Pitino Previews Louisville's Big Monday Showdown at UConn
January 27, 2008 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 27, 2008
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Louisville men's basketball head coach Rick Pitino met with members of the media Sunday at the Yum! Center to preview Monday's BIG EAST showdown at Connecticut. The Cardinals and Huskies will tip off at 7 p.m. ET at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn., and the game will be televised nationally by ESPN.
The Cards, who have won nine of their last 11 games, enter Monday's game at 15-5 overall and in second place in the BIG EAST with a 5-2 conference mark following Saturday's 67-57 home win over St. John's. Sophomore center Derrick Caracter led the Cards with 17 points off the bench, while sophomore guard Jerry Smith added 15 points, including 3-of-5 shooting on three-pointers.
UConn, 14-5 overall and 4-3 in BIG EAST play, enters the game following an impressive 68-63 road win at No. 7 Indiana on Saturday in Bloomington. Craig Austrie led the Huskies with 15 points as all five UConn starters scored in double-figures. UConn leads the nation in blocked shots with 8.7 per game and is 11th in the field goal defense allowing its opponents only 37.5 percent shooting from the field.
GAME FACTS - Louisville (15-5, 5-2) at Connecticut (14-5, 4-3)
Date: Monday, Jan. 28
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Site: XL Center (16,293), Hartford, Conn. (formerly Harford Civic Center)
TV: ESPN will televise the game with Sean McDonough (play-by-play), Bill Raftery and Jay Bilas (analysts)
Radio: WKRD (790 AM, 101.7 FM; joined in progress on 840 AM) with Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Bob Valvano (analyst)
SIRIUS: SIRIUS Satellite Radio channel 114
Series History: U of L trails 3-2 all-time (1-1 in Louisville, 1-0 in Hartford, 0-1 in Storrs, 0-1 neutral)
Last Meeting: U of L 76, UConn 69 (Feb. 25, 2007 at Hartford, Conn.)
National Rankings: U of L is unranked but the Cards are among the teams receiving votes in this week's Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls; UConn is unranked.
Next U of L Game: Feb. 2 vs. Rutgers in Freedom Hall, 3 p.m. ET (ESPN Plus / WHAS-TV in Louisville)
