Syracuse is flying high right now, having gone from a team that looked like it was on the wrong side of the bubble, to a team that can probably punch its ticket to the dance with another win or two. The Orange have won five in a row and eight of its last nine but will face its stiffest test yet when they travel to Louisville to play the Cardinals.
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HOW THE SYRACUSE ORANGE CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Michael Gbinije is the best player on Syracuse and if you look at his performance over the last nine it's easy to see why the Orange have gone 8-1. Gbinije has shot 54.6 percent from the floor and 44.7 percent behind the three point line during the streak and helped Cuse win five of those eight games by double digits.
In the four losses the Orange suffered to open conference play, Gbinije shot just 29.3 percent from the floor and 16.7 percent from downtown. His play is the biggest barometer to determine the success the Orange will have against Louisville.
Aside from Gbinije, the biggest factor for Syracuse's turnaround is its defense. The Orange have held all but two of those nine opponents to 66 points or less and started this streak by shutting Boston College completely down, only allowing 40 points. If Syracuse can keep this defensive success up against Louisville, it has a great chance to win its sixth straight game.
HOW THE LOUISVILLE CARDINALS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
The current No. 13 ranked Louisville Cardinals may fall totally out of the Top 25 on Monday after losses against Duke and Notre Dame last week. It's hard to say that the decision not to play in the postseason hasn't affected this team now. Louisville was 39th in the country, averaging 79 points per game prior to playing Duke and Notre Dame, but couldn't buy a bucket from the field in either of those games.
The Cardinals shot 42.4 percent from the floor against the Blue Devils and 39.7 percent from the floor against the Irish and must shoot better on Wednesday to avoid a third straight defeat.
Damion Lee is the leading scorer for the Cardinals but didn't shoot well in either of the losses. Lee and Trey Lewis are called upon to do the scoring for Louisville and if one of those guys isn't getting it done, it's obvious. Lee was just 7-for-28 from the floor against Duke and Notre Dame and will have to rediscover his scoring touch to get Louisville a win here.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
During Syracuse's run the Orange have been a windfall for bettors, with a 7-2 mark ATS in that timeframe and an outright win as a double digit underdog. This stretch has also seen slightly more unders than overs, by an amount of five to four.
Louisville has been slumping against the spread, limping into this basketball game with a record of 2-5 ATS over its last seven. Thanks to Louisville's pressure defense and shooting woes, the under has cashed in five consecutive games for the Cardinals.
Even though this game is in Louisville, it's hard not to like Syracuse. The Orange have been playing well and the Cardinals are struggling. However, that means this is the perfect time to bet on Louisville. If you examine the teams Syracuse has beat recently, only the wins against Duke and Notre Dame are particularly impressive and the Orange beat Notre Dame without ND's best player.
Go against the grain and Uncle Mo and back the win hungry Cardinals.
Louisville 74, Syracuse 68
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