While the teams on the bubble in the race for a spot in the tournament must really be beginning to feel the heat, the teams who are guaranteed a spot are thinking about getting into a groove and building some momentum ahead of the playoffs. We are now down to the final couple of weeks of the college basketball regular season, with the conference tournaments to follow, which is usually the time when teams looking to step it up a gear and build some confidence for the battles to come. Getting into a losing streak at this point can mean trouble, as it doesn’t leave much time to pull out of a nosedive and get back on track. The Louisville Cardinals find themselves in that unenviable position and will be looking to try and get their season back on track when they host the Syracuse Orange on Wednesday night. This is certainly a game that you would expect the Cardinals to win, but that’s easier said than done when the rot is setting in. Louisville is a 9-point home favorite, with the point total for this one set at 146. Let’s see how the College Basketball betting odds will be for the Syracuse vs Louisville.
Syracuse at Louisville Game Preview & Betting Odds
- When: Wednesday, February 19 at 7 PM EST
- Where: KFC Yum! Center, Louisville
- TV: ESPN
- NCAAB Odds: Syracuse Orange +9 / Total 145
Why bet on the Syracuse Orange
We mentioned the teams on the bubble a little earlier in this piece, and that is where you will find the Syracuse Orange. Over the years, they have made something of a habit of sneaking into the tournament, and while they have some decent signature wins this year, there should be some real cause for concern for them. They are 14-11 SU right now and are on a run where they have lost 4 of their last 5. They are heading in the wrong direction, but a win in Louisville tonight might help them in their tournament cause. This will be their first and only meeting with the Cardinals this season. They are 6-12 SU against them in their last 18 and have covered the spread just 5 times in the last 17 meetings with the Cardinals.
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 74.08
- Field Goal %: 43.63
- Three Point %: 33.81
- Free Throw %: 74.1
- Total Rebounds: 35.56
Defense
- Total Score: 68.8
- Field Goal %: 40.43
- Three Point %: 31.33
- Free Throw %: 73.18
- Total Rebounds: 36.76
Why bet on the Louisville Cardinals
The ACC is once again proving to be one of the toughest conferences in college basketball, which is a good thing for the Cardinals in terms of winning the regular season conference crown. Louisville is coming into this one on the heels of back to back losses to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Florida Seminoles, but they are still in the hunt at the top of the ACC with a 12-3 record. Still, they will not want to see this minor losing skid turn into something problematic, which is why a win here is basically a must. One the positive side of things, the Cardinals are 14-1 SU at home this season, although just 7-7-1 ATS in those games. On the downside, at least from a betting perspective, they are 1-7-1 in their last 9 games played in the month of February.
Team Stats
Offense- Total Score: 74.81
- Field Goal %: 45.59
- Three Point %: 38.3
- Free Throw %: 73.29
- Total Rebounds: 39
Defense
- Total Score: 63.92
- Field Goal %: 38.46
- Three Point %: 30.21
- Free Throw %: 72.41
- Total Rebounds: 32.42
Syracuse vs Louisville Betting Trends
- Syracuse are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Syracuse’s last 5 games.
- Syracuse are 1-4 SU in their last 5 games.
- Syracuse are 5-12 ATS in their last 17 games against Louisville.
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Louisville’s last 7 games.
- Louisville are 10-2 SU in their last 12 games.
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Louisville’s last 5 games against Syracuse.
- Louisville are 5-0 SU in their last 5 games at home.
Syracuse vs Louisville Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction
You do get the feeling that Louisville are going to break out of this slump sooner rather than later, and I think that tonight might well be the night. I am looking for them to win big and cover the spread in this one.
Syracuse Orange 71 Louisville Cardinals 83
