Product Details

• Created: March 1st, 2016
• sports betting

NCAAB Preview and Prediction | Georgia Tech @ Louisville

By Don Phillips

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (17-12, 7-9) at Louisville Cardinals (22-7, 11-5)

8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, March 01, 2016
KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Kentucky (22,000)

Television: ACC Network (WAVE-TVin Louisville) – Justin Kutcher (play-by-play); Mike Gminski (analyst)
Radio: WHAS (840 AM) Paul Rogers (play-by-play); Bob Valvano (analyst)
Sat Radio: Sirius channel 81, XM 81

Series History:
Louisville leads 17-13 (9-4 in Louisville, 4-4 in Atlanta, 4-5 neutral)
Last Meeting: UL 75, Georgia Tech 71(Jan. 23, 2016 at Atlanta, Ga.)

Officials: Roger Ayers, William Humes, Clarence Armstrong

Louisville will play its final home game tonight before March Madness begins against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Senior Day. Georgia Tech (17-12, 7-9 ACC) has won four straight and five of its last six, including a 75-71 victory over Boston College on Feb. 27 as Marcus Georges-Hunt totaled 23 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals while making all seven of his field goal attempts. It is the first time that the Yellow Jackets have won four straight ACC games since the 2001-02 season.

Georges-Hunt, a senior forward, is Georgia Tech’s top scorer and ranks sixth in the ACC (17.1ppg, 3.3 rpg, 84 assists). Senior forward Charles Mitchell ranks fourth in the ACC in rebounding (9.8 rpg, 28th in NCAA). Georgia Tech is 27th nationally in fewest turnovers per game (10.1) and is 28th nationally in rebounding margin (+6.9). Georgia Tech is 72th in the RPI and 56th in the Sagarin Ratings through Feb. 28.

Louisville has a 17-13 series advantage over Georgia Tech, winning the last four matchups. Earlier this season, UofL recovered from an eight-point, second-half deficit to win 75-71 in Atlanta (1-23-16) as Anas Mahmoud (now out with an ankle sprain) scored a career-high 15 points and grabbed four rebounds. Louisville and Georgia Tech were founding members of the Metro Conference in 1975, but the Yellow Jackets left for the ACC in 1978.

Louisville has played well at both ends of the floor this season. Defensively through games as of Feb. 28, the Cardinals are 10th in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.388), seventh in scoring defense (61.2 points), 20th in rebound margin (+7.6), 35th in blocked shots (5.0) and 25th in turnover margin (+2.8).

UofL is third in the ACC in steals (7.1) and rebounding margin while leading the league in scoring margin and field goal percentage defense. Louisville has a differential of 9.1 percent between its shooting percentage and its opponents. Twelve of UofL’s 22 victories have been by 20 or more points and 15 have been by double figure margins. UofL is second in the nation in Ken Pomeroy’s adjusted defensive statistics through Feb. 28.

Offensively, the Cardinals are 26th in the nation in field goal percentage (.479) and are second in the nation in scoring margin (+15.4 points). UofL has surpassed the 50 percent mark in 14 games. The Cardinals have shot above 60 percent from the field for a half in eight of the last 20 games, including a high of 69.6 percent vs. Saint Louis.

Louisville scored 80 or more points in its first four games for the second straight season. This year is the first that the Cards have shot above 50 percent from the field in its first five games of the season since at least 1971-72 (when complete records are available).

Louisville is 20th in the nation in rebounding margin with a +7.6 advantage and is 20th in offensive rebounds per game (13.3). The Cards have had a double-digit rebounding margin in nine of its games. Louisville has more than doubled its opponent’s rebound total in five games (vs. North Florida, St. Francis, Saint Louis, Grand Canyon and Kennesaw St.) after having done that only five times in the previous 1,000 games.

The Cards have registered a +30 or better rebounding advantage in a single game in each of the past two years after finishing with a 53-22 margin vs. North Florida and 55-20 vs. Grand Canyon. Last season, UofL outrebounded Jacksonville State 60-26 on Nov. 17, 2014. Eight different UofL players average three or more rebounds. UofL has been outrebounded by its opponent just seven times this season, including a 27-25 deficit on the boards at Miami on Feb. 27.

Go to the best offshore sportbook for up to the minute live lines for this and all NCAA Basketball action.

Selection: Louisville