The Bellarmine Knights take on the Louisville Cardinals. Check out our college basketball odds series for our Bellarmine Louisville prediction and pick.
The Bellarmine Knights were part of one of the craziest stories in college basketball last season. First of all, Bellarmine made its transition to Division I men's basketball, moving up from a lower division of competition. Second, the Knights immediately made an impact on their new Division I home, going 11-5 in the regular-season portion of the Atlantic Sun Conference season. It was known that entering the Atlantic Sun Tournament, Bellarmine was ineligible for the NCAA Tournament because of its transitional status. Yet, with Liberty and Jacksonville State being the two best teams in the conference (at least, the two highest seeds in the conference tournament), most observers didn't expect Bellarmine to be playing in the tournament championship game.
Yet, that's exactly what happened. Bellarmine upset Liberty to make the final. This created an extraordinary situation in which a team playing in a conference tournament game could not advance to the NCAA Tournament. It made everyone in the Atlantic Sun Conference wonder why the Knights were allowed to play in the tournament. Why give them a chance to win a tournament if its big prize — going to the NCAA Tournament — was not on the table for them?
Sure enough, Bellarmine won the final over Jacksonville. You might think that since Jacksonville reached the final, the Dolphins would get the NCAA Tournament bid Bellarmine was ineligible for.
Wrong.
Jacksonville State finished higher than Jacksonville in the regular season standings and was given the NCAA Tournament bid. The Gamecocks lost to Auburn in the first round of the NCAAs. Bellarmine sure created some kind of story.
This season, the Knights are eligible for the NCAA Tournament.
They face Louisville in their opener.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Bellarmine-Louisville College Basketball odds.
College Basketball Odds: Bellarmine-Louisville Odds
Bellarmine Knights: +8.5 (-120)
Louisville Cardinals: -8.5 (-102)
Over: 135.5 (-110)
Under: 135.5 (-110)
Why Bellarmine Could Cover the Spread
This Bellarmine program is clearly on the rise. It immediately moved into Division I play and the Atlantic Sun last season and got results. This is a program with a good culture and a hunger to win. In a first game of the season, those qualities are attractive from a betting perspective.
What is also worth noting is that Louisville played some practice games before the season began and looked terrible. The Cardinals lost a practice game to an opponent from a much smaller school. The Cardinals' offense did not function well. Coach Kenny Payne is beginning his first season at Louisville, replacing Chris Mack. Payne might eventually get his team to play well together, but that process might take some time. Louisville is definitely a work in progress, a team unlikely to play well early in Payne's first season.
Why Louisville Could Cover the Spread
The Cardinals might have gotten the bad basketball out of their system in the aforementioned practice games. Kenny Payne is widely admired and respected by the Louisville fan base. The news that he would be hired as Chris Mack's replacement was universally cheered. Louisville thirsts for restoration and renewal, and Payne is in a good position to provide the Cardinals what they need.
Final Bellarmine-Louisville Prediction & Pick
In Kenny Payne's first game, expect sluggishness from Louisville rather than sharpness. That should be enough to help Bellarmine cover.
Final Bellarmine-Louisville Prediction & Pick: Bellarmine +8.5
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