GAME NOTES: The West Virginia Mountaineers hit the road for a Big East Conference showdown with the Louisville Cardinals at Freedom Hall. West Virginia owns an 11-3 overall record, including a 1-1 ledger in Big East play. The team managed to halt a two-game skid with a thrilling 79-64 decision over a highly-ranked Marquette squad on Sunday. The Mountaineers have only played three true road games to date, and two of those have resulted in victory. As for Louisville, it is 10-4 overall and has won five of its last six outings. After falling to Cincinnati by one point in the league opener last week, the Cardinals rebounded by knocking off Kentucky by an 89-75 final on the road on Saturday. Louisville owns a 4-2 edge in the all-time series with West Virginia, and the teams have split their two meetings since the Cardinals joined the Big East.

West Virginia has played solidly at both ends of the floor this season. The Mountaineers are netting 83.1 ppg on 48.2 percent shooting from the floor, and the club is limiting opponents to 60.7 ppg on 39.1 percent efficiency from the field. Perhaps the most impressive stat of all is that they have committed 107 fewer turnovers than their opponents through 14 games. Alex Ruoff leads WVU in scoring with 16.4 ppg, as he is shooting 46.6 percent from three-point range. Joe Alexander adds 15.6 ppg and a team-high 6.4 rpg, while Da'Sean butler checks in with 12.6 ppg. Darris Nichols rounds out the double-digit scorers with 10.9 ppg for the Mountaineers, who have featured the same starting lineup in every game this season. In the victory over Marquette, Alexander and Ruoff scored 19 points apiece. Butler had 13 points for WVU, and Nichols pitched in 12 points.

Louisville finally has a full squad, and five of its players are averaging double figures in scoring. Terrence Williams leads the charge with 12.6 ppg, 59 assists and 23 steals, while Earl Clark checks in with 11.8 ppg and 10.0 rpg. Derrick Caracter adds 11.5 ppg and 7.5 rpg, and Jerry Smith is posting 10.8 ppg. David Padgett rounds out the group with 10.3 ppg, and Louisville is netting 72.0 ppg while limiting opponents to 60.0 ppg on 37.8 percent shooting from the floor. The Cardinals won the game against Kentucky at the foul line, scoring 33 of their 89 points from the charity stripe. The fact that they forced 22 turnovers certainly helped the cause. Juan Palacios and Smith scored 17 points apiece for Louisville, while Williams posted 15 points.

A pair of outstanding coaches will square off this evening, as Louisville's Rick Pitino and WVU's Bob Huggins will match wits. After losing the league opener to a lackluster Cincinnati squad, the Cardinals can't afford to fall this evening.