BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: LOUISVILLE @ CONNECTICUT

January 28, 2008


The XL Center in Hartford is the site of this week's Big Monday contest as Louisville travels to Connecticut to take on the Huskies in a pivotal Big East Conference Showdown. Both teams were in action on Saturday afternoon as Louisville eased past St. John's and a short-handed UConn squad pulled off a big win on the road against Indiana.

Here are the local medial previews and stories on tonight's game:


No Rest for the Weary (New London Day)
Huskies Game Carries Weight for Cards (Louiville Courier-Journal)
Thabeet Blossoming on the Block (Courier-Journal)
U of L Faces Surging UConn (Kentucky.com)
Dyson, Wiggins Wont Play Against Cards (Courier-Journal)
Little Time to Savor Win (Hartfod Courant)
Calhoun Proud of 'Special' Win (Rep-Am)
Underage Huskies Found With Alcohol (Connecticut Post)

Connecticut has been on a roll since they lost at the XL Center to Providence College 11 days ago. Since that game they rolled past Marquette and picked up road wins over Cincinnati and now Indiana. The win over Indiana was particularly impressive as it handed Kelvin Sampson his first loss at home since becomming the Hoosiers head coach. The win also came without Jerome Dyson and Doug Wiggins, suspended prior to the game by UConn coach Jim Calhoun. Late Thursday night the pair was cited by UConn police for possession of alcohol by minors. They remain suspended indefinitely and will not be with the team for tonight's game.

Louisville sits at 5-2 in conference play and has won six of their last seven games overall. The lone loss was on the road to Seton Hall on January 19th. Louisville saw a 14-pt 2nd half lead evaporate in that one. Since then, they have cruised past both South Florida and St. John's and now look to make a statement in the conference that they want to be the challenger of Georgetown's lead in the Big East. So far, anyone who looks like they are positioning themselves to join the Hoyas as separating from the conference pack have been pulled back to the pack, sometimes (see Pitt) in the unlikeliest of ways.

Without Dyson and Wiggins, the Huskies become quite thin in the backcourt. AJ Price remains the starting point guard and is joined in the backcourt by Craig Austrie. Their only backcourt reserve is freshman Donnell Beverly, who was not seeing much time prior to the suspensions.

Louisville does not have much depth in the backcourt either and relies on three guards to play most of their minutes with Edgar Sosa, Jerry Smith and Andre McGee. coach Rick Pitino does have a couple options with freshman Preston Knowles and walk-on Will Scott to go deeper, but often times they are used when Pitino seems exasperated with his other guards.

UConn's depth has been hit throughout the season with the transfer of Marcus Johnson earlier and now the indefinite suspenions of Dyson, their leading scorer, and Wiggins. Stanley Robinson now becomes an even more vital player and must find consistent production from the wing with a ton of potential. The inside combination of strongman Jeff Adrien and 7'3 Hasheem Thabeet is usually enough to intimidate anyone, but the Cardinals bring a talented frontline themselves with seniors David Padgett and Juan Palacios along with sophomores Derrick Caracter and Earl Clark. On the wing, Terrence Williams is the one that makes the Cards go with his all-around play.

We have seen teams band together short-handed and get a short-term lift to overcome the adversity. However, it is often tough to maintain that level. With such a quick turnaround from their trip to Indiana for a tough win and coming home to face a Louisville team that is slowly putting things together, it looks to be a tall order for the Huskies. They still have talent and they still have decent numbers on the roster, but Louisville will be coming with something to prove.

Connecticut is a slight home favorite in the early lines, but look for Louisville to be just a little too deep and to continue their defensive improvement to get a tight win on the road.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Louisville 67 Connecticut 64

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: ST. JOHN'S @ LOUISVILLE

January 26, 2008


Hopefully for Norm Roberts and his young St. John's Redstrom, Wednesday night will be the low water mark of the season. The Redstorm, playing their first Big East game at Madison Square Garden, were pounded by Pittsburgh 81-57 in front of a crowd that barely filled 25% of the season.

Louisville has been playing well and bounced back from a tough loss at Seton Hall with a dominating win over South Florida on the road. The Cardinals seem to have their injury woes behind them and are moving forward. Not quite in a stright-line, but progress is evident.

Prior to the Pitt debacle, St. John's played West Virginia tough in Morgantown and there seemed to be some hope. Against the Panthers the only bright spot was Anthony Mason's 29-pt performance. The rest of the team combined for 28 as a colelctive group.

Now the 'Storm travels to Freedom Hall and you do feel a little but of pity towards the young group. Louisville looks to have a clear advantage at every position on the floor and if you went with a 2nd five from Louisville against the SJU top 5, you would be hard pressed to find more than one SJU advantage.

But, the play the games for a reason. St. John's does have some athletes that can get up and down the floor and defend with vigor. If they find anyone willing to consistently knock down a few shots, they would improve greatly. The best candidate seems to be sophomore Larry Wright, but he seems to have falled out of favor with the SJU staff.

Louisville needs to play to their strengths, get the ball in deep to their post players and take advantage of some excellent passers for players at non-guard positions. Louisville has a mix of experience and as much raw talent as anyone in the conference, but they also need to show a maturation in managing the game with consistent effort and shot selection. There are times when they can be downright dominating defensively and others when they allow poor play to snowball. At home against the young Redstorm, I look for a dominating defensive performance and will likely get it.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Louisville 73 St. John's 52

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: LOUISVILLE @ SOUTH FLORIDA

January 23, 2008


Louisville looks to rebound on the road following their 92-82 setback at Seton Hall on Saturday night. South Florida will look to snap a 5-game losing streak and re-enter the picture for the race for New York City and a spot in the Big East Tournament.

Here are the local media previews and articles on tonight's game:


Slump Just Another Thing to Overcome (St. Petersburg Times)
Gransberry is Indeed South Florida's #1 (Tampa Tribune)
Time For Cards to Just Move On (Courier-Journal)

The Bulls road woes are well documented as USF has yet to win a road game in the Big East in two+ years. However, their home success has not been much more as they have just five wins on their home floor since coming to the Big East. I highly doubt number six will come tonight when a motivated Louisville squad comes south.

Rick Pitino is unlikely to allow any mid-winter vacationing on the trip south. The Cardinals need to get better and in a hurry. Each time it looks like the Cardinals are starting to turn a corner, they pull a U-Turn. Just days after blitzing Marquette, 71-51, and continuing a stretch of excellent defense, the Cards give up 92 points and fail to get any defensive stops when they needed them in a 10-pt loss to Seton Hall.

With Juan Palacios and David Padgett back in the line-up, Louisville is as deep and talented as anyone in the conference. Coach Pitino is still trying to find consistent leadership out of his guards where Edgar Sosa, Jerry Smith and Andre McGee all seem more comfortable as under-sized shooting guards than being true point guards. With talented forwards and big men such as Derrick Caracter, Earl Clark, Terrence Williams, Padgett and Palacios, the guards should be concentrating on allowing them to do the scoring and find ways to get them the ball in position to score. However, that is not always the case.

The Bulls really do not match up well with Louisville. Kentrell Gransberry is their biggest weapon, but Louisville is so deep and, can be, very active inside that Gransberry will have his hands full on both ends of the court. Dominique Jones is a dynamic scorer, but the Cards can lock him down if they give a consistent effort on defense. The rest of the Bulls are too inconsistent to count too much on anyone stepping up for a big game.

On a night when home dominance will be tested in each contest, I expect Louisville to come out with some fire and a little more skip in their hop. As a 7.5-pt favorite, the Cards could be flying high again.

NBE Blogeer Prediction: Louisville 73 South Florida 63

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: MARQUETTE @ LOUISVILLE

January 17, 2008


The highlight of tonight's schedule brings together two former rivals from Conference USA as Marquette travels to Freedom Hall to take on the Louisville Cardinals.

After dropping their conference opener at home against Cincinnati, Louisville has won their last two Big East games, beating West Virginia at home and getting the win at Rutgers last weekend.

Marquette is one of the many tied atop the conference at 3-1 and looks to make their break from the pack. The Golden Eagles are coming off a 92-66 thumping of Notre Dame and also owns home wins over Seton Hall and Providence. Their lone conference defeat came at West Virginia.


Here are the local media previews of tonight's game:

Marquette Will Try to Steal One (Louisville Courier-Journal)
Marquette Men's Basketball Preview (post-Crescent)
Eagles Can Make Move in Big East (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)
Looking at louisville (Journal-Sentinel)
cards Eyeing 'Big-Time' Win Over Marquette (Kentucky.com)


We are waiting for someone to make a statement in the Big East and show they are serious about winning this conference. Marquette has just that opportunity tonight when they travel to face Louisville in a Big East conference game.

For the Cards, if they hope to compete for the conference crown, these are they games they must win, on their home floor against other good teams. We are still waiting for Louisville to show us how good they are, but with David Padgett and Juan Palacios back in the line-up, the Cards could be hitting their stride soon.

The strength of the Marquette squad is obviously in their guards. With Dominic James, Jerel McNeal and Wesley Mathews the Marquette guard trio is among the best in the country. It doesn't stop there, Maurice Acker and David Cubillan are very capable back-ups each adding a distinct role to the rotation.

At the forward spot, Lazar Hayward and Dan Fitzgerald are far from proto-type Big East power forwards. However, they each create match-up problems for most opponents with their inside-out talents. That probably will not be as much of an advantage against a team like Louisville who also has a pair of versatile big forwards in Juan Palacios and Earl Clark to match-up with Hayward and Fitzgerald. The Cardinals are still trying to sort out their rotation with the talent they possess, so they have not been as consistent as they should since the return of Palacios and David Padgett from injuries. Padgett teams up with Derrick Caracter in the post for coach Rick Pitino and Marquette counters with their two-headed center tandem of Dwight Burke and Ousmane Barro. On paper, Louisville should be able to take full advantage in the paint with their depth and talent.

That leaves the Louiville guards. The trio of Edgar Sosa, Jerry Smith and Andre McGee will have their hands full with Marquette. Terrence Williams should do well against Wesley Mathews and find his opportunities to shine, but coach Pitino will need his guards to be at their best in terms of decision making and shot selection. Louisville has some clear advantages in the game and it will be up to their guards to take take advantage of the opportunities.

I expect the Cards to learn from other teams that have played Marquette and use several different defenses, but mostly find themselves in a zone. The zone will cut down on the MU dribble penetration and force them to make perimeter shots on the road, a tough task.

This promises to be a very good game. Marquette will try to steal this one with pressure on the ball from their guards, but Louisville, a 2.5-pt home favorite, knows the importance of winning at home in the conference, especially after letting the game with Cincinnati get away.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Louisville 66 Marquette 64

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BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: WEST VIRGINIA @ LOUISVILLE

January 9, 2008



Rick Pitino and his Louisville Cardinals look to earn their first Big East win of 2008 when they host an old nemesis, Bob Huggins, and his West Virginia Mountaineers at Freedom Hall tonight.

Here are the local media previews of tonight's game:


Could Be Another UofL-WVU Classic (Kentucky.com)
WVU Men;s Welcome Challenge of Facing Louisville (Times West Virginian)
WVU Needs Short Memory (Charleston Gazette)
It's Huggins vs. Pitino...Again (SI.com)
Cards Hope They are Over Hump (Louisville Courier-Journal)


Louisville is a home favorite tonight, but it is slight, just 2.5 points over the visiting Mountaineers. West Virginia hit the road once already in the Big East and lost at Notre Dame, suffering their worst offensive showing of the season in the process. Louisville was surprised by Cincinnati, at home, in their Big East opener on New Year's Day.

West Virginia rebounded from their loss to Notre Dame over the weekend by cruising past Marquette at home. The Mountaineers got back to the effecient offense that makes them very difficult to play and Bob Huggins has been mixing in several different defenses to incorporate his strategies while meeting the strengths of his players.

For Rick Pitino, things have not been easy. They have already been through injuries with seniors Juan Palacios and David Padgett and frustrations with a talented, but inconsistent sophomore class. Palacios had his most productive game since returning to the line-up from a knee injury in the Cards' 89-75 win over Kentucky last weekend. Padgett had a quality showing in his first game back, in the loss to Cincinnati, and will continue to get stronger. Both players add experience and an element of comfort for Pitino, they also offer options if sophomores Derrick Caracter and Earl Clark are not playing up to their massive potentials. Thus far, it can be hit or miss with the talented forwards.

As frustrated as Pitino has been with the play of his forwards, it has been sophomore point guard Edgar Sosa that has been the most puzzling situation. Sosa is naturally a scoring guard from the tough CHSAA league in New York City. Pitino is trying to get his sophomore guard to be more of a true point guard, but all too often Sosa's natural instinct to hunt out his own offensive opportunities take over. This has led to Sosa spending a lot of time on the bench, but his talent is definitely needed on the floor.

One player coach Pitino has no worries about in terms of effort is Terrence Williams, the athletically gifted 6'6 junior forward. Few have the athletic ability of Williams int he college game and he can hurt an opponent in many ways. The effort is always there, sometimes he can be a bit out of control and needs to allow the game to come to him. With the veteran presence of Palacios and Padgett in the line-up more, it should begin to work that way for Williams.

The backcourt is completed by Andre McGee and Jerry Smith, a pair of quality guards that are capable of scoring in a hurry, especially Smith, one of the best 3-pt shooters in the league. Will Scott adds a deep threat and Terrence Farley rounds out the frontcourt rotation.

For West Virginia, they have an experienced point guard in Darris Nichols who understands the importance of running the team and putting players in position to score. One of the things coach Huggins has tried to get Nichols to do more is be aggressive and show it is ok to make mistakes being aggressive. Nichols, a senior, can hit the perimeter shot and makes very few mistakes with the ball, almost ensuring WVU has a chance to score on each and every possession.

Nichols' backcourt mate is Alex Ruoff, a solid ballhandler, fundamentally sound defender and excellent 3-pt shooter. Joe Alexander is their go-to forward who plays within the system and uses lenght and ahtleticism to produce points and rebounds. The pair of juniors have progressed into all-league type of players in the Big East.

Maybe the west Virginia x-factor is DaSean Butler, a do-everyting 6'7 sophomore forward. Butler can shoot, pass, defend or just plain score. He is the type of player that excels in any system or any type of game. Again, he is one that can be too unselfish, but when WVU needs a play, he is typically the one to make it, on either side of the ball.

West Virginia's glaring weakness is inside presence. Jamie Smalligan is 7-foot in height, but is more prone to be out by the 3-pt line on offense. He will battle and hustle, but his game is not really suited for the physical Big East. A pair of forwards, Wellington Smith and John Flowers, are quickly developing into quality Big East reserves, capable of having good games against anyone and Jou Mazzulla adds quality depth to the backcourt.

Louisville got a much needed confidence boost with their win over Kentucky. No, Kentucky is not the Kentucky of old, or even the Lentucky of Tubby Smith circa 2006-2007, but winning on your rivals home floor with a dominating 2nd half can give you a lift. They need to carry the intensity back to the court tonight and defend the perimeter with their athleticism and hit the boards with their size. We are starting to see Louisville with the personnell they expected to have this year, maybe now we will start seeing the Louisville team we expected.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Louisville 74 West Virginai 69

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