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College basketball just crowned a champion, but attention is already turning towards next season’s NCAA Tournament. Joe Lunardi revealed an early 2020 mock bracket to fuel off-season speculation. Take a look at the bracket here.
The Big Ten is all over the bracket, as it leads all other conferences with nine bids. Take a look at the proposed seeding, which Big Ten schools are there, and their opponents below.
Big Ten Teams In 2020 Bracketology
| Seed | Big Ten School | Opponent |
|---|---|---|
| Seed | Big Ten School | Opponent |
| 1 | Michigan State | Fairleigh Dickinson/Texas Southern |
| 1 | Michigan | Rider |
| 3 | Iowa | Georgia Southern |
| 4 | Purdue | Toledo |
| 6 | Maryland | Arizona/Virginia Tech |
| 7 | Ohio State | Seton Hall |
| 9 | Wisconsin | Mississippi St. |
| 9 | Minnesota | Ole Miss |
| 10 | Penn State | Texas Tech |
There are a few surprises in the initial release. I think you could argue Ohio State is a little low. The Buckeyes lose CJ Jackson and Keyshawn Woods, but bring back everyone else and re-load with a top-15 recruiting class. Some “Way-Too-Early Top 25’s” have the Buckeyes in the top 10.
Iowa as a 3-seed is interesting as well. I think Lunardi is overvaluing the Hawkeyes here. Don’t get me wrong, Iowa will be good, but have not defended consistently throughout Coach Fran McCaffrey’s tenure. Will that change next season? I’m in the “wait and see” camp on that one.
The last surprise is Penn State makes it in here! This is probably a do-or-die upcoming season for Pat Chambers, and making the tournament would be good news for his continued employment in Happy Valley. It’s a bold pick. The Nittany Lions played better in the second half of the season and probably will return Lamar Stevens, but like with Iowa’s defense, I need to see Pat Chambers make the NCAA Tournament before I believe any hype.
One thing I’m not surprised about is two no. 1-seeds for Michigan and Michigan State. Some of this is obviously dependent on who returns, but those teams seem to be in a tier of their own next season.
Take a look at the bracket. All of it is silly off-season fodder, but it’s fun to speculate on next season.