Louisville Cardinals vs. North Carolina State Wolfpack ATS Odds

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The North Carolina State Wolfpack (20-10, 10-7 ACC) and Louisville Cardinals (19-11, 9-8 ACC) will square off at PNC Arena to bring the regular season to a conclusion. Action starts at 6 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 3, 2018.

Louisville Cardinals vs. North Carolina State Wolfpack Free Preview

In the Cardinals last matchup, they lost a close one to the No. 1 Virginia Cavaliers, 67-66. Louisville’s Ray Spalding finished with 16 points and nine rebounds in the contest. Virginia had an offensive rebounding percentage of 33.3 (above their season average of 27.5). Louisville, on the other hand, did a great job of getting and making free throws (22-29; 75.9 percent).

The Wolfpack are hoping for a better outcome after their 78-75 loss to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in their last outing. With 17 points and nine rebounds, Omer Yurtseven put together a solid outing for North Carolina State. Georgia Tech had an effective field goal percentage of 0.565 (above their season average of 0.470). North Carolina State, on the other hand, had a better turnover percentage (13.5 vs. 16.8).

This showdown pits one of the NCAA’s top offenses against one of its elite defenses. North Carolina State ranks 39th in offensive efficiency and Louisville is 47th in defensive efficiency.

Allerik Freeman has really been playing well over the last five games for North Carolina State, averaging 20.6 points and 1.4 steals per game.

This will be the first matchup of the year between these two teams, after the Cardinals won the only game last season, 85-60. The Cardinals dominated nearly every facet of the game. They had a turnover percentage of 13.1 and an absurd effective field goal percentage of 0.600. The Wolfpack had marks of 19.1 and 0.429, respectively, for those same stats.

Louisville Cardinals vs. North Carolina State Wolfpack ATS Prediction

College Basketball Pick: SU Winner – North Carolina State, ATS Winner – North Carolina State, O/U – Under

Betting Notes:

  • The Wolfpack rank 28th in three pointers allowed per game (19.0) while the Cardinals rank 127th (21.2).
  • Louisville averages 7.2 steals per game, which ranks 54th in the NCAA. North Carolina State ranks 133rd in steals allowed per game (6.4).
  • Louisville ranks fourth in blocks per game (6.2) while North Carolina State ranks 173rd in blocks allowed per game (4.1).
  • The Cardinals rank 24th in assists allowed per game (11.0) while the Wolfpack rank 163rd (13.8).
  • North Carolina State averages 36.0 rebounds per game, which ranks 119th in the NCAA. Louisville ranks 232nd in rebounds allowed per game (37.4).

Betting Trends:

  • The Wolfpack’s average margin of victory in their last five games has been 8.6, up from 7.1 for the season.
  • During their last five games, the Cardinals have scored an average of 73.4 points per game (3.5 below their season average) and allowed an average of 74.0 points per game (3.9 above their season average).