By Brandon Davis

Following back-to-back road games, the University of Louisville men’s basketball team will return home this week and prepare to maneuver its way through yet another critical stretch of their Big East schedule which begins with South Florida.
In a conference where road wins over quality opponents will likely be few and far between, the Cards will need to take advantage of a three game home stretch that will feature two of the leagues stronger opponents in West Virginia and No. 3 Connecticut.
Tomorrow’s game against the Bulls will be the second time the two teams have met this season. USF is one of three Big East teams, along with Notre Dame and WVU that U of L will play twice this season.
The Cards won the first meeting 71-57 in convincing fashion on Jan. 7 in Tampa. U of L was able to press USF into 21 turnovers and cruised to a comfortable victory behind a dominant performance by junior forward Earl Clark. Clark finished with game highs in points (22) and rebounds (9).
The Bulls have been led on offense by 6-foot-4 guard Dominique Jones’ 18 points a game, but the Cards were able to keep him in check with only allowing him 11 points on 1-11 shooting from the field.
Prior to the Bulls weekend game against Villanova, USF’s only conference victory has come against DePaul, who’ve yet to record a conference victory.
The Cards will likely face a much tougher battle when they welcome in a tough Mountaineers squad led offensively by a pair of gifted scorers in junior forward Da’Sean Butler and senior guard Alex Ruoff, who’ve both average more than 16 points per game. 
In his second year in Morgantown, WVU head coach Bob Huggins has instituted a healthy combination of solid outside shooting, relentless defensive pressure, rebounding, along with an “out work you” mentality that have been staples of teams coached by Huggins.
Last week, despite not having a consistent low post game, the Mountaineers proved they can still be a force to be reckoned with after defeating No. 14 Georgetown on the road.
“Because we don’t have a post guy, we live and die with jump shots, so we hope they go in,” Huggins said, after defeating the Hoyas. “We’re just so small. We have to be quick to the ball.”
U of L head coach Rick Pitino said he has been pleased with the level of play his team has displayed through the month of January, but still thinks there is still much room for improvement. Adding,  that this year’s team has become superior to last year’s Elite Eight squad in certain areas.
“I couldn’t tell you if we’re playing any better than last January or not,” Pitino said. “But we were a pretty good basketball team come February and if we could get to be as good as we were last year, I’d be tickled.”
During the month of January, U of L has grown into one of the hottest teams in the country after getting out to the team’s best start as members of the Big East by winning their first five games in conference play. Three of those victories (Villanova, Notre Dame and Pitt) came against Top 25 opponents.
Those wins and a continued strong showing over the course of the next three games could put the Cards in an excellent position to earn the Big East regular season crown for the first time in school history.