2012 Big East Tournament Title Game Louisville vs Cincinnati Odds and Predictions – Big East Championship Vegas Lines

2012 Big East Tournament Championship Game Odds and Predictions on Louisville vs Cincinnati – 2012 Big East Title Game Free Picks and Preview: The Big East is widely regarded as the deepest and toughest conference in college basketball, and Saturday’s championship game supports the theory. Despite having four teams ranked in the top 25, the Big East tournament title will be decided between unranked Louisville and unranked Cincinnati. The Cardinals upset ranked opponents Marquette and Notre Dame to reach the finals, while the Bearcats took out ranked opponents Georgetown and Syracuse to guarantee that a surprise team will take the tournament crown. In the battle of underdogs, the Cardinals are 2 ½-point favorites.

Saturday’s game is a rematch of an earlier meeting that the Bearcats won 60-56 in Cincinnati. Bearcats guard Cashmere Wright was the star of the game, hitting six 3-pointers and scoring 22 points in the win. Meanwhile, Louisville’s top-two perimeter scorers were shooting blanks all game. Chris Smith and Kyle Kuric went a combined 0-for-15 from the field, including missing all eight of their attempts from behind the arc. In an otherwise tight game, the huge disparity in 3-point shot was the ultimate difference.

Of course, Louisville has reason to believe it can reverse the trend in Saturday’s title game. Kuric is one of several players that are finally healthy after dealing with nagging injuries all season. It is no coincidence that the Cardinals have suddenly gotten hot at the same time they have reached full strength. The team the Bearcats face Saturday won’t be the same team that they defeated February 23.

Both teams have had issues scoring points at times, but both compensate with physical, stingy defenses. As a result, the battle in the trenches could be crucial. Louisville center Gorgui Dieng and forward Chane Behanan are both double-double threats, and they will go toe to toe with Cincinnati forward Yancy Gates. Louisville has been the better rebounding team on the year, and it will be up to Gates to control the boards for the Bearcats. In a game that figures to be close and low scoring, second-chance points could make the difference..

The X-factor in the game could be Louisville point guard Peyton Siva. With his speed and court vision, Siva is dangerous both as a scorer and a distributor. When he is playing at his best, the Louisville offense reaches another level. Not surprisingly, he has been on his game throughout the Big East tournament. In the Cardinals’ semifinal win over Notre Dame, he just missed a triple-double. Siva finished with 13 points, eight rebounds and nine assists, and if he has a similar game Saturday, the Bearcats could struggle to keep pace with the Louisville offense.

While Cincinnati and Louisville aren’t the marquee teams that were expected to compete for the conference tournament title, they should still produce an entertaining game. Given the style of play of both teams, it is hard to imagine either side winning in blowout fashion. That being said, a slight edge has to go the Cardinals. When fully healthy at the start of the year, Louisville climbed as high as fourth in the country. The Cardinals are finally getting back to that point, and it has been showing throughout the Big East tournament.

Prediction: Louisville Cardinals (-2 ½) Cover the Spread

BIG EAST CHAMPIONSHIP GAME VEGAS ODDS: Favorite: Louisville -2 Total: Over/Under 124

Stop by NSAwins.com daily throughout the NCAA Basketball season for daily Free College Basketball Picks and Vegas College Basketball Lines plus daily updated Men’s 2012 National Championship Futures Odds.