The Cardinals will take their 2-0 ACC record to tobacco road on Saturday afternoon to face the North Carolina Tar Heels. This will be the first time these teams play as conference foes. The teams are meeting for the second year in a row, as the Tar Heels beat the Cardinals 93-84 last season on Nov. 24 in the Hall of Fame Tipoff. Carolina leads the all-time series 9-3, and have won the last five out of six including two in a row. Saturday’s contest will also include a pair of Hall of Fame coaches on the sidelines, Roy Williams 735 wins (Hall of Fame class of 2007) and Rick Pitino 709 wins (class of 2013).

COACH PITINO TALKS ABOUT THE NORTH CAROLINA GAME

The Tar Heels are 1-1 and have won 5 of their last six games. The Tar Heels are facing their second consecutive ranked opponent, hoping to bounce back from Monday night’s loss to No. 13 Notre Dame. That defeat snapped a five-game Carolina winning streak. The one thing that this Carolina team has struggled with over the past couple of years is consistency. They look like world beaters in one game and come out uninspired in the next one. They have the talent and the depth but just haven’t been able to put it together night after night.

MONTREZL TALKS NORTH CAROLINA

North Carolina is averaging 80.1 points a game while shooting 45.3% from the floor, 30.5% from the three and 70% from the free throw line. They are led in scoring by Marcus Paige (13.5PPG), Kennedy Meeks (12.7PPG), Brice Johnson (11.3PPG), Justin Jackson (9.6PPG), and J.P. Tokoto (9.1PPG). Carolina’s defense is holding its opponents to 35.4% shooting this season, ranking second in the ACC. The Tar Heels lead the ACC in three-point field goal percentage defense at 26.1%. Carolina has held 13 of its first 15 opponents under 40% shooting from the floor. Carolina leads the ACC in offensive rebounding percentage at .449 (ranking second nationally) but is 14th of 15 ACC teams in defensive rebounding percentage at .677 (222nd nationally). The Tar Heels are very good when it comes to sharing the basketball averaging 17.8 a game ranked 8th nationally.

CHRIS JONES TALKS NORTH CAROLINA

Kennedy Meeks will be a big challenge for the Cardinals. He leads the team with 8.8 rebounds per game and 22 blocked shots. Meeks is tied with Montrezl for the lead in the ACC in double-doubles with six each. J.P. Tokoto has led UNC or tied for the team lead in assists nine times this season. Justin Jackson has scored in double figures three times in the last five games. Isaiah Hicks has been Carolina’s defensive player of the game a team-high six times this season.

North Carolina 2014-15 Overall Rankings Offense | Defense

2014-15 Kenpom Rankings
Overall- #11
Defense Adjustment Efficiency
-89.4 ranks 10th
Offense Adjustment Efficiency
-111.5 ranks 19th
-Per Kenpom’s game prediction he has Louisville losing the game 71-67 based on his indexes.

This North Carolina team is about like the match-up with UK when it comes to their length and athletic ability. The Cardinals are going to have to play great in transition defense and limit the Tar Heels in their fast break points, and they must have a good day on the glass just to be able to stay in this game. Louisville’s big four have come up big all season and they will need to have a good game on Saturday. I’m concerned about the production in the paint and would like to see the Cardinals get more out of that 5 spot on Saturday.

I don’t think the Cardinals have to play a perfect game to beat North Carolina on Saturday but they will have to play one of their best games of the season. They will be very motivated trying not to lose back-to-back games at home. This one has me nervous but I just can’t pick against our guys and think they will answer the bell on the defensive end of the floor. Plus I really like the way Chris Jones has been playing and think he comes up big on Saturday.

The Beak Prediction:
Louisville 67 North Carolina 63

The Cardinals took care of business on Sunday evening down in Winston Salem beating Wake Forest in their very first conference game. Now the Cardinals will play their very first ACC game at the KFC Yum Center on Wednesday night against Clemson. The Cardinals and the Tigers have only played three times on the hardwood with Louisville leading the series 3-0. After their win Sunday the Cardinals are 149-66 against current ACC teams.

The Beak Prediction:
Louisville 79 Clemson 65

The Cardinals have made it through those less than exciting games of the non-conference schedule and will now head into their first season in the ACC. Standing with my son last summer during the ACC celebration I was filled with anticipation for the Cardinals move into the ACC conference. Most of that anticipation was looking forward to the quality football opponents and while we have had the fortune of playing in a quality basketball conference last years’ time in the AAC made me look forward to this season in the ACC. Now that day is here and the Cardinals will head to North Carolina to play the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. These programs have played three times in the past with the Cardinals leading the series 2-1. The last time these teams played was during the 1996 NCAA Tournament in the Midwest Regional Final. The Demon Deacons won that game 60-59 and the Cardinals were led in scoring by Samaki Walker. The Cardinals will head into their inaugural season in the ACC with a winning record. They are 207-61 all-time vs ACC teams.

In the state of Kentucky there are two basketball programs that tend to grab most of the headlines, but the truth is that this state is full of tradition rich programs and down in Bowling Green the Western Kentucky program is one of the best in the country. The Hilltoppers basketball program has the 16th most victories in the history of the NCAA and has attained the 8th best winning percentage in NCAA history. The Street & Smith’s publication recently ranked the “100 Greatest Programs”, and WKU came in at #31.

In that rich history the Louisville program and the Western program share a common thread. In 1944 Bernard “Peck” Hickman was hired as the Cardinals head coach. Hickman was a star guard for WKU and Coach Ed Diddle during his college playing days. He was the first coach to lead our Cardinals to a championship on a national level winning the NAIB Championship in 1948. He never had a losing season in his 23 years as the Cardinals head man. The Cardinals and the Hilltoppers have played 77 times in their history and the battles have been pretty consistent through the years with WKU leading the series 39-38. The Cardinals have won the last five straight in the series including 79-53 last season at the Yum Center.

“We play them because of the amount of respect we have for their tradition and their basketball abilities. Why start a series with say a Memphis or Cincinnati when you’ve got a great school right down the road in state with unbelievable tradition. Why not do that? That is what I have always believed in and Western Kentucky is one of the great traditions in college basketball.”-Coach Pitino

The Hilltoppers are 5-4 this season winning four of their last five games. The key to their recent winning streak is their improvement in taking care of the ball. They have just 17 turnovers in their last two games after averaging 16.7 in their first seven. They are averaging 68.4 points a game shooting 43.2 percent from the field, 35 percent from three, and 68 percent free throws. Defensively they are allowing 68.8 points and their opponents are shooting 42.3 percent. T.J. Price is averaging 17.1 points and 5.9 rebounds to lead the Hilltoppers. Chris Harrison Docks is averaging 12 points, George Fant is averaging 11.2 points and 7.1 rebounds, and Trency Jackson is averaging 9.9 points. Western Kentucky hasn’t played a ranked team this season and the Cardinals will be the highest ranked team to come to Diddle Arena since #2 Georgetown on December 4th 1982.

“They are a pattern team and a great shooting team. They were down 18 at Ole Miss, a very good team this year, and came back and won the game because they shoot the three great. They like to control the tempo of the game, they are playing great basketball right now. The young man Price, their small forward, is playing outstanding. They shoot the ball real well and they have Fant inside, another senior – great size. So we have our work cut out for us getting ready for this first road game.”- Coach Pitino

WKU 2014-15 OVERALL RANKINGS Offense | Defense

2014-15 Kenpom Rankings
Overall- #128
Defense Adjustment Efficiency
-100.2 ranks 165th
Offense Adjustment Efficiency
-103.2 ranks 97th
-Per Kenpom game prediction he has the Cardinals winning the game 73-61 based on his indexes.

Our Cardinals are averaging 77.1 points a game and they are shooting 44 percent from the floor, 27 percent from three, and 60 percent from the free-throw line. Defensively they are allowing 52.9 points and their opponents are shooting 34.1 percent from the field. Montrezl Harrell has been leading the way averaging 17 points and 10.4 rebounds. He has had five straight double-double outings. Terry Rozier is averaging 15.1 points and 5.6 rebounds, Chris Jones is averaging 12.9 points, and Wayne Blackshear is averaging 12.8 points and 6.2 rebounds. The Cardinals had a dismal performance in their last game and will need to come out from the start of this one playing inspired basketball if they want to take care of WKU on Saturday afternoon.

“More than anything we had some work to do to get ready for the road game. What we like to do right before conference play is go into a hostile environment, last year it was Kentucky and now it’s Western Kentucky, to get ready for conference play. It is going to be a very difficult game, they have a senior team, they are playing great basketball right now.”-Coach Pitino

This is Louisville’s first true road game of the season, and Diddle arena will be rocking. Those guys are going to be playing like starving dogs wanting to pull off what would be one of the biggest upsets at Diddle Arena in their history. Coach Pitino has made it very clear that he wanted to send a message to his guys this week. I really hope that message was received loud and clear because this one concerns me a bit. If our guys don’t come out and match the tenacity and intensity on Saturday they will get beat. If they can come out and take care of their business in what will be a very hostile environment the experience will be valuable heading into the conference slate.

The Beak Prediction:
Louisville 80 WKU 69

Our Cardinals will be looking to move to 7-0 and get their 32nd consecutive win over a non-conference opponent at the Yum Center when they host FIU on Friday night at 7:00pm. This series was started when Richard Pitino was the Panthers head coach. These teams have played three times with Louisville winning all three games. The Cardinals beat the Panthers last season 85-56 in Miami.

Coach Pitino FIU Press Conference

Leading FIU on the offensive side of the floor is senior G Dennis Mavin who is averaging 16.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists. Junior C Adrian Diaz is averaging 13.8 points and 7.5 rebounds a game. He is 39th in the nation in blocked shots with 2.5 a game. G Dominique Williams is averaging 7.8 points and 4 rebounds a game.

FIU has been strong on the defensive side of the ball through their first eight games, ranking 26th nationally in scoring defense (55.0 ppg), eighth in three-point field goal percentage defense (.215) and 90th nationally in
steals (9.0 per game). In their last game FIU limited Kennesaw State to 26.9 percent from the field, forced 15 turnovers and held a +10 margin in rebounding.

FIU 2014-15 OVERALL RANKINGS Offense | Defense
-POINTS PER GAME
62.1
279th
OVERALL
-REBOUNDS PER GAME
36.6
128th
OVERALL
-ASSISTS PER GAME
12.9
166th
OVERALL
-FIELD GOAL PCT
.425
200th
OVERALL
-POINTS ALLOWED
56.1
25th
OVERALL
-D REBOUNDS PER GAME
26.0
88th
OVERALL
-BLOCKS PER GAME
4.3
107th
OVERALL
-STEALS PER GAME
7.5
90th
OVERALL

2014-15 Kenpom Rankings
Overall- #243
Defense Adjustment Efficiency
-98.8 ranks 144th
Offense Adjustment Efficiency
-93.7 ranks 299th
-Per Kenpom game prediction he has the Cardinals winning the game 73-50 based on his indexes.

The Cardinals are a 30 point favorite tonight so don’t expect this one to be very exciting. It will be another one of those tune-up games against other competition and will be good for working on some things offensively while getting our bench some valuable playing time. Montrezl Harrell will be going for his 19th game in a row scoring in double figures and currently leads the ACC in that category. I would like to see Chris Jones have a better night and think that would give him a confidence boost.

Tonight is the last game before the end of classes on December 8th. This is typically the time of year coach Pitino gets these guys in the gym and really starts ironing out issues on both defense and offense getting them prepared for the conference run. Hopefully he can get Shaqquan back during this time as well. Things are really going to start picking up and the level of competition will also. But that won’t be the case tonight. Cards will cruise to 7-0…

The Beak Prediction:
Louisville 80 FIU 49

The first real test of the college basketball season will happen Tuesday night when Louisville plays Ohio State in the 16th annual Big Ten/ACC Challenge. This is a game that both teams have had circled on their schedules since finding out back in the summer they would play. These teams first met in 1953 and last played in 2003. Louisville beat Ohio State in that last game 72-64 in Overtime at Value City Arena in Columbus. The all-time record in this series is tied at 4-4. The ACC–Big Ten Challenge started back in 1999 and the ACC leads the challenge 10-3. It has ended in a tie 3 times.

Ohio State coach Thad Matta has said that early in his career he wanted to emulate Rick Pitino. And Matta has become a pretty good coach in his own right. His team’s play an aggressive style on defense and like to get up and down the floor on offense. Like Louisville Ohio State lost some very good players last season and even lost their version of Russdiculous in Aaron Craft, the Buckeyes’ defensive menace.

Ohio State has a solid group of seniors returning and some talented new comers who will be hungry to make a mends for their first round exit in the NCAA Tourney back in March.
They are led in the front-court by sophomore F Marc Loving (12ppg, 1.4rpg, 1.0 stl) seniors C Amir Williams (8.3ppg, 5.3rpg, 1.3blks) C Trey McDonald (5.2ppg, 5.8rpg, 0.8blks) and Temple transfer F Anthony Lee (6.6ppg, 2.4rpg, 0.2stl). They also have two solid freshmen in F Keita Bates-Diop (4.6ppg, 2.0rpg, 0.6blk) and F Jae’Sean Tate (6.2ppg, 5.0rpg, 1.0blk).
They are led in the back-court by Louisville native freshman SG D’Angelo Russell (18.0ppg, 4.0rpg, 5.4apg) seniors F/G Sam Thompson (12ppg, 4.6rpg, 2.2apg) and G Shannon Scott (9.2ppg, 3.4rpg, 10.4apg). They also get quality minutes from talented freshman G Kam Williams (6.8ppg, 0.2rpg, 0.6apg).

Ohio State is averaging 87 points a game, shooting 56% from the field, 41% from the 3 point line, and 71% from the free throw line. They average 36 rebounds a game, 9 steals per game, 5 blocks per game, and an impressive 19 assist per game. They are averaging 12 turnovers a game while their opponents are averaging 18.8.

2014-15 Kenpom Rankings
Overall- #14
Defense Adjustment Efficiency
-89.6 ranks 17th
Offense Adjustment Efficiency
-106.7 ranks 39th
-Per Kenpom game prediction he has the Cardinals winning the game 72-63 based on his indexes.

This one has all the makings for one of the best games of the early season in college basketball. Ohio State has been better on the offensive side of the ball #2 in the nation in FG%, #10 in the nation in points per game and has really been sharing the ball well currently ranked #6 in the nation in assist. The Cardinals have been much better on the defensive side of the ball #3 in the nation in points allowed, #7 in the nation in steals per game and have been rebounding the ball better currently ranked #1 in the nation in that category. Both of these teams have solid back-courts and are solid on the wings. The big difference is Montrezl Harrell. Ohio State doesn’t have that one star player on their roster that they can turn to when they need a lift.

It will be interesting to see how much production we get from Wayne Blackshear. Will he step up in the first big time game of the season? The Cardinals will also need a solid outing from freshman Onuaku and hopefully Mango will be ready to go from that ankle injury. Ohio State has been getting solid production out of their bench while ours went scoreless in the last game. We will have to get points from the bench Tuesday night.

Ultimately Terry Rozier, Chris Jones and Montrezl will be the difference makers. I also think the home court advantage will be important. This is Ohio State’s first trip away from Columbus. Neither of these teams has played a tough schedule to this point but I do give the slight edge to the Cardinals. This one is going to be a dog fight and will come down to a few key possessions. Our Cardinals will have to come out ready to go and I think they will be up for the challenge.

The Beak Prediction:
Louisville 75 Ohio State 68

The Cardinal basketball team will be back in action on Friday night at the KFC Yum Center taking on the Marshall Thundering Herd in the (GLOBAL SPORTS SHOWCASE) or as I like to call it the Global Sports Sacrifice. This will be the second game in a five team round robin style event. The Cards will play two more games next week in the Showcase. The Cards and the Herd have played 15 times dating back to 1941. The Cardinals have won six in a row and lead the series 10-5. The last game between these teams was back on Nov. 27, 2010 with the Cards winning 80-66. The Cards will be looking to start the young season 3-0 and coach Pitino will edge closer to that 700th win only needing 3 more.


Marshall hired one of their own Dan D’Antoni to take over the head coaching job in the off-season. Dan D’Antoni who is the brother of NBA coach Mike D’Antoni has a coaching style that employs furious defense that he hopes leads to turnovers and quick baskets. They will look to speed the Cardinals up and not let them find any type of rhythm. They do return some decent players and the will start two sophomores, two seniors and a Junior. Sophomore Ryan Taylor appears to be their best player and he is leading the team with 18.0 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 3.7 APG. Senior Cheikh Sane is their big man and he is leading the team in rebounds averaging a solid 10.7 a game. Sophomore Austin Loop who averages 12 PPG and Junior DeVince Boykins who averages 7PPG are also solid for the Herd. Through three game the Herd is averaging 75.7 points per game 75.7 while allowing opponents 55.7 points per game. They are averaging 43.3 rebounds per game, 7.3 steals per game, and 5.3 blocks per game. They are averaging 16.0 turnovers per game while their opponents are averaging 16.3.

The Herd 2014-15 OVERALL RANKINGS
Offense | Defense
-POINTS PER GAME
75.7
110th
OVERALL
-REBOUNDS PER GAME
43.3
59th
OVERALL
-ASSISTS PER GAME
18.7
33rd
OVERALL
-FIELD GOAL PCT
.465
114th
OVERALL

2014-15 Kenpom Rankings
Overall- #202
Defense Adjustment Efficiency
-97.4 ranks 141st
Offense Adjustment Efficiency
-95.0 ranks 261st
-Per Kenpom game prediction he has the Cardinals winning the game 83-60 based on his indexes.

I do think that this game will be a slight upgrade in competition, but the Herd will still be over-matched in every area of the game. They are a team that plays hard and they do a good job on the glass. They are also a team that shares the ball and can put the ball in the basket. I do think the Cardinals will get a better workout on the defensive side of the ball and in their rebounding game. I will be watching to see if Onuaku continues to progress and can repeat his impressive performance from the last game. Will also be watching to see if the Cardinals can get another one of the freshman to start to emerge. These types of games are very helpful in getting a lot of guys in to get some court time.

I jokingly call the Global Sports Challenge the Sports Sacrifice because these smaller teams are really no match for the Louisville’s of the college basketball world, but for their efforts these smaller teams are able to take home a big paycheck and due to the exempt factor of this event the Cardinals are able to get in some more game-time to help them prepare for the season. These games aren’t very fun to watch but they do serve a purpose big picture.

The Beak Prediction
Louisville 80 Marshall 57

The Cardinals will play their first real home game of the 2014-15 College Basketball season on Monday night against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks. JSU is out of the Ohio Valley conference and this will be the very first meeting between these teams on the hardwood. JSU lost their season opener to the Marshall Thundering Herd, 74-55 and are 0-1 heading into the Yum Center. Gametime is at 7 and can be seen on ESPN3.

JSU coach James Green‘s teams have been known more for their hard-nosed defense than their offensive prowess. They finished dead last in scoring offense last season in the OVC but finished 1st in scoring defense. They aren’t a very big team so their smaller speedy guys try to put pressure on the ball to create turnovers. They had 8 steals and forced 10 turnovers against Marshall. They shot just 37% in the loss.

They do return some veteran players in seniors G Darion Rackley, G Avery Moore, F/C Jamal Hunter, and F D.J. Felder. Rackley and Moore are each chasing the 1,000-point scoring mark in their Division I careers. Rackley has scored 893 in his four-year JSU career, while Moore has scored 842 in his career. He had 6 made three point shots against Marshall. Hunter blocked 45 shots in his junior season. His 45 blocks were the sixth-most in a season by a Gamecock in the program’s Division I history and ranks him ninth on the school’s Division I career blocks list. And Felder had the only double-double on the team last year against Auburn.
In total there are eight returning JSU players that have started a combined 159 games at the Division I level.

JSU’s 2014-15 OVERALL RANKINGS
Offense | Defense
-POINTS PER GAME
55.0
272nd
OVERALL
-REBOUNDS PER GAME
35.0
180th
OVERALL
-ASSISTS PER GAME
11.0
201st
OVERALL
-FIELD GOAL PCT
.370
246th
OVERALL

JSU’s 2014-15 Kenpom Rankings
Overall- #291
Defense Adjustment Efficiency
-107.6 ranks 306th
Offense Adjustment Efficiency
– 98.6 ranks #267th
-Per Kenpom game prediction he has the Cardinals winning the game 87-59 based on his indexes.

This is just one of those early out of conference games that won’t be very competitive. It’s good that there are some of these easier games on the schedule to give the Cardinals the chance to work on some stuff and get prepared for the much tougher games down the road. Our Cardinals showed in their win on Friday night that they are again going to be a highly efficient team offensively that draws a lot of fouls and a defensive team that puts a ton of pressure on the ball. As long as everybody stays healthy this will be a recipe for a very successful season. The Cards will cruise in their College Basketball season home opener.

The Beak Prediction
Louisville 89 Jacksonville State 50

It was back on December 20th of 2012 when Rick Pitino faced his son Richard Pitino for the first time. That was the 17th time in NCAA Division I history that a father coached against his son. That was a pretty cool evening at the KFC Yum Center and it was great to be a part of that moment. Friday will mark the 18th time that a father and son will do battle in the NCAA and it will be the Pitino’s who will once again take center stage. The dads are 15-2 in these games, but the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree and this time Richard Pitino will have a team to compete.

Coach Richard Pitino has done an excellent job at creating a winning culture in Minnesota during his short time there. In his first year as their head coach they won 25 games and the NIT Championship. Returning from that team are four starters and eight letter-winners, including two of the team’s top leading scorers in Andre Hollins (13.6 ppg) and DeAndre Mathieu (12.0 ppg). In total, Minnesota returns 63 percent of its scoring and 71 percent of its rebounding from a season ago. Four newcomers will potentially make their Gopher debut in Puerto Rico in junior college transfer Carlos Morris, a projected starter, along with freshmen Bakary Konate, Josh Martin and Nate Mason.

Minnesota’s starting back-court is comprised of a pair of senior guards in Andre Hollins and DeAndre Mathieu. Hollins ranks 17th in career scoring at Minnesota with 1,309 points while Mathieu led the team with 4.2 assist per game good for fourth in the Big Ten. Both of these guys received all Big Ten honorable mentions after last season.

They also have a very solid front-court that is led by seniors Elliot Eliason and Maurice Walker. These guys share time at the center position with Eliason leading the team in rebounds (244) and blocks (72) last season. Walker is also a solid big man and averaged about 1 block and 5 rebounds last season. They will start a junior Joey King in the forward spot and he averaged about 8 points, 3 blocks last season.

-Minnesota 2013-14 OVERALL RANKINGS Offense | Defense
-POINTS PER GAME
71.2
171st
OVERALL
-REBOUNDS PER GAME
34.5
193rd
OVERALL
-ASSISTS PER GAME
13.7
94th
OVERALL
-FIELD GOAL PCT
.445
157th
OVERALL

2014-15 Kenpom Rankings
Overall- #37
Defense Adjustment Efficiency
-95.7 ranks 59th
Offense Adjustment Efficiency
-110.5 ranks #27
-Per Kenpom game prediction he has the Cardinals winning the game 76-67 based on his indexes.

This is the toughest opening game that the Cardinals have played in a very long time. Usually these early games are that of the warm-up variety, but that won’t be the case on Friday evening. Richard Pitino is one of the best up and coming coaches in the country and he has had the privilege of learning from two of the best coaches in America. He has taken coaching qualities and philosophy from both Rick and Billy’s benches and put his own spin on it. His system features an aggressive style of pressing defense and an up-tempo style on offense. His kids play hard for him and he gets the most out of each of them and knows how to utilize their skills for the benefit of the team. Richard Pitino can flat out coach folks and it will be fun to watch him and dad go head to head.

I give Minnesota the edge at the center position. They will play two very solid veterans against some not so seasoned Louisville bigs. This will be a good measuring stick for Mango and nothing will come easy for him on Friday. I will also be interested to see how much time Onuaku gets in the first game and will Rick give any time to the Big Egyptian.
We pretty much have the advantage at every other spot but Chris, Terry, Wayne, and Montrezl will also be tested all game long. Like I mentioned above those Minnesota guys give it their all for Richard and they each know what their roles are. This is just a great first test for the Cardinals.

Other than the basketball part of this game I keep thinking of how cool it is to see a father and son in this position. As a father I can only imagine the pride and gratitude that Coach Rick Pitino feels when he looks over and sees his son across from him and carrying on the Pitino coaching legacy. Here is his son who grew up watching game tapes on his father’s knee, standing on the sidelines while his father ran practices, listening to the late-night strategy sessions and coaching beside his father for years as an assistant now starring in this moment with him. Friday night is going to be a great night of college basketball but to the two men leading their teams in battle it is going to mean much more. Cardinal fans and Minnesota fans are both lucky to share in this moment.

The Beak Prediction
Louisville 80 Minnesota 72

This week we have flown our flags a little higher and wore our gear with that little extra boost of pride. This is the Cards and the Cats and it just doesn’t get any bigger in college basketball. This year’s Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament will feature the 2012 and 2013 National Champions, and will be a rubber match of sorts between the last two champs of college basketball. The game will also feature programs with very different approaches to winning. The college basketball world will be watching to see if the team of grizzled veterans or the team of super freshman phenoms will rule the day.