NCAA Scores 2012: 10 Players That Annihilated the Stat Sheet

Friday's opening round games are going to go down in history. We saw two No. 15 seeds beat No. 2 seeds, and a No. 13 seed beat a No. 4 seed.

We also saw a ton of great games come down to the wire with many near upsets.

The reasons why teams avoided upsets or actually achieved upsets were because these bright stars put up big numbers on the stat sheets for their respective teams.

These are the top 10 players who made great contributions not just to their teams, but to their stat lines.

Kyle O'Quinn, Norfolk State

No one owned Friday like Kyle O'Quinn from Norfolk State. If there was a face to the 24 hours of March 16th, 2012, it would be O'Quinn.

O'Quinn is such a great story, going from a kid that only had one scholarship offer out of high school to where he is now.

He led his team to a monumental upset of second-seeded Missouri today, and scored a game-high 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting.

O'Quinn also chipped in 14 rebounds for his team as they advanced to play on Sunday against Florida.

Pendarius Williams, Norfolk State

Williams was also a top performer today, as he and O'Quinn led Norfolk State past second-seeded Missouri.

Williams added 20 points of his own in the upset and was seven for nine shooting, and a perfect four-of-four from behind the arc.

Williams also finished with four rebounds and two assists.

He will have a tough assignment on Sunday against Florida's great guards, but for the moment he will certainly have to enjoy being one of the top players of today's games.

Michael Dixon, Missouri

Missouri came up three points short, and will go down in history as having been upset by a No. 15 seed. One player that will get overshadowed from today's game is Michael Dixon.

Dixon had a great game and stat line, scoring 22 points on eight-of-12 shooting, including four of five behind the arc.

He also chipped in five assists in today's loss.

If it wasn't for the loss, Dixon's performance would get noticed more.

Phil Pressey, Missouri

Phil Pressey was another player that stood out in today's monumental game.

Again, if it wasn't for such a big upset, Pressey's stat line would get noticed more.

Pressey had 20 points on six-of-nine shooting and was four-of-five from three-point land. Even more impressive were Pressey's eight assists. He was only two assists away from a double-double.

If Missouri had moved onto the Round of 32, Pressey's play would be highlighted for sure.

Tyler Zeller, North Carolina

The ACC player of the year and middle Zeller Tyler had a great day and led the North Carolina Tar Heels to a second-round matchup against Creighton on Sunday.

Zeller owned the stat sheet, scoring 17 points and adding 15 rebounds for the top-ranked Tar Heels.

If Carolina can continue to get high double-doubles out of Zeller, I have no doubt in my mind North Carolina will be playing in New Orleans.

Kendall Marshall, North Carolina

Marshall has had a solid season thus far, and has really grown into one of the best point guards in the nation. What's scary is he's only a sophomore.

Marshall joined Zeller in the double-double line with 11 points and 10 assists.

He's so good an exploiting matchups on his teammates and finding the open man. He's also a very good penetrator and finishes well around the rim.

Due to those skills, defenders must play off of him a bit, and he can either make you pay by draining shots, or by find the open man even more easily.

Bernard James, Florida State

The Seminoles were pushed to the brink today, as they were almost upset by 14th-seeded St. Bonaventure.

Many had Florida State penciled into the Final Four this year due to their remarkable run in the ACC Tournament.

Bernard James picked up the Noles and led them past the Bonnies by himself. He had to step up due to their leading scorer Michael Snear being shut out for the first time in his collegiate career.

James had 19 points on eight-of-11 shooting and added nine boards.

If James can do that for the rest of the tourney, and Snear can get back to his scoring ways, then watch out.

Bradley Beal, Florida

Bradley Beal is the last of the three guards that you would expect to put up huge stat lines in a big game. Nothing against Beal, as he's a very solid player, but he's not the main threat.

Today, he was.

Beal put up a double-double against a tough Virginia defense as he scored 14 points and pulled down 11 rebounds.

That's a great weapon to have if Beal can put in this kind of effort throughout the tournament.

C.J. McCollum, Lehigh

C.J. McCollum will rival Kyle O'Quinn for the face of Friday. McCollum helped his Lehigh Mountain Hawks pull the second big upset of the day on Duke.

McCollum had 30 points, six rebounds, and six assists.

Lehigh's upset may be known as the biggest upset in the history of the tourney due to who they are and who they knocked off. They wouldn't have done it without McCollum.

Draymond Green, Michigan State

Draymond Green's performance may get overlooked due to the three big upsets, but he had the best day out of anyone that played.

Green had a triple-double with 24 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists.

That's really unheard of, for someone to get a triple-double in a tournament game, and his performance was magical.

Green has really stepped it up this season, and considering the teams left on his side of the bracket, I think Michigan State will be dancing to New Orleans.