Check below for our list of 10 mid-majors to watch during the 20-21 season.
This does not include Gonzaga or teams from either the Atlantic 10 or Mountain West.
In no particular order:
Western Kentucky: This will be the best team that Rick Stansbury has had since he’s been in Bowling Green. The Hilltoppers won 20 games last season despite the fact that All-American big man Charles Bassey only appeared in 10 due to a season-ending knee injury. With Bassey now healthy, Western Kentucky will return four double-figure scorers. Lipscomb transfer Kenny Cooper should stabilize the point guard spot after redshirting last season. Don’t be shocked if this team is ranked in the AP Top 25 at some point in 20-21.
BYU: Mark Pope’s first season as head coach in Provo featured 24 wins and a February triumph over Gonzaga. His second should feature BYU as the Bulldogs’ top challenger in the WCC. The Cougars bring back two perimeter pieces — Alex Barcello and Connor Harding — who averaged 20 minutes or more and add two key graduate transfers in Matt Haarms (Purdue) and Brandon Averette (Utah Valley). Former Utah commit Caleb Lohner should also be a rotation piece up front alongside veterans Kolby Lee and Gavin Baxter. With Pope pulling the strings, the cache surrounding BYU’s program continues to rise on the national level.
Northern Iowa: The pain of last March’s 21-point loss to Drake in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament completely erased for some what the Panthers accomplished prior to that defeat. Remember: Ben Jacobson’s squad won 25 games a year ago before the postseason, which included a neutral site win over South Carolina and a win at Colorado. Veteran guards A.J. Green and Trae Berhow headline Northern Iowa’s returning nucleus, which also includes sturdy big man Austin Phyfe and 6-4 Tywhon Pickford. Redemption is the main theme for this program in 20-21 after last season’s performance at Arch Madness.
Loyola-Chicago: After finishing a game behind the Northern Iowa in the Missouri Valley regular season standings last year, Porter Moser’s squad will welcome back its top five scorers from a team that won 21 games. Upperclassmen Cameron Krutwig and Lucas Williamson were major contributors during the 2018 Final Four run and should be be two of the best mid-major players in the country next season. A word to the wise: keep an eye on Oakland transfer Braden Norris, a 6-foot guard who made 67 three-point shots as a freshman two years ago before redshirting.
Austin Peay: The door for Matt Figger’s squad to officially become the top team in the OVC officially came wide open when Belmont’s Adam Kunkel opted to transfer to Xavier in July. Austin Peay returns two of the best mid-major players in the country in Terry Taylor and Jordyn Adams, who are both capable of taking over an NCAA Tournament game next March. The 6-3 Adams averaged 17.4 points last season as a freshman while the 6-5 Taylor averaged a double-double — 21.8 points and 11 rebounds. Power conferences won’t want to see this duo as their matchup on Selection Sunday.
UNC Greensboro: Four straight 20-win seasons have made the Spartans a model of mid-major consistency under Wes Miller. Don’t expect things to change next year. Isaiah Miller’s return after flirting with the 2020 NBA Draft gives UNC Greensboro the reigning SOCON Player of the Year as an anchor and fellow guard Kaleb Hunter is also back as a double-figure scorer. Miller is also bullish on the potential of 6-1 sophomore Keyshaun Langley, who was a major contributor as a freshman. 7-foot transfer Hayden Koval, an impact big man from Central Arkansas should have a major impact.
Furman: This program has won 73 games in the past three years under Richey and isn’t slowing down any time soon. Four starters return from a team that won 25 games and finished a game behind East Tennessee State for the SOCON regular season title. Furman will miss Jordan Lyons, who was last year’s leading scorer, but Bob Richey has always found a way to generate offense; the Paladins have averaged 76 points or more in each of the last three seasons.
Yale: The Ivy League isn’t scheduled to play college basketball until January, but if this conference has a representative in the 2021 NCAA Tournament it will be the Bulldogs. James Jones has won four league titles in the last six seasons and appears to be on track for another, thanks to the dynamite one-two punch of veteran guard Azar Swain (93 made three-point shots in 19-20) and big man Paul Atkinson (17.6 points, 7.3 rebounds). Reliable veteran wing Matthue Cotton also returns and Jones also expects jumps from juniors Eze Dike and Wyatt Yess. The Ivy League goes through New Haven.
UC Santa Barbara: Joe Pasternack has done everything as a head coach except reach the NCAA Tournament and there’s a good chance that will change in 2021. The former Arizona assistant has averaged 22 wins during his first three seasons in his current post and has a high-major caliber front court with Amadou Sow and former Oregon big man Miles Norris. The Gauchos also bring back two veteran guards in Devearl Ramsey and JaQuori McLaughlin, who should emerge as a legitimate Big West Player of the Year candidate as a senior. Santa Barbara will miss Max Heidegger’s offense, but Pasternack added an impact wing in Destin Barnes, a 6-7 grad transfer from Jacksonville who averaged 12.1 points last season. Pacific transfer Ajare Sanni should also have a major impact.
Little Rock: The Trojans return every single player from a team that won 21 games and the Sun Belt regular season title. Darrell Walker’s squad will also get a boost from the return of veteran forward Kris Bankston, who only appeared in three games last year due to injury. Diminutive guard Markquis Nowell is a Sun Belt Player of the Year candidate after averaging 17.2 points, 3 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and 2.2 steals a year ago and 6-10 forward Ruot Monyyong is a walking double-double. Continuity at the mid-major level is a rare thing these days in college basketball, but Little Rock has it.
