhode Island | A-10 | 10) Cincinnati | American | |
| 2) Villanova | Big East | 2) Gonzaga | WCC | |
| 15) Colgate | Patriot | 15) Little Rock | Sun Belt |