Monday, February 25, 2013
Why Louisville can't be overlooked
By Luke Lapinski
Louisville currently comes in at No. 10 in the latest AP Top 25 poll. The Cardinals are obviously a very strong club, but they don't really have any overwhelming victories against elite opponents on their resume just yet. As a result, there hasn't been a ton of buzz about them winning the National Title lately -- at least compared to some of the other top teams. And that could be a major oversight.
As John Gasaway points out, Rick Pitino's club is peaking at just the right time. Louisville has won three in a row and six of its last seven. And the one loss in there was the five-overtime thriller against Notre Dame. Teams that are hot in December have nice regular seasons; teams that are hot in February and March flirt with championships.
It's not just the fact that the Cardinals are on a roll right now that makes them dangerous though. They boast some of the best defensive play in the nation, holding opponents to just 58.5 points per game and ranking No. 1 in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency on KenPom.com. And the offense is noticeably better than it was when they made a push to the Final Four last year. Remember, this is the team that was ranked No. 2 in the preseason Top 25. If they're being overlooked now, they probably don't mind at all.
