FACTS & STATS: Site: Pepsi Center (19,309) -- Denver, Colorado. Television: CBS. NCAA Tournament Record: Temple 31-25, Michigan State 41-20. Series Record: Temple leads, 6-5.

GAME NOTES: Making their 11th straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, the Michigan State Spartans open up play with a first-round matchup with the Temple Owls in the South Region this afternoon at the Pepsi Center in Denver. No stranger to the Final Four, MSU head coach Tom Izzo ranks fourth among active coaches with four trips to the final stop of the event, now celebrating it's 70th year. Izzo is also responsible for leading the Spartans to one of their two national titles by bringing home the trophy in 2000. This season the Spartans lost just once before the start of the Big Ten Conference schedule, and that was to second-ranked UCLA by five points during the CBE Classic. The squad had a couple of issues in league play however, losing to Iowa and Penn State and then dropping back-to-back matchups versus nationally-ranked foes in Purdue and Indiana. In the conference tournament the team was dismissed by Wisconsin by just a single basket, 65-63. As for the Owls, they needed to win the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament to get into the Big Dance and managed to rip off three straight wins in Atlantic City to turn the trick. A victory over La Salle a week ago was followed by a 60-46 decision against Charlotte and then a 69-64 thriller against Big 5 rival Saint Joseph's in the championship game on Saturday. With the win Temple, which is 31-25 over the course of 25 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, has won seven straight games. In the case of the Spartans, who won their other championship with Magic Johnson in 1979, they have an incredible 41-20 record in the event all-time. Temple may lead the all-time series with the Spartans by a count of 6-5, but the Owls would gladly trade that advantage to reverse the outcome of the most recent meeting with MSU. Seven years ago the teams collided in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament in Atlanta, with Michigan State running away with a 69-52 decision. The winner of today's bout will take on the survivor of the Oral Roberts/Pittsburgh contest on Saturday.

One of the most productive scorers in the history of the program, Dionte Christmas is one half of the power pair that propels the Owls, along with Mark Tyndale. Christmas, who made it onto the All-Atlantic 10 First Team, has never seen a shot he didn't like, leading the team with his 20.2 ppg. Of his 466 field goal attempts over the course of 33 starts, an incredible 274 of them came behind the three-point line, of which 104 fell through. But more than just a shooter, Christmas also placed second in rebounding (6.0 rpg), assists (83) and steals (44), trailing Tyndale in every one of those categories. A Second Team All-A-10 choice, Tyndale (15.9 ppg) was responsible for more than seven boards per contest, logging 141 dishes and 52 thefts as he played more than 37 minutes per game. Giving the pair some stable play in the paint was Lavoy Allen (8.0 ppg) with his 5.5 rpg and team-best 52 blocked shots.

An All-Big Ten Conference Second Team selection, guard Drew Neitzel is one of three Michigan State players and just one of 12 Big Ten performers ever to produce at least 1,500 points and 500 assists, joining former Spartans Mateen Cleaves and Scott Skiles. Neitzel finished second on the team this season with 14.2 ppg, acting as the clutch perimeter threat with his 40.3 percent accuracy behind the three-point line. He also placed second on the team in both assists (131) and steals (35), the team one of the best in the nation with a sizzling 17.6 assists per contest. Also a member of the All-Big Ten Second Team, Raymar Morgan accounted for 14.5 ppg and was second in the rebounding department with close to six and a half boards per game. Kalin Lucas managed to balance his scoring (10.0 ppg) with his passing (125 assists), while Travis Walton (3.6 ppg) was designated the floor director with his 147 dishes this season. The middle belonged to Goran Suton as he delivered 8.6 ppg and was first with just over eight rebounds per game.

Now that Fran Dunphy has put his stamp on the program, Temple has evolved from a defensive team to one that doesn't mind running up the score. However, MSU appears to have too much talent to allow Christmas and Tyndale to dictate the pace, which is why the Spartans should be favored today.

Predicted Outcome

Michigan State 70, Temple 64