Sports Betting – Cardinals Look For Revenge Against Longtime Rivals

The No. 16 Louisville Cardinals will be looking for revenge when they take on the Cincinnati Bearcats at the Fifth Third Arena on Wednesday night, nearly a year after these Big East rivals eliminated them from the conference tournament. Cardinals head coach Rick Pitino called that game one of the ugliest that his team had ever played in that arena, and it will take putting together consecutive wins for the first time this month to avoid another defeat. Here’s a sports betting preview:

Louisville Cardinals @ Cincinnati Bearcats
Wednesday February 16, 2011 – 7:00 PM ET
Fifth Third Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio

College Basketball Betting Odds: Louisville +2, Cincinnati -2

The Bearcats have been just as inconsistent lately, losing three of their last four to fall in to the middle of the pack in the Big East standings. A 59-57 loss to the St. John’s Red Storm made it consecutive home losses for Cincinnati, a streak that the Cardinals would be glad to extend.

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Sports Betting: What Louisville Needs To Do To Win

The Cardinals were eliminated from last year’s Big East tournament by Cincinnati, a 69-66 loss in which they gave up 28 offensive rebounds. Louisville has split its last four games, and its no surprise that both losses came away from home, especially considering that a double-overtime win at Connecticut is one of just two road wins they have clinched in the New Year. The Cardinals have had their most success when they have moved the ball well, something coach Pitino has emphasized the team hasn’t done enough of recently. Louisville ranks third in the country in assists with an average of 18 per game, and will need to bring that playmaking ability out on the road.

Sports Betting: What Cincinnati Needs To Do To Win

The Bearcats are coming off of a tough loss to St. John’s in which they kept the Red Storm without a field goal for the final 8:58 of play but still failed to close the gap enough to get the victory. It will be interesting to see if that prompts the coaching staff to give more playing time to power forward Yancy Gates, who played only one minute in the second half and seemed upset about that on the bench. Sean Kilpatrick led the team in scoring with 15 points, but didn’t get enough support from his teammates in the loss. A better start in this game will go a long way to helping them get a better result.

Sports Betting: Outlook & Pick

No matter where these teams are seeded they always play one another tough. Despite the fact that Louisville has the much better record in Big East play, they hold just a 4-3 series lead since 2005, a testament to just how well these teams match up. However, the Bearcats have struggled late in the season in each of the past two years with a combined 3-9 record in the last six games, and they should be ripe for the Cardinals to earn their revenge.

Sports Betting Pick: Louisville +2