NCAA Bracket 2012 Predictions: Favorites on Upset Alert in Opening Round

By now just about every matchup on the bracket aside from the obvious locks has been mentioned as a possible upset. In order to win your office pool, you must separate fact from fiction, which is a lot harder than it may seem.

Let's examine three heavy favorites that will be on upset alert in their first NCAA tournament game. These are the ones you should be targeting instead of taking too many unnecessary risks. For a printable bracket, click here.

Georgetown

Even though some of the players have changed, you know Georgetown's recent tournament failures are running through the team's mind as they prepare for a game against Belmont. It's impossible to black those thoughts completely out.

Making matters worse, the Bruins are a lot better than their seed would indicate. They have five players averaging more than nine points per game, and all of them are shooting better than 45 percent from the floor. Slowing them down will be a struggle for the Hoyas.

The game will be decided by Hollis Thompson. If he's not able to take advantage of Belmont's defense by knocking down some outside shots, Georgetown will once again suffer an early exit.

Florida State

Power conference teams coming off championship victories are always a risky selection. For every Connecticut that follows up their run with another one, there is a team that fails to carry over the momentum into the big dance.

Andrew Nicholson has a great chance to be the tournament's breakout star if St. Bonaventure is able to pull off a shocker. The senior forward is averaging 18 points and nine rebounds. He has a myriad of post moves and can also hit long jumpers.

The Seminoles have to hope Bernard James can slow him down, or they'll be heading home a lot earlier than most people are anticipating.

Michigan

The Wolverines are overly reliant on Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. If one of those guards struggles, Michigan is immediately in rough shape. That's a lot of pressure on two players heading into a situation that is already full of pressure.

If you look at Ohio's results, one thing becomes clear: The Bobcats are a streaky team. When they are playing well, like the Bobcats are right now, they are very dangerous. D.J. Cooper was knocking down shots from NBA range throughout the MAC Tournament to lead the way.

Throw out the seeds because this game is virtually a toss up. Whichever team gets more production from their starting guards will win, and Ohio's pair of Cooper and Walter Offutt are better right now.