NFL Tickets
The Louisville Cardinals hit the road to face the Pittsburgh Panthers in an ACC matchup on Sunday (4:00 ET, CBS).
No. 10 Louisville has had a week to think about its 63-52 loss to the Duke Blue Devils last Saturday. Head coach Rick Pitino and his team had hoped to make a splash by having highly-ranked Duke at home, but it was the Blue Devils who made the statement in that game.
Despite losing two of its last three games, Louisville is still 15-3 overall and 3-2 in conference play and very much in the mix for the ACC title. Sophomore guard Terry Rozier continues to lead the Cardinals in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per game. All-American candidate Montrezl Harrell averages 14.9 points and a team-high 9.2 rebounds per game. Chris Jones averages 12.4 points, while Wayne Blackshear delivers 12.2 points per outing.
Pittsburgh, under head coach Jamie Dixon, is 13-6 overall and 3-3 in the league. Much like their Sunday opponent, Pittsburgh’s last game was a loss at home to Duke (79-65 on Monday). That was Pittsburgh’s first game against a ranked opponent since a loss to San Diego State in November.
Sophomore forward Michael Young leads the Panthers in scoring, averaging 13.5 points, and rebounding, averaging 7.6 boards per contest. The only other Pitt player scoring in double figures is sophomore forward Jamel Artis, who scores 10.5 points per game.
This game appears to favor Louisville because of the Cardinals’ depth and outstanding guard play. The full-court pressure that Pitino employs will give Pittsburgh fits. Pittsburgh should keep it close for a while, but look for the Cardinals to wear them down in the second half.
Final score prediction: Louisville 74, Pittsburgh 62
Tim Letcher is a contributing writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TimLetcher , on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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