BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: LOUISVILLE @ DEPAUL

February 12, 2008


The Louisville Cardinals look to follow-up their stirring win in an electric atmosphere over Georgetown by earning a road win at DePaul this evening. The Blue Demons needed a big 2nd half rally on Saturday to defeat the lowly South Florida Bulls.

Here are the pregame stories and previews from local media outlets:

DePaul's Will Walker Coming into His Own (Chicago Tribune)
Pitino Says Cards Ae at Best So Far (Louisville Courier-Journal)
Walker's Stats Running Higher (Daily Herald)
Demons Seek Upset over Louisville (Sun-Times)

Another Conference-USA rivalry is renewed tonight in Chicago as DePaul hosts Louisville in a Big East conference match-up. The Blue Demons have a tough road ahead in the Big East schedule, so finding a way to come out with victories at home is very important. DePaul avoided disaster on Saturday, rallying from an 11-point halftime defecit to beat South Florida. Tonight they will hope to catch Louisville still on a high from their Primetime Saturday nigh win over Georgetown in 'White-out' conditions at Freedom Hall.

The Blue Demons have the athletic ability and size to match-up with Louisville, but they do not have the depth upfront, so they need to keep Mac Koshwal and Wesley Green on the floor as much as possible. They could go smaller and try to match-up Karron Clarke with forwards Earl Clark and Juan Palacios, but that will hurt them on the boards. Dar Tucker on the wing is a similar player to Terrence Williams but has the disadvantage in terms of experience. The guard situations are rather similar as well with each head coach trying to get his point guards to take on the prefered role. It looks like Edgar Sosa for Louisville and Cliff Clinkscales for DePaul are coming around more consistently.

Louisville is a 7.5-pt favorite, but be aware of a letdown tonight. Rick Pitino might be shuttling players in and out to find the combination that is ready to play tonight while DePaul will look to jump on the Cards early. If Louisville depends on the three-point shot, look for the Blue Demons to build an early lead...however, Louisville will right the ship and come from behind for the win.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Louisville 69 DePaul 63