2012 NCAA Tournament Predictions: Underdogs Guaranteed to Win in Round of 64

There is such a thing as getting too "underdog happy" when picking your bracket, as only an average of eight upsets per tournament have happened in the round of 64 since the standard field was adopted.

Even so, picking upsets accurately can be the difference between winning your pool and failing miserably.

It seems that at least one of two double-digit seeds make it to the Sweet 16 or beyond on a yearly basis, so advancing them in the first round is your first step toward a winning bracket. Often times, the low seeds are from lesser-known conferences or are underachieving teams from power conferences. Whatever the case, there are plenty of dangerous teams lurking.

Here is a printable bracket for your convenience, as well as advice on three double-digit seeds to advance to the round of 32.

Colorado

Despite being a representative of the normally-strong Pac-12 Conference, the Colorado Buffaloes enter the NCAA tournament as an unheralded squad. Even so, the Buffaloes have a lot working in their favor right now. For one, the Buffaloes are a hot team that went on a magical run through the Pac-12 tournament and ultimately won the title. Also, low-seeded teams from power conferences tend to be very dangerous, especially against a higher seed from a low-end conference.

That is the case with Colorado as it is an 11 seed that will be taking on a No. 6 in UNLV out of the Mountain West Conference. The Rebels have a signature win this season over the North Carolina Tar Heels, but they haven't been as impressive down the stretch. Colorado persevered all season in a tightly-contested conference and has a big man that can take over a game in Andre Roberson. The Buffaloes seem like a safe bet as far as upsets go.

Long Beach State

Few probably realize exactly how good the Long Beach State 49ers have been this season, but the No. 12 seed out of the West Region has a good chance to do some damage in the big dance. LBSU will take on the No. 5-seeded New Mexico Lobos out of the Mountain West Conference in the round of 64. New Mexico went on a nice run to win the conference tournament, but I tend to say that the 49ers are more battle tested.

Long Beach State played in the worst overall conference, but its non-conference schedule was brutally hard. The 49ers played Pittsburgh, Louisville, Kansas, North Carolina, Xavier, Kansas State and Creighton, so they know what it's like to play a top team. LBSU beat Pitt and Xavier and lost by single digits to North Carolina, Kansas and Creighton. With so many big games already in their rearview mirror, the 49ers will be ready for this one.

NC State

Entering the ACC tournament, the NC State Wolfpack was very much on the NCAA tournament bubble, as it had endured a tough losing streak late in the season. Thanks to two wins in the ACC tourney, however, including one over fellow tournament team Virginia, the Wolfpack were able to impress the selection committee enough. Perhaps their most impressive performance was in a narrow, two-point loss to North Carolina in the ACC semifinals, though.

NC State will take on a strong San Diego State team that earned a No. 6 seed thanks to a 26-7 season. The Aztecs were riding a momentum wave into the Mountain West tournament finals, but they lost to New Mexico. This one really seems like it could go either way, but the Wolfpack played well against elite teams in the ACC and should have the pedigree necessary to pull off the upset.