No. 5 Michigan State (25-8) vs. No. 12 Temple (21-12)

Michigan State is a 6 1/2-point favorite over Temple in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. The Spartans received an at-large berth following a semifinal loss to Wisconsin in the Big Ten tournament while the Owls earned an automatic berth by winning the Atlantic 10 tourney. The contest will be the first of four games played in Denver Thursday.

Temple coach Fran Dunphy has guided his team to college basketball's grandest stage in his second season. Prior to accepting the Temple job, Dunphy coached Penn for 17 seasons, where he won 310 games and nine Ivy League championships.

Following a loss at Charlotte January 12, the Owls had fallen to 6-8 and were playing like the team that was projected to finish near the bottom of the conference. Since that loss, the Owls are 15-4 and finished the season with seven consecutive victories.

Traditionally, Temple wins with defense but this year's team is more skilled offensively. The Owls do a nice job taking care of the basketball and possess the patience necessary to take good shots. Temple has an impressive assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.21-to-1 and shoots nearly 75 percent from the free-throw line.

Forwards Dionte Christmas and Mark Tyndale lead the Owls in nearly every statistic. Christmas scores 20.2 points and grabs six rebounds per contest while Tyndale tallies 15.9 points and 7.2 rebounds. The two stars are also first and second on the team in assists and steals.

Tyndale plays bigger and is a force closer to the basket, while Christmas is a sharpshooter from long range. Both men are Philadelphia natives who play over 37 minutes per game and combine to take over half of the team's shots.

Role player Ryan Brooks (8.4 ppg), Lavoy Allen (8.0) and Chris Clark (7.7) are secondary options in Temple's thin rotation. The Owls only play eight men but depth may not be their biggest concern.

Michigan State has much bigger bodies on the interior and Temple will have a difficult time matching up in a loosely officiated game. The Spartans also have more depth inside so a tightly officiated contest could result in Temple foul trouble.

Michigan State is an outstanding rebounding team. The Spartans are seventh nationally in offensive rebounding and don't allow many second chance opportunities on the defensive end. The Spartans biggest advantage will be on the glass.

Guard play is typically the Spartans strength. Senior captain Drew Neitzel scores 14.2 points per game and is capable of dominating a contest. Neitzel is a streaky shooter and the Spartans become vulnerable when he goes cold.

Freshman point guard Kalin Lucas (10 ppg) has emerged as the next great Spartan. Lucas has shown the ability to score and pass at an advanced level. Backup point guard Travis Walton lacks raw scoring ability but makes up for it with senior leadership and solid decision making.

Sophomore Raymar Morgan (14.5) leads the Spartans in scoring. Morgan is a dynamic scorer but has a tendency to disappear for extended periods of time. When Morgan and Neitzel are not making shots the Spartans become predictable and ineffective offensively.

Tom Izzo is taking the Spartans to the 'Big Dance' for the 11th consecutive season. Michigan State has made four Final Fours and win the 2000 National Championship under Izzo. The Spartans lost to North Carolina in the second round of the 2007 tournament.

Temple has not appeared in the NCAA Tournament since 2001 when it lost to Michigan State in the Elite Eight.

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