Big Monday kicks off with the second ranked Syracuse Orange traveling to take on No. 23 Louisville. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start and it will be televised nationally on ESPN. Currently the odds have Syracuse favored by 3 points with the total sitting at 139 points. There's a small card today in college basketball, so the lines are expected to be extremely close.
Free Analysis: Syracuse has been one of the best teams in the country this season, winning 23 of their 24 games to date with the only hiccup coming on the road at Notre Dame without the use of their big center Fab Melo. Louisville has also had a remarkable season to date, eclipsing the 20-win mark again under Rick Pitino. The Orange still have a two-game lead in the Big East standings with a 12-1 record in conference while Louisville comes into tonight's game still sitting at 8-4 in the league. They've had some tough losses this year including Kentucky, Georgetown, Marquette and Notre Dame. While Syracuse has been hot for the majority of the season, the Cardinals have been surging, too, rallying from nine points down midway through the second half Saturday at West Virginia for a 77-74 win, their sixth straight. Orange coach Jim Boeheim knows that Louisville could pose some problems for his squad tonight. "They are playing great," he said. "I think they are playing the best in the league right now. It will be a tremendous challenge to go down there on Monday night." Now, Boeheim has always been one to credit his opponents well but Louisville really might be playing the best out of any of the Big East teams right now. During their six game winning streak, they've averaged more than 75 points per game while hitting the boards as well. This matchup will be an interesting one to watch as Louisville has flat out owned Syracuse, winning the last seven meetings. However, you could argue that this is one of Boeheim's deepest Syracuse teams. The Orange have seven players scoring seven points or more while continuing their trademark 2-3 matchup zone, a look that Louisville has used at times this year. The zone has been a staple under Boeheim and if his team can rebound the basketball well, they're going to be in any game they play, no matter who they play. The key is being able to box out and hope that their opponent doesn't hit 90-percent from 3-point range, which is what the zone forces teams to do. Louisville's Kyle Kuric has done as good a job as anyone knocking down triples this season. Louisville's senior forward is 9-for-13 beyond the arc against the Orange in the past two meetings, averaging 22.5 points. Look out there. Syracuse senior Scoop Jardine, has nearly matched Kuric in the last two contests, scoring 20 in each meeting. Both are important keys to their team tonight.
Free Pick: I know Louisville has dominated Syracuse in this matchup recently, winning the last seven games overall, but this Syracuse team seems to be on a completely new level than past Boeheim teams. I like that this line is low at -3, but we have to remember that the Orange are playing on the road, so on a neutral court they might be favored by a little bit more. Louisville has been a tough team at home this season, winning 15 of their 17 games at home this season. On the other hand, Syracuse has been a very good road team, winning on six of their seven games. I'm going to be taking the Orange in this game tonight because of their tenacity on defense. The Cardinals would have to hit from downtown quite often to take advantage of possessions.
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