NCAA Tournament 2012 Schedule: Favorites on Upset Alert in Sweet 16

Now that most of the pretenders have been eliminated, the NCAA Tournament should really take off. It's called March Madness for a reason. Fans have learned to expect the unexpected and more often than not, that's exactly what happens.

Let's take a look at three favorites on upset alert in the Sweet 16. For a complete look at the tournament schedule, click here for times and television listings.

Marquette

Marquette has rolled through the first two rounds with relative ease, knocking off BYU and Murray State to reach this point. The Golden Eagles should expect a much tougher fight against hot-shooting Florida.

The Gators were able to put up 71 points on a Virginia defense that ranked among the best in college basketball based on efficiency. Then they torched Norfolk State, which had shocked Missouri in the opening round, for 84 points in an easy victory.

Darius Johnson-Odom, Vander Blue and the rest of Marquette's guard will need to play their best defense of the season to stop Florida's shooters from finding a rhythm. If they can't, their season will be over by halftime.

Syracuse

Even though the Orange were able to make quick work of Kansas State, it's not enough to make people forget about their near-loss to UNC Asheville. Syracuse was lucky to avoid becoming the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 in history.

The loss of Fab Melo continues to loom large. He wasn't a major contributor on offense, but his defensive dominance has been sorely missed. Syracuse simply doesn't have enough depth up front to replace three blocks and countless shot alters per game.

Wisconsin will be a tricky test for the Orange. The Badgers are great on defense and play at an extremely slow pace to limit possessions. Don't be surprised if they are able to emerge victorious in a low-scoring affair.

Kentucky

The Wildcats have been as good as advertised in the early going. They had no trouble eliminating Western Kentucky or Iowa State and have shown no signs of feeling any pressure despite being the tournament's top-overall seed.

Indiana will be their first real competition, however. The two teams played in early December with Indiana coming out on top by a single point. So the Hoosiers should have a pretty good understanding of what it will take to pull off the upset again.

A battle of talented freshman between Kentucky's Anthony Davis and Indiana's Cody Zeller will dominate the headlines, but the game will be decided by the role players. Both teams have terrific depth, making it a toss up the Hoosiers can certainly win.