Feb 6th NCAA Odds and Picks: Connecticut Huskies at Louisville Cardinals
Monday, February 06, 2012
by Joe Rodriguez
Two of the best defensive teams in the Big East lock horns on Monday when Connecticut Huskies travels to No. 25 Louisville Cardinals.
The Huskies, playing without head coach Jim Calhoun (medical leave), snapped a four-game losing streak by routing Seton Hall, 69-46, on Saturday.
The surging Cardinals, meanwhile, have won four straight, including a 78-66 home victory over Rutgers.
- Connecticut Huskies @ Louisville Cardinals
When: 7:00 PM ET, Monday, February 6, 2012
Where: KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Kentucky
TV: 7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN3.com
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Justbet Sportsbook currently have the Cardinals listed as 4-point favorites versus the Huskies.
Connecticut Huskies (15-7): The Huskies rank third nationally — one spot ahead of the Cardinals — in field-goal percentage defense, holding foes to 36.7 shooting from the floor while blocking 6.7 shots (6th in Division I). They are vulnerable from the perimeter, however — Connecticut allows opponents to hit 34 percent from 3-point range, 15th in the Big East, and also rank 14th in the league in turnover margin (minus-2.1). The Huskies are led by sophomore shooting guard Jeremy Lamb (17.6 ppg) and freshman center Andre Drummond (10.2 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 2.7 bpg), who blocked seven shots against Seton Hall.
Louisville Cardinals (18-5): Much like the Huskies, the Cardinals have been extremely effective in limiting opposing offenses close to the basket, allowing just 37 percent shooting overall, but they haven't been great at defending the 3-point shot (33.3 percent). Louisville does rank sixth nationally in steals (9.5), and sophomore center Gorgui Dieng (10.2 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 3.5 bpg) is the fifth ranked shot-blocker in the nation. A balanced offense is led by senior shooting guard Kyle Kuric (13.2 ppg), one of six players averaging at least 8.5 points. Freshman power forward Chane Behanan scored a career-best 23 points against Rutgers, hitting his first 10 field-goal attempts.
1. The two schools have split their 12 meetings, but Louisville had won four in a row prior to Connecticut's 69-66 victory in the Big East tournament final last March.
2. The Cardinals are 3-2 against the Huskies in Louisville, including a 71-58 win on Feb. 18, 2011. Louisville swept the two regular-season meetings last year, posting a 79-78 double-overtime victory at Connecticut on Jan. 29.
3. Four of the five previous meetings played in Louisville have been decided by exactly 13 points each, with the other decided by 14.
BASKETBALL PREDICTION: Cardinals 68, Huskies 61.
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andre drummond - chane behanan - connecticut huskies - gorgui dieng - jeremy lamb - jim calhoun - kfc yum! center - kyle kuric - louisville cardinals
