NCAA Tournament 2012: Kyle O'Quinn and Other March Madness Studs

How fitting that on Saint Patrick's Day weekend a serious hooper named Kyle O'Quinn came into the spotlight. O'Quinn was the reason No. 15 seed Norfolk State defeated the No. 2 seed Missouri Tigers. O'Quinn turned in a great performance and helped pull off one of the great upsets in March Madness history.

Let us take a look at what other ''Primetime Players'' (in the Dick Vitale's voice) have started to create a buzz  during the early stages of the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

Kyle O'Quinn, Norfolk State

May the luck of the Irish be with Norfolk State and Kyle O'Quinn. A senior, from Jamaica, Queens, O'Quinn has made everyone forget about ''Linsanity'' after he and his teammates beat Missouri in an "O'Quinnstant Classic.''

O'Quinn ate the Tigers alive in the paint, scoring 26 points and grabbing 14 rebounds to leave his mark in NCAA Tournament history. Much had been made about the Tigers and how they lacked size on the inside. Norfolk State took advantage of that mismatch and busted brackets everywhere, relying on its 6'10" man-child with a nice all-around game.

O'Quinn also showed why college athletics are the best thing since sliced bread.

In a postgame interview with the ever-dapper Craig Sager, O'Quinn thanked his college coaches for taking a chance on him and stated that Norfolk State was the only scholarship offer he had. O'Quinn embodies the collegiate attitude and, like any college student, is living in the moment. 

How could you not fall in love with this kid and this underdog squad. Hopefully, midnight doesn't strike too soon for this Cinderella story. After seeing the total team effort Norfolk State turned in today I don't think it will. Norfolk State has nothing to lose and will go as far as O'Quinn can take them.

Keep in mind O'Quinn is a New York City kid and those kids always play best when the stage is the biggest. Need proof? How about Kemba Walker orchestrating UConn's amazing ride to the NCAA title a year ago?

Royce White, Iowa State

Royce White was once one of the most highly recruited high school players in the country. The Minnesota native elected to stay at home and play for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. However, that marriage was shortlived.

White had his name thrown around in an incident in which laptops were stolen from a dorm room on the Minnesota campus. Prior to that, he was involved in an altercation with a security officer at the Mall of America. 

Then, just when you thought the worst was over, White announced he was leaving Minnesota via YouTube.

There were rumors that White would go to Kentucky and play for John Calipari, but he cancelled the trip at the last minute as a result of a panic attack and a fear of flying.

Luckily for the Cyclones, coach Fred Hoiberg was familiar with White, having been an assistant with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Hoiberg was able to convince White that Iowa State was the place for him. Cyclone Nation is happy about that.

In Iowa State's game against UConn in the NCAA tourney, White had a double-double (15 points and 13 rebounds). White did it all for the Cyclones, resetting the offense at crucial points to ensure a tournament victory for the Ames, Iowa, faithful.

With White playing all out and appearing to have matured, Iowa State should put fear in opposing teams' hearts. The Cyclones have other offensive talents, but White gives them a solid inside player with the potential to be one of the best players in all of college hoops. 

Rodney McGruder, Kansas State

Michael Beasley grew up in the Washington, D.C., area and took his prolific scoring talents to Kansas State. Well, it seems that Kansas State has found another high scorer from D.C. in Rodney McGruder.

He lit up the Southern Miss for 30 points. The Wildcats needed his outburst as Jamar Samuels and Will Spalding were kept in check. 

McGruder is a 6'4" guard who can fill it up. The Wildcats are an athletic and tough group that matches up well with a Syracuse team that will be without Fab Melo. If the Wildcats play tough defense and keep feeding the hot-hand of McGruder, expect another win for the Wildcats.

D.J. Cooper, Ohio

The sub 6-foot guard from Chicago (Seton Academy) showed the Michigan Wolverines that good guards can be found anywhere. Cooper put up 21 points and five assists en route to No. 13-seed Ohio's upset of No. 4-seed Michigan.

This is my ''I told you so'' player. I picked Ohio and all because of Cooper. That's because I live in the Chicago area and am familiar with Cooper and his game.

When he decided to sign with Ohio, I thought to myself, what a steal. There is nothing mid-major about his game. Cooper has a craftiness about his game that only a Chicago guard can that makes you forget he is not even 6" tall.

Cooper never showed any fear when Tim Hardaway Jr. or Trey Burke or whatever Michigan defender was thrown his way. Zone or man-to-man, Cooper didn't care. He had a determination about him and it showed as he willed his team to a 65-60 victory.

Cooper is one of the most slept-on players in the country. He has long been overlooked largely because of his size. But he has succeeded and his teams have won at every level.

C.J. McCollum, Lehigh

If I were to tell you that the Duke-Lehigh game featured a guard who had 30 points, seven rebounds and six  assists, immediately you would think: "Oh, Austin Rivers had himself a game.''

WRONG!

McCollum is no stranger to the spotlight. As a freshman, he was an honorable mention All-American. As a sophomore, he was named first team All-Patriot League. This year, as a junior, he was named the Patriot League player of the year for a second time and all-conference for a third time.

At 6'3", McCollum has good size for a point guard and, as his stat line indicates, he doesn't have a flaw in his game. In a game that had Seth Curry and Austin Rivers as the feature guards for the favorite Duke Blue Devils, it was McCollum who was the best player on the floor.

McCollum and the Lehigh Mountain Hawks will be sky high after this win over Coach K and crew. They may even ride the momentum of this win (and McCollum) to another shocker in the next round.