Louisville vs. Notre Dame preview: Cardinals look to snap 6-game losing streak in South Bend

Louisville Cardinals (13-4, 3-1) At Notre Dame Fighting Irish (13-5, 3-2)

Game Time: 7:01 p.m.

Location: Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center: Notre Dame, Ind.

Television: ESPN2

Announcers: Rece Davis (play-by-play) and Fran Fraschilla (analyst)

Officials: Ron Groover, Ted Valentine, Jeff Clark

Favorite: Notre Dame by 3

Probable Starting Lineups:

Series: Louisville leads, 21-15

Last Meeting: Louisville won 71-64 on March 4, 2017 in Louisville

Series History:

Statistics:

Relevant Videos:

About Notre Dame:

Despite playing the past couple weeks without leading scorers Bonzie Colson and Matt Farrell, Notre Dame is off to a 13-5 overall start and a 3-2 beginning in league play. The Irish lead the nation in fewest fouls committed per game (12.9), is sixth in fewest turnovers per game (9.8) and is 24th in scoring margin (+13.5).

Since the loss of Colson to a foot fracture, senior forward Martinas Geben has stepped up both his scoring and rebounding production. Geben has set career-highs for rebounds (14 at Syracuse) and points (16 at Georgia Tech) while averaing a double-double in ACC play.Entering the NC State game (before the loss of Colson) Geben was averaging 8.8 ppg and 6.4 rpg, but has increased those averages to 11.0 and 11.3 over the past four games.

Farrell, the team’s second leading scorer at 15.9 ppg and leading assist man at 5.1 apg, is expected to return to the starting lineup Tuesday night. Farrell has missed the Irish’s last three games with an ankle sprain.

Notable:

—Louisville has lost six consecutive games against Notre Dame in South Bend. The Irish were the only Big East team the Cardinals failed to defeat on the road when the two teams were members of that conference.

—Quentin Snider needs just two points to become Louisville’s 68th career 1,000-point scorer.

—Notre Dame has collected 206 rebounds over the past five conference games - the most for the program in a five-game stretch since the 2012-13 season when the Irish collected 213 vs. Louisville (4 OT), DePaul, Providence, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. The 206 total is the most over five games in ACC play for the Irish.

—Louisville is second in the nation in blocked shots (7.6 bpg) and ranks 15th in field goal percentage defense (.389) and 26th in 3-point defense (.306).

—Louisville’s Anas Mahmoud is fifth in the nation in blocked shots (3.53) and Ray Spalding is 13th in offensive rebounds (3.65).

—Notre Dame’s T.J. Gibbs’ 10.1 points-per-game increase (4.7 in 16-17 to 14.8 in 17-18) is the fourth-best in the ACC.

—Louisville’s five overtime loss at Notre Dame in 2013 is the only game in program history the Cardinals have lost when scoring at least 100 points. It was also the last loss for U of L’s 2012-13 national championship team.

—From 1994 through 2013 Notre Dame and Louisville met 13 times and seven of those contests went to overtime. Louisville won four of those seven contests, but the Irish claimed three of the last four, including the epic 104-101 five overtime victory in Purcell Pavilion on Feb. 8, 2013.

—Deng Adel has scored in double figures in 19 of his last 20 games dating back to last season.

—No player competing in Tuesday night’s game was alive the last time Louisville won at Notre Dame on Feb. 26, 1994.

—Louisville has a 29-17 record in its conference road games over the last six years (.630).

—There are only four players in the ACC averaging a double-double in league play, including Notre Dame senior forward Martinas Geben. Geben is averaging 11.2 ppg and 10.0 rpg in five ACC games, joining Marving Bagley III (Duke), Luke Maye (UNC) and Ben Lammers (Georgia Tech) as the four ACC players to average a double-double in league competition.

—Louisville is one of just four schools which have won 20 or more games in each of the last 15 seasons (also Kansas, Duke and Gonzaga).

—Notre Dame has out-rebounded four of its first five ACC opponents - a first for the program - and matched the 2015-16 team record of four ACC regular-season games with 40 or more team rebounds - with 13 more conference games to be played this season.

—Notre Dame leads the country in least amount of personal fouls committed per game with a 12.9 average. The Irish are also third in the NCAA in terms of total fouls committed (232).

—Sophomore T.J. Gibbs and senior Matt Farrell are both ranked in the top 10 of the ACC assist/turnover ratio statistical ranking (all games). Only the Irish and Duke have two players in the top 10 of that category.

—Louisville has a 42-18 record during the month of January over the last eight years, including a 26-9 record in the last five years.

Ken Pomeroy Prediction: Notre Dame 72, Louisville 66