NCAA Tournament 2012 Predictions: Dangerous Teams Guaranteed to Surprise

Favorites and top seeds are nice and all, but the underrated teams who shock are the ones who make or break the entertainment values of March Madness—and this bracket is filled with them. 

Get ready to lose your voice and gain some extra pounds as you scream and snack along with some memorable moments guaranteed to take place in the next month. 

There is no better tournament in sports and no finer time than the opening week of March Madness. Brackets will be filled out by millions, and the burning question is how to pick the dangerous teams who are bound to shock with deep runs in the tourney. 

We have you covered with some of the budding programs that are on the rise just a few days before the tournament kicks off. 

N.C. State

The Wolfpack come in as the No. 11 seed set to take on No. 6 San Diego State.

It would be easy to pick this upset solely on the Aztecs and how they fared in the Mountain West final against New Mexico. San Diego State was flat all game and failed to put together any consistency against the Lobos.

However, this is all about N.C. State and how fantastic it has been playing lately. The Wolfpack are a team on a mission, which began with a win against Virginia and a spirited near-upset of North Carolina. 

They will show they come in under-seeded against an unsuspecting San Diego State. 

Montana 

I smell upset. 

Much has been made about the very real issues facing Wisconsin and its woefully inconsistent offense. The Badgers take on the No. 13 Montana Grizzlies, a team who can get very hot. 

Montana is coming off a Big Sky final in which they shot 55 percent from the field and destroyed Weber State, winning by 19. 

Ohio 

It's time for some pride and retribution for the Bobcats, who will play like they have a great deal to prove. 

Point guard D.J. Cooper comes in with experience, as he was part of the 2010 team who dispatched Georgetown. 

Consider that this is the same team who nearly took down Louisville, forcing them to shoot 37 percent in their game back in November. The Bobcats are much more in tune and ready to make their mark from the start of the tourney. 

Follow Gabe Zaldivar on Twitter.