A pair of 16-1 teams will take the floor at the KFC Yum! Center on Saturday afternoon as No. 6 Syracuse tries to take the top spot in the college hoops rankings away from No. 1 Louisville.
The Orange picked up the SU win in both of their games against the Cardinals last season, winning 52-51 as a 3-point road favorite and 58-49 as an 8.5-point home favorite. Both of those contests turned into UNDER results for college hoops bettors.
Supporters of the Orange have watched them go 16-1 and 8-4-1 ATS on the year, while the Cardinals are at 16-1 and 10-6-1 ATS. In totals betting, the Cardinals are 7-7, while the Orange have a 5-7 mark.
View Syracuse vs Louisville Odds and Stats.
Betting Line:
Louisville opened as 7.5-point favorites in this college basketball tilt over at Sportsbook but the number may be on the move. Watch for the Sportsbook total as well at Sportsbook.
Power Rankings / Prediction:
The Power Rankings at Odds Shark show No. 4-rated Syracuse taking on the No. 5-rated Cardinals in this contest. The scores prediction computer here indicates a possible 89-88 win for the Orange on Saturday.
How They Match Up:
Rating these schools in several key categories is important for handicappers and Louisville has the nation's No. 34-rated offensive output, at 76.9 PPG. The visiting Orange defense ranks No. 23 allowing on average 57.8 PPG. The Cardinals FG% has averaged 45.7% so far, more than the Orange marksmen have achieved on the year, 45.6% per game.
Defensively, Syracuse features the nation's No. 24-rated defense on the road, allowing 60.2 points per game. Louisville, meanwhile, comes in at No. 49 nationally in scoring at home.
Syracuse was a 72-61 Sportsbook in their most recent outing at home against Villanova. They failed to cover the 14-point spread as favorites. Syracuse got 22 points from C.J. Fair en route to a 72-61 victory over Villanova on Saturday at Carrier Dome.
Louisville was a 73-58 Sportsbook in their most recent outing on the road against Connecticut. They covered the 6.5-point spread as favorites. The Cardinals grabbed a 73-58 win over the Huskies on Monday, behind a 23-point effort from Russ Smith at Gampel Pavilion.
Syracuse Orange Trends:
When playing on Saturday are 7-3
Before playing Cincinnati are 8-2
After playing Villanova are 6-4
After a win are 9-1
Louisville Cardinals Trends:
When playing on Saturday are 6-4
Before playing Villanova are 9-1
After playing Connecticut are 7-3
After a win are 10-0
A few Orange at Cardinals trends to consider:
Syracuse is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Syracuse's last 6 games on the road
Syracuse is 2-4-1 ATS in its last 7 games on the road
Syracuse is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Louisville
Louisville is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Louisville is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Louisville is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Syracuse
Louisville is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games when playing Syracuse
Next up:
Syracuse home to Cincinnati, Monday, January 21
Louisville at Villanova, Tuesday, January 22
