Pitt vs Louisville: Game Info, Odds, Three Storylines

The Pitt Panthers hope to improve their standing in the race for an ACC title.

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers welcome Lousiville to the Petersen Events Center this weekend, hoping to tie the ACC's longest winning streak at four victories in a row. The Panthers are right in the thick of the race for the ACC's regular season title and will hope to avoid a massive let down to the cellar-dwelling Cardinals at home. 

Game Info

Opponent: Louisville (3-20 overall, 1-11 ACC)
Time: 7:00 PM EST
Location: Petersen Events Center; Pittsburgh Pennsylvania
Broadcast: ACCN and 93.7 The Fan

Odds

The Panthers are 16-point favorites over the Cardinals. Pitt is -2100 on the moneyline and Louisville is +1000. The point total line has been set at 139.5. 

Three Storylines

Improving Cardinals

The last time we saw Louisville, it was on the way to making unfortunate history as one of the worst ACC and high major basketball teams to ever take the floor, rivaling Pitt's infamous 2017-18 team that went 0-18 in conference play. But the Cardinals avoided joining that all-time bad Panthers team by notching a conference win over Georgia Tech last week. They are still as poor statistically a team as you'll find in Division I, but Pitt head coach Jeff Capel sees an improving squad. 

"You talk about energy - I think the job that [Louisville head coach] Kenny Payne has done has been really difficult and it's hard to see, but those guys are still playing hard and they're still fighting," Capel said. "You can do that when you haven't won or seen the success, to me that shows they're coaching staff and players are still in the fight."

Watching the Boards

Pitt's kryptonite has been the defensive glass this season. When they are able to hold their own on the boards, they always put themselves in a good position to win. When they fail to finish off defensive possessions with rebounds, they make it all that much harder to be competitive and earn the victory. 

When these two teams first met back in January, Louisville was able to keep the opening minutes close by gathering misses putting them back for easy second chance points. Sydney Curry, Jae'Lyn Withers and Emmanuel Okorafor are all outstanding rebounders and it'll take a team effort to keep them off the glass. 

Keep Momentum Going

A loss to these Cardinals might not be fatal for these Panthers but it would be embarrassing. The Florida State loss is still a steady force holding the Panthers' mightly successful 2023 campaign back from its full potential. It's not enough to just win this game but Pitt has to win big as they did down in Louisville. 

The Panthers' next three games come against these Cardinals, Florida State and Boston College - three teams in the bottom six of the ACC standings. If Pitt wants to contend for a league title, they have a golden opportunity to improve on their standing as the league's second place squad. Beating up on the bottom of the league over the next week and a half might be enough to lift them over Clemson if the Tigers stumble. 

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