Men's Basketball Faces League Leader Cincinnati on Saturday
February 21, 2014 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 21, 2014
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville men's basketball team begins its rough stretch to conclude the regular season on Saturday, facing league leader and top-10 rival Cincinnati in Fifth Third Arena at noon ET.
The Feb. 22 game featuring the top two teams in the AAC will air nationally on CBS, with Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Greg Anthony (analyst) calling the action. Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Doug Ormay (analyst) will announce the game on WKRD 790 AM. The contest also is available on SIRIUS channel 119 and XM channel 192.
Louisville leads the all-time series 55-43 over Cincinnati, the Cardinals' most-played opponent. Cincinnati hung on for the victory in the first meeting this season, posting a 69-66 win on Jan. 30 in the KFC Yum! Center. Louisville fought back from an eight-point halftime deficit to lead with less than three minutes remaining before Cincinnati scored six of the final eight points of the game. Cincinnati's Sean Kilpatrick scored a game-high 28 points, while Montrezl Harrell led the Cardinals with 18 points.
Heading into Saturday's matchup, Louisville is carrying a five-game winning streak after beating USF 80-54 on Tuesday at home. The Cardinals, who improved to 22-4 overall, 11-2 in league play, are 11th in the Associated Press poll and fifth in the USA Today Coaches poll.
During its five-game streak, Louisville is outscoring its opponents 85.6-59.6, while shooting 52.2 percent from the field. The Cardinals are averaging just more than eight turnovers per game and have a +5.8 rebounding margin.
Against the Bulls, Russ Smith had a team-high 19 along with five rebounds and two steals. Terry Rozier came off the bench and added 13 points and five rebounds. USF's Victor Rudd finished with a game-best 27 points.
For the season, Smith is pacing the Cardinals with 17.8 points and has team highs of 51 3-pointers, 117 assists - one more than his total from a season ago - and 47 steals. Collectively, Louisville ranks in the top-10 nationally in scoring margin (No. 1, +21.5), turnover margin (No. 1, +6.9), steals per game (No. 3, 9.6), total steals (No. 4, 249), and assist-turnover ratio (No. 10, 1.51).
Cincinnati has won consecutive games after dropping its lone league game to SMU on Feb. 8. The Bearcats, who are 24-3 overall, including a league-best 13-1, are seventh in the latest AP poll and ninth in the USA Today Coaches poll.
In their last contest, the Bearcats posted a 77-49 decision over UCF. Kilpatrick led all scorers with 23 behind six 3-pointers. Justin Jackson was the team's only other double-digit scorer, totaling 10 points in addition to seven rebounds and four blocks. The Knights, who had a 40-37 rebounding advantage, were led by Isaiah Sykes' 13 points and 10 rebounds. Cincinnati turned over the ball just six times in comparison to UCF's 16.
Kilpatrick leads the team with 20.2 points and has connected on 75 3-pointers. He needs just 10 more points to eclipse the 2,000-point plateau. Jackson is averaging 11.4 points and seven rebounds and has 85 blocks, which ranks seventh in the country. His 3.15 blocks per game rank 14th nationally. Jackson also leads the team with 47 steals.
Statistically, the Bearcats rank in the top 10 in the country in scoring defense (No. 4, 57.4) and turnover margin (No. 10, +4.0).
The Bearcats are under the direction of eighth-year coach Mick Cronin, who's guided the program to a 159-103 record. Cincinnati was picked to finish fourth in the conference following last season's 22-12 season that ended with a first-round loss in the NCAA Tournament. Kilpatrick was named a preseason first team all-AAC selection.
GAME FACTS - Louisville at Cincinnati
Date: Saturday, Feb. 22
Time: Noon ET
Site: Fifth Third Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio (13,176)
TV: CBS will broadcast the game, with Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Greg Anthony (analyst) calling the action.
Radio: WKRD 790 AM will broadcast the game, with Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Doug Ormay (analyst) calling the action. The broadcast also is available on SIRIUS channel 119 and XM channel 192.
Series History: UofL leads the all-time series 55-43 (31-16 in Louisville, 21-24 in Cincinnati, 3-3 neutral).
Next UofL Game: Thursday, Feb. 27 vs. Temple, KFC Yum! Center, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
