South Carolina at Louisville

In the semi-finals of the NIT we have a matchup between South Carolina of the SEC and Louisville of the Big East. It's not very often you see a number 1 seed dogged as Louisville is in this game by 2 points, but there is good reason as South Carolina has now won on the road twice in the NIT alone - at FSU - where Duke fell, and at Cincinatti. Furthermore, keep in mind the Gamecocks defeated and swept Florida this year at home and on the road - a team in the Final Four and nearly beat them the 3rd time losing by just a bucket in the SEC championship. South Carolina is for real, with their stingy defense and smart guard play. Thus it becomes clear why they are favored here. Add the fact that this team has been here before and were last year's NIT champions and that Louisville is a dismal 0-8 against teams in the top 25 in the PR rankings, the wager on the gamecocks is a solid investment.