Quick Louisville/Syracuse pregame notes

Apologies for my absence in recent days. The combination of the players giving the most lackluster effort I've seen from a Louisville team in years, the head coach dealing with his 7,000th off-the-court issue in a decade and the team playing itself out of the NCAA Tournament (at least momentarily) was more than I cared to address (for free).

But it's Valentine's Day, the St. John's game is in the rearview mirror, and Louisville has a golden opportunity to notch a signature win on the road against the No. 3 team in the country. 

I really think that this team is going to pull together and come through with----what's that? Come again? Jack the Sports Dog picked who?

Fuck.

More items on today's game.

--Reggie Delk is apparently dealing with back spasms and his status is up in the air. If he can't go, it would leave either Kyle Kuric or Mike Marra to deal with Big East Player of the Year front-runner Wesley Johnson, a fact which begs the question: Just how stiff is the penalty for playing seven guys at the same time for an entire game?

--The Cards are currently eight-point dogs.

--Louisville is 11-4 all-time against the Orange, the most recent victory being the 76-66 triumph in last year's Big East championship game. The Cards have won the last five meetings.

--No word on whether Terrence Jennings or Jared Swopshire will start at the four today, but my guess would be that Pitino - who sent Ralph Willard to fill-in for him on "Courtside with Rick Pitino" - will stick with Swop.

--Terrence Williams reportedly spoke to the team yesterday. During the St. John's game, T-Will questioned the team's heart on Twitter, and stated that they were "trife as hell." You might not know what it means, but I'm sure you agree.

--Jumpin' Alvin Simms and CardChronicle.com have opted to part ways. Both sides are claiming the decision was mutual.