Big East Tournament Bracket 2012: Louisville and More Dark Horses to Watch

The Syracuse Orange are favored to capture another Big East Tournament crown as their quest to secure the top overall seed continues. There are several sleeper contenders lurking that could knock them off, however, in order to guarantee their own March Madness berths.

Here are three teams to keep at eye on at Madison Square Garden this week. For a complete look at the tournament bracket, check out the league's official site.

Louisville Cardinals

Rick Pitino is one of the nation's elite coaches. He's been around long enough to know all the tricks of convincing an underdog team to put up a fight against more talented competition, and he'll have to use those to perfection this week.

The Cardinals have a lot of depth, which is key for winning four games in as many days. They are led swingman by Kyle Kuric, who is averaging 13 points, and big man Gorgui Dieng. Both guys are capable of taking over a game at any time.

Louisville's biggest key will be sixth man, Russ Smith. If he's able to maintain his terrific energy off the bench, his team should be in great shape.

South Florida Bulls

South Florida is another squad with awesome depth. The Bulls have seven players averaging more than six points per game, but none of them are above 10. They really like to spread the ball around on offense instead of relying on one dominant player.

The reason they've been able to be so successful without a superstar is efficiency. Of those seven top scorers, only two of them are shooting below 43 percent. When a team is able to convert its shots at a high rate, it doesn't matter who is shooting.

That said, if they need one big basket in a tight game, senior Augustus Gilchrist will be the one calling for the ball. With his leadership, the Bulls will be a very tough out.

Cincinnati Bearcats

Even though they received a double bye, the Bearcats aren't getting much love from the media. Going 12-6 in the Big East is an accomplishment that deserves respect. They also enter the tournament hot, winning five of their last six games.

The guard tandem of Sean Kilpatrick and Dion Dixon will be a matchup concern for every opposing coach. They are combining to knock down nearly four three-point shots per game while averaging a total of 28 points.

If Kilpatrick and Dixon get enough help from Yancy Gates in the post, it's impossible to count them out. After all, Cincinnati only lost by seven against Syracuse during the regular season.