USM vs. KSU
Kansas State University's Rodney McGruder (22) goes up for a shot against University of Southern Mississippi's Angelo Johnson (23) in the first half of their NCAA men's college basketball game in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania March 15, 2012. Reuters

As of this halftime report, Southern Mississippi is only 3 points behind Kansas State. Can the underdog pull off a big win here at the outset of NCAA Tournament 2012?

Eight-seed Kansas State University is seen as the overwhelming favorite, but the nine-seed Southern Mississippi squad can't be counted out after finishing second to Memphis is Conference USA.

The fact of the matter, however, is that Southern Mississippi has literally zero wins (or even games) over ranked teams during the 2012 regular season, and with losses to teams as weak as UTEP, Golden Eagles fans can't be too excited about their chances in the Big Dance.

However, the score at the half is 30-27, so a big win for them isn't an impossibility. A three-point defecit could actually be seen as a good omen for the second half, as Kansas State is likely pretty disappointed not to be up by more already.

Kansas State was screwed by the NCAA selection committee when it earned itself a disappointing eight seed, as the Wildcats had two big wins over Mizzou (KSU trounced them by more than 10 points. Twice.) and a recent win over Baylor.

So the odds are definitely on Kansas State, and they'll likely be playing the winner of the Syracuse-UNC Asheville game in the Round of 32. But it's March Madness, anything can happen.

Basketball