The elder Martelli made the NCAAs seven times as coach at St. Joe's. His son has reached it for the first time as coach of the Bryant Bulldogs.

The senior Martelli was a longtime coach at Saint Joseph, but was most recently the associate head coach at Michigan. Notably, Martelli and Tom Izzo are very good friends, and their relationship is well noted. With the relationship between Martelli and Izzo, Martelli Jr. has received some of the benefits of the close relationship with Izzo.

Michigan State will open the NCAA Tournament not too far from home. The Spartans (27-6) landed a No. 2 seed in the South Region and will face No. 15 Bryant (23-11) in a first-round game on Thursday at Rocket Arena in Cleveland.

Bryant coach Phil Martelli Jr. pulls the strings for the deep Bryant squad. The 43-year-old is in his second season in charge and is the son of longtime basketball coach Phil Martelli, who was head coach at St. Joseph's for more than 20 years.

Get your brackets ready. March Madness is here, and the NCAA Tournament kicks off this week. For Michigan State basketball fans, this week will be focused on the Bryant Bulldogs of the America East Conference,

Madness teams could pull off upsets in the first round? Here's eight bracket-buster predictions for Round of 64 NCAA Tournament bracket.