The Purdue Boilermakers are the No. 1 seed in the Midwest and will face the winner of Montana State-Grambling State (6:40 p.m., Wednesday) in Indianapolis on Friday to start the NCAA Tournament. Montana State opens as a 3.5-point favorite. Here's what you need to know about Purdue's two possible opponents:

Grambling State is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance

Grambling State (20-14) won the Southwestern Athletic Conference for the first time, earning its first NCAA Tournament berth. It's the latest impressive accomplishment by coach Donte' Jackson, who led the Tigers to their first SWAC regular season title in nearly 30 years in 2017-18, his first season with the program. Last season, Grambling State went 24-9, its most wins in a season since joining Division I in 1977, including victories over Colorado and Vanderbilt, Grambling State's first wins over Power 5 teams.

Who are Grambling State's top players?

Kintavious Dozier, a 6-1 junior, is the Tigers leading scorer at 13.1 points per game as something of a volume scorer. shooting 45.4% overall and 33.3% on 111 3-pointers.

Tra'Michael Moton, a 6-1 senior, is the point guard, averaging 11.8 ppg, 2.6 assists and 1.7 steals; making 37.1% of his 116 3s.

Antwan Burnett, a 6-5 sophomore swingman, is the team's top rebounder at 6.1 per game and is part of the balanced, perimeter-oriented attack, averaging 10.1 points and hitting 35.3% of his 3s.

Jourdan Smith, a 6-7 senior swingman, nearly gives the Tigers a fourth double-digit scorer at 9.7 points per game with 4.6 rebounds and more than a block per game.

Terrence Lewis, a 6-6 senior guard, is another threat from behind the arc, hitting 46.2% on his 3s and averaging 7.9 points.

Grambling's 9.8 assists per game rank 347th out of the 351 Division I teams.

Does Grambling State have any Indiana ties?

The Tigers have two players from Indiana coming:

Mikale Stevenson is a 6-2 sophomore guard from Fort Wayne who previously played at Milwaukee Technical College. He averages 4.6 points and is second on the team with 2.1 assists per game.

Jalen Johnson is a 6-8 senior forward from Manual in Indianapolis who previously played at Alabama A&M and Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He averages 7.6 points and 3.9 rebounds.

How did Grambling State do against Power 5 schools this season?

The Tigers won the first two games against Power 5 teams last season but didn't fare so well this year, losing three games by an average score of 94-52:

Colorado: L, 95-63

Iowa State: L, 92-37

Florida: L, 96-57

Montana State makes NCAA Tournament despite .500 record

Montana State had made the NCAA Tournament the two previous seasons but coach Danny Sprinkles left for Utah State -- Montana State could play Utah State in the second round -- leaving five players on the roster, according to the school's website.

Montana State (17-17, 9-9) entered the Big Sky Tournament as the fifth seed but knocked off fourth-seeded Webber State, No. 10 Sacramento State and third-seeded Montana for a Big Sky record-tying third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.

The Bobcats were trailing Montana 49-38 early in the second half of the title game when it went on an 11-minute stretch where it out-scored its rival 41-9, holding Montana to 1-of-14 shooting.

Matt Logie has been one of college basketball's most successful coaches

Matt Logie has led teams to the NCAA Tournament at the Division III (Whitworth), Division II (Point Loma) and Division I (Montana State) levels.

He entered this season with a 276-58 career record over 12 seasons, an .826 winning percentage that was third-best among active coaches at four-year schools.

Who are Montana State's top players?

Robert Ford III, a 6-0 senior, is Montana State's top player, leading the team in scoring (15.9 ppg), rebounding (7.6) and steals (2.9, third in the country) while also dishing out 3.0 assists per game and hitting 42.6% of his 3s.

Brian Gorace, a 6-6, 210-pound forward, averages 13.5 points and 4.3 rebounds, shooting 36.1% on 3s.

Brandon Walker, a 6-7, 250-pound sophomore, averages 13.0 points and 3.9 rebounds.

Eddie Turner III is the team's 6-2 senior point guard, averaging 9.5 points and 3.7 assists per game, and making 38.4% of his 3s.

Tyler Patterson, a 6-8, 190-pound junior, averages 8.4 points and made 38.4% of his 3s on a team-high 35.1 minutes per game.

Montana State is 32nd in the nation in 3-point shooting at 36.7%, making 9 per game.

How did Montana State do against Power 5 schools this season?

Montana State was 1-1 vs. Power school this season:

Cal: W, 63-60

Washington: L, 85-61

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Purdue vs. Grambling State or Montana State in March Madness