Louisville coach Rick Pitino doesn’t throw around the word brilliant too often. But he did following the Cardinals dismantling of a good Florida State team Wednesday. The Cardinals appear to be hitting their stride and the poor Yellow Jackets are next in line.
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HOW THE LOUISVILLE CARDINALS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Louisville’s 84-65 win over Florida State on Wednesday felt like a bigger blowout, and it was the kind of game that prompts a lot of talk about offense. And why not, the Cardinals put up their highest point total in the calendar year. They scored 42 points in the paint, had 14 second-chance points and shot nearly 48 percent as a team. Led by Quentin Snider’s 20 points, four different players reached double-figures.
But for coach Pitino and his players, the best part of the win was their defense. “That was a brilliant performance by our guys,” Pitino gushed after holding FSU to 27 first-half points and forcing 16 turnovers that led to 23 points. Louisville came close to holding its fifth consecutive ACC opponent under 40 percent shooting.
Chinanu Onuaku has played a key role in helping Louisville become one of the nation’s top defensive teams and his rise as a scorer has led to even bigger things. He’s averaging 8.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks for the nation’s leader in scoring and field goal percentage defense.
Louisville’s full-court press exhausted FSU and the frenetic pressure factored into the Noles making just nine of 21 from the free-throw line. The Cardinals make their opponents look frazzled and worn out during the most critical stretches. That’s exactly what they want.
HOW THE GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
If the Jackets can perform the way they did in their upset of then No. 4 Virginia two weeks ago, this team has the potential to beat anyone. Unfortunately we haven’t seen enough of that style of basketball and too much of what was on display last Saturday when the Jackets stumbled to one of their worst defeats under coach Brian Gregory.
Georgia Tech imploded in its loss to Virginia Tech, blowing a 10-point lead late in the second half and scoring just three points in its final 12 possessions. The Jackets went 1 of 6 from the floor and committed four turnovers in that game-deciding span.
It’s critical for the Jackets to hold onto the basketball against Louisville’s relentless pressure and make the Cardinals work on defense. The lack of a true point guard and ball-handler hurts and Louisville will attempt to make the Jackets pay.
Tech will lean heavily on leading scorer Marcus Georges-Hunt, who scored 27 in the Virginia Tech game and averages 15.4 for the year. Along with Charles Mitchell, the two must be active on the boards to limit Louisville’s second chance opportunities for a realistic chance of pulling the upset.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Adam Smith entered his last game leading the ACC in three-pointers made per game in league contests and the Yellow Jackets paced the league in three-point percentage. But Georgia Tech struggled from distance against the Hokies, eliminating a vital part of their game. It won’t be easy to connect against Louisville’s ferocious defenders but the Jackets aren’t going to back away from one of their strengths.
Louisville had what coach Pitino called a “great performance” against a dangerous Florida State team where everything clicked. The Cardinals used deadly shooting and their trademark relentless pressure to wear down the Noles and walk away with a rather convincing W. Tech doesn’t match up well against Louisville and the Cardinals are rolling after being upset by Clemson on Jan. 10.
Louisville 73, Georgia Tech 65
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