The NCAA Tournament always features its fair share of upsets and most common area for a first round shocker is the No. 5 seed against the No. 12 seed. The Long Beach St. 49ers may not be well known across the country, but the team can flat-out play. They challenged themselves early in the season against the likes of Louisville, Kansas, North Carolina and others and feature one of the best players in the country in senior guard Casper Wear.
Luckily for you and your bracket, we have a few updates on the 49ers and what a few of the experts are saying about their chances as a Cinderella team.
West Region breakdown - 2012 NCAA tournament - ESPN
Eamonn Brennan says LBSU is a legitimate threat to make a Sweet 16 run, but they got an unfavorable draw with the defensive-minded New Mexico Lobos.
West region bracket busters - Rivals.com Video
Pat Forde of Yahoo! talks upsets and how the 49ers could knock off both New Mexico and Louisville to reach the second weekend of play.
Long Beach State 49ers at New Mexico Lobos - Preview, Picks, Stats - CBSSports.com Pregame
A comparison of the Lobos and 49ers on offense, defense and overall talent. A few of their experts also make their picks for the game.
The game between UNM and LBSU is set for 4:10 ET on Thursday afternoon. Tipoff will be coming from Portland, Oregon.
For more on the Long Beach 49ers, visit our team page. For more coverage of Long Beach State in the 2012 NCAA Tournament, visit SB Nation Los Angeles' STORYSTREAM. Click here for a link to our NCAA bracket 2012.
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