1 week out...not to overlook UCF and Temple... but I am .


-Louisville is currently rolling the lesser teams in the conference that we are keeping in the game.

-Louisville has 8 days to prepare for the game. UC has 2 games to play yet before focusing on Louisville.

-UC is undermanned .

Whats our chances of winning at Yum ?

Good news if we take care of business against UCF and Temple , Louisville cant overtake UC at 8-0 and 6-1 .

We are tough and Mick will have them ready for a battle . Go Cats!

I posted this in another thread:

They have been dominating people and we have been scraping by. I definitely expect us to give them a hell of a game. Russ Smith and co. Are just as prone to turnin it over as they are at creating them. Have to capitalize on that. We will have to make shots against their zone. We will have to rebound the ball better than they do. And we can't give Hancock or Blackshear open looks.

Do that and we have a chance to win, but with 8 days for them to prepare it will be tough.

Always hated that arrangement where 1 team has a week to prepare and the other does not.
But we have 3-4 days to prepare for Ville, we play @Temple on Sunday and @Ville on Thursday.
I do recall a 2 day turnaround back in CUSA, UC played at home on a Thursday and played
@DePaul on a Saturday and DePaul had the entire week off. DePaul spanked by 20, UC had
no legs for that game.

UL looks like a world beater since that Memphis game.

I think we are way outgunned. But we will see how it goes.

Still 3 games away, I don't take much stock in Louisville blowing people out.
I'm well aware they're a better offensive team than we are, but so is most everybody else we played. If we can handle the pressure, we'll be alright. I think we can cut off their driving ability, the problem is going to be getting out on people on the outside. They're a very good passing team, they could give the zone fits at times. The good news, Cronin is familiar enough with Pitino to have his kids jumping passing lanes and trying to turn them over. I don't know if we win or not, but I think we'll make it interesting.

I think two things can work in our favor:

1- UC has been largely playing "to the level" of the competition. So I think if the pattern continues, the level of our game will elevate when we go into YUM!

2- Basketball is different than FB. Having 8 days between games is NOT an advantage as it would be in FB. Providing we don't sustain a crippling injury, I'd rather have a couple of easier games ahead of a major challenge like Louisville than sitting idle. Playing is the best way to sharpen skills and prepare. Now, if you have a succession of "big" games you get worn down. But I think Mick will use UCF and Temple to sharpen the skills of the Bearcats. And, assuming we can carry those two games, we will have momentum.

I think UC will make Louisville struggle a ton on offense. The question is, will we be able to score enough?

To me, basketball is too hard to predict three games out. Imagine what OSU and Wisconsin fans were projecting for wins and losses before their respective losing streaks in the B10. When UC shoots poorly, they can make a home game with UCF an adventure and a road game at Temple a nail biter. Either loss would be very damaging to the RPI and could change the upward trajectory of this UC team before they arrive in Louisville.

(01-23-2014 12:10 PM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  UL looks like a world beater since that Memphis game.

I think we are way outgunned. But we will see how it goes.

I say UC gets spanked, but my sports predictions have been notoriously wrong.

UofL is still the reigning champs. We've struggled beating them at their place. They have more talent and we are thin down low and getting thinner. I'm very happy with where UC is given their roster. 95 times out of 100 this UC team would lose at YUM. We'll see if we can eke out one of those 5.

I don't see winning the game @UofL but I don't think it's a lock for UofL either

(01-23-2014 06:42 PM)Billy_Bearcat Wrote:  UofL is still the reigning champs. We've struggled beating them at their place. They have more talent and we are thin down low and getting thinner. I'm very happy with where UC is given their roster. 95 times out of 100 this UC team would lose at YUM. We'll see if we can eke out one of those 5.

95 out of 100? Sorry... no way that is close to right. Teams are way closer than that.

(01-23-2014 09:54 PM)bearcatmark Wrote:  

(01-23-2014 06:42 PM)Billy_Bearcat Wrote:  UofL is still the reigning champs. We've struggled beating them at their place. They have more talent and we are thin down low and getting thinner. I'm very happy with where UC is given their roster. 95 times out of 100 this UC team would lose at YUM. We'll see if we can eke out one of those 5.

95 out of 100? Sorry... no way that is close to right. Teams are way closer than that.

Mick vs. Rick (the former Boss): 4 wins 5 losses
2-2 Home
1-2 Away
1-1 Neutral (BE Tournament)

What does this mean? He has one less loss than wins against slick Rick. We actually beat duh Ville at their place during Mick's second UC season. It could go either way but I would not be surprised if we escape with a close win....

Our defense gives us a chance against anyone.

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For the Louisville game at UC on feb 22....

Anyone thinking of going and don't have tickets yet... I just got 4 and I'm in the back row in 218. Could have had row 28 but at that point I'd rather get row 31 and have full reign of the top aisle for standing. Anyways , this should be sold out soon

(01-25-2014 09:02 AM)Bearcat2012 Wrote:  Anyone thinking of going and don't have tickets yet... I just got 4 and I'm in the back row in 218. Could have had row 28 but at that point I'd rather get row 31 and have full reign of the top aisle for standing. Anyways , this should be sold out soon

I'm thinking about it but haven't looked at tickets yet. I should get on that.

Cincy and UL both top 15 defenses, UL is top 50 offense. Just don't see UC scoring enough against a top 15 defense in their building.

With what it appears to be without JJ now , I'm just hoping they avoid a beat down . Take your lump move on . We are a 1 1/2 games up on Louisville right now , so we still will have the lead.

This team at full strength can beat any body any where. With little margin for error and down 2 key bodies we just have to survive for the next week or two.

(01-28-2014 09:04 AM)Bearcat2012 Wrote:  With what it appears to be without JJ now , I'm just hoping they avoid a beat down . Take your lump move on . We are a 1 1/2 games up on Louisville right now , so we still will have the lead.

This team at full strength can beat any body any where. With little margin for error and down 2 key bodies we just have to survive for the next week or two.

Yes. I think UC will play with great passion and energy but Mick should keep JJ and Lawrence out until they're completely ready to go. For the first time in a long time a key late January matchup isn't a do or die litmus test for getting to the NCAA. I like the schedule with UL, UCONN and Memphis all coming to 5th/3rd in the next 40 days. Late season wins over ranked teams build momentum and polish the tourney resume.

With a healthy JJ - I would expect a very close game and honestly think we could very well walk out with a win.

We have struggled against teams with multiple bigs. We do well against teams that lack strong frontcourt players. UL has very little in the frontcourt.

With JJ, Louisville has to put the ball on the floor and rely on jump shooters to beat us. Their team shooting is decent, but not great.

Another factor to consider - as Rath pointed out UL was red hot in the last few games beating the snot out of UCONN, Houston and USF - but it will have been over a week since their last game (1/22). Hard to keep momentum and fire over 8 days of mundane practices.