Big East Begins: #12 Georgetown Hoyas (10-1, 0-0) at #4 Louisville Cardinals (12-0, 0-0)

Georgetown Hoyas		Louisville Cardinals
	vs.
#12 (10-1, 0-0); RPI: 51		#4 (12-0, 0-0); RPI: 6

(Perspectives After The Jump)

View from the Student Section - A Perspective from Campus:

I'm enjoying this California weather while the Hoyas are preparing for a huge test tomorrow against Louisville. Hopefully I won't have to break a hotel TV that I'll inevitably be watching this game on. I'm not overly impressed with Louisville, but hey am I impressed with any team other than the Hoyas? That being said, Henry Sims needs to have a big game. I think this is the first team that Louisville and Gorgui Dieng will have faced that has as athletic a big man as Sims. Obviously, Markel will be key as well handling both the signature press and the crowd. However, I think Georgetown can force some TOs of their own given that Louisville had some seriously boneheaded plays against CofC the other week. I'm just looking forward to getting my senior year Big East season started, and think this game is huge. Georgetown has a very favorable schedule in terms of home and home's in the Big East, but they do have to win a few of these big games against highly ranked teams like Louisville. Let's hope they get one tomorrow. Hoya Saxa, and Rick Pitino is a HDC.

View from the Court Side Seats - A Perspective from OldHoya:

Well folks, the rubber is truly about to hit the road now. As any devoted reader knows, your Georgetown Hoyas are a nationally ranked powerhouse (and almost undefeated!). Sitting at #12 and heading to play the #4 team in the nation in a Big East battle? One of the more enjoyable developments this year has been seeing Georgetown extend its defense, including against athletic teams like Memphis. If that press can pay dividends against a running team like Louisville, we know we've got something special.

A somewhat disappointing development this year has been Nate Lubick but we all know that we'll need him to play well against bigger front lines throughout the Big East. Regardless of his offense, Nate has to defend their bigs and be able to give Henry some breathing room through the game.

2 final sidenotes:

• OldHoya's loyal transcriber just learned that Louisville is NOT pronounced Lewie-ville and is supposed to be Louaville.
• Rick Pitino's lead assistant is Richard Pitino. We're all for nepotism but Rick's self serving pronouncement that he's only coaching another 5 years (before handing the reins to his son) should equal the same level of misfortune that befell Texas Tech when transitioning to the son of a legend.

View from the Enemy- A Perspective from our Sleeping With The Enemy Interview:

Sims + Porter will be a great test for U of L's frontcourt in the second half but the home court and Kuric's ability to play inside-out is the difference in a 68-66 Louisville win.

Let's get this out of the way: I am really nervous about this game. I would put myself at SEVERE. The only reason that we aren't talking 'OH CRAP' levels here, is because of the holidays and the fact that I haven't had time to put much thought into this game. They are a better team than Memphis, but I don't think they are great. Pitino's Louisville teams always are very vulnerable in the beginning of the year and turn out being rock-solid by the time the BET rolls around. Because of this, I am very happy to get these guys now (would've loved to switch Provy and Louisville, though). I will say that I am very excited to see how this team stacks up against Louisville on their home floor. Could Sypher's Pit be any worse than the Tuscaloosa Toilet? I am not sure.

I will have the honor of watching the game with JGD and old CH head, takinthepoints at the NYC Gamewatch at the Tribeca Tap House and I can tell you that I will be starting with Bourbon around 4 PM in order to help me relax before the game. As always, this is around the time that the nerves really begin to climb and I will use the pride of kentucky to beat back my nervousness for the Commonwealth's Junior Varsity team. I will be switching to my beloved Coors Light before the tip.

All in all, I think the Hoyas have a good shot tonight. They have a much better chance of winning than JGD has remembering the 2nd half.

View from the Sportsbook (via DonBest) - A Perspective from Vegas:

The Line: Louisville -6. Over/under 127.5
The Cardinals have failed to cover any of their four lined games on the college basketball betting board this month, a stat that includes a 95-87 win over Memphis that 'pushed' the 8-point spread. While I do believe that Louisville fans are looking past this game to the Cardinals' big rivalry game with Kentucky this weekend, I don't think that will have an impact on the players. HAVING SAID THAT, I was very impressed with the way the Hoyas dispensed with Memphis last week, and so long as Georgetown can control tempo and prevent Siva from pushing the Cards in transition, this is a game the Hoyas should keep close and perhaps win. Worth noting that the Hoyas are 6-0 against the spread on lined games thus far. Why break that streak now?

The pick is Georgetown +6. Final score Hoyas 67 - Cardinals 64.

Casual Hoya is 6-5 ATS this season.
Last season: 18-14 ATS.
Overall: 46-27 ATS.

www.CasualHoya.com: Where Your Money Stays And Plays.