Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Louisville Cardinals Prediction, 12/14/2022 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Louisville Cardinals

Date: Wednesday, December 14, 2022

Location: KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, KY

TV: ESPN2

The Louisville Cardinals (0-9) will try to defeat the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (8-1) at KFC Yum! Center on Wednesday.

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers stepped onto the hardwood against Wright State and went home with a win by a final score of 64-60 in their last game. When it comes to fouls, the Hilltoppers ended up finishing with 11 and Wright State finished the game with 19 fouls. They also made 3 of their 16 shots from beyond the arc. Wright State finished the game shooting 75.0% from the charity stripe by converting 3 of 4 attempts. Additionally, Wright State had 36 boards (10 offensive, 26 defensive), but wasn't able to put a block in the stat sheet. Wright State doled out 7 assists and had 4 steals in the matchup. Regarding defense, Western Kentucky let their opponent shoot 40.3% from the floor on 27 of 67 shooting. They also doled out 9 assists for this contest while forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and having 5 steals. With respect to pulling down boards, they collected 29 with 4 of them being on the offensive end. From the charity stripe, the Hilltoppers converted 9 of their 14 shots for a percentage of 64.3%. Western Kentucky ended the game having earned a 44.1% field goal percentage (26 out of 59) and knocked down 3 of their 18 three-point shots.

Dayvion McKnight is one guy who played a role in this matchup. He ended up with 32 points on 13 out of 17 shooting. He played 35 minutes played and also pulled down 4 rebounds. He ended up shooting 76.5% from the floor and distributed 3 assists.

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Western Kentucky comes into this game with a mark of 8-1 so far this season. They average 76.9 points per game (99th in D-1) on 48.2% from the floor. The Hilltoppers are connecting on 43.3% on shots from downtown (84 of 194) and 68.8% from the free throw line. As a team, Western Kentucky is pulling down 35.7 boards per game and has accumulated 152 assists for the campaign, which is 108th in the nation in terms of passing. They turn it over 11.3 times per game and as a basketball team they commit 14.7 fouls on a nightly basis.

When they are on the defensive end, the Hilltoppers have forced 13.4 turnovers per game and they draw 16.9 personal fouls. They are ranked 27th in college basketball in allowing assists with 94 conceded for the campaign. The Hilltoppers defensively are allowing a field goal percentage of 39.0% (216 of 554) and they concede 35.6 boards per game as a unit. They are giving up 30.9% on 3-point shots and they are 73rd in the country in opponents points per game (63.6).

The last time they took the court, the Louisville Cardinals went home defeated by a final of 75-53 against Florida State. The Cardinals collected 22 defensive boards and 8 offensive boards for a total of 30 in the game. They turned it over 16 times, while recording 2 steals in the matchup. Florida State committed 13 personal fouls for this game which took the Cardinals to the free throw line for 9 shots. They were able to bury 4 of the free throws for a percentage of 44.4%. When it comes to shots from distance, Louisville made 9 out of their 23 attempts (39.1%). When the final whistle blew, the Cardinals ended up going 20 out of 57 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 35.1%. The Cardinals permitted Florida State to bury 28 of their 62 tries from the floor which gave them a percentage of 45.2% in this contest. They shot 36.8% from three-point range by shooting 7 out of 19 and finished the game at 12 of 16 at the free throw line (75.0%). Concerning rebounding, Louisville permitted Florida State to collect 37 overall (8 on the offensive side).

El Ellis ended up being a major contributor for the Cardinals for the matchup. He earned 15 points in his 33 mins on the hardwood and had 4 assists for the contest. He made 5 out of 17 for the contest giving him a rate of 29.4%, and had 3 rebounds.

Louisville has a win-loss mark of 0-9 on the year. The Cardinals are committing 16.3 fouls every game and they connect on 72.4% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 8.0 times per contest (362nd in the country) and they turn it over 17.0 times per contest. Louisville has accumulated 512 pts so far this year (56.9 per contest) and they grab 32.2 rebounds per game. When it comes to executing on offense, the Cardinals are shooting 37.2% from the floor, which is 360th in the country.

The Louisville defense concedes 34.0% on 3-point attempts (64 of 188) and their opposition knocks down 69.3% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 13.7 assists and 34.7 rebounds per game, which ranks them 259th and 206th in D-1. The Cardinals defensively are ranked 301st in the nation in PPG surrendered with 74.0. They are forcing 12.2 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 48.0% from the field (346th in the nation).

Who will win tonight's NCAA basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Louisville

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