College Hoops Picks Jan. 31, 2009: Notre Dame at Pittsburgh

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-7) at Pittsburgh Panthers (18-2)

Saturday, Jan. 31—12:00 PM EST

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Preview

Two of the best big men the Big East has to offer face off on Saturday when Luke Harrangody and the Irish (3-5, 12-7) travel to Pittsburgh to take on DeJuan Blair and the Panthers (6-2, 18-2).

Notre Dame has had its share of ups and downs this season—they went on the road and upset Georgetown, but then had their NCAA-best 45 game home win streak snapped when they couldn't contain the Huskies. They currently are on a four-game losing streak, which started with an overtime loss to Louisville and most recently included a seven point loss to Marquette.

The Panthers just lost for the second time this season on Wednesday at Villanova. In fact, their two losses have occurred in their last four games—the other being to Louisville by six on Jan. 17.

Pittsburgh's main source of talent lies in three players—DeJuan Blair (who is averaging a double-double this season with 14.3 points and 12.4 rebounds per game), Sam Young (who is averaging a team-best 18.6 PPG), and Levance Fields (10.6 PPG and 6.8 APG).

The Irish have relied heavily on Harrangody this season, who is averaging 25.0 points per game and 13.3 rebounds per game. When the ball is not dished inside, they have been relying on their outside shooting (they are currently hitting 40 percent of their attempts), with senior guard Kyle McAlarney shooting .464 on the year (he is doing that on 168 attempts so far).

Stats

	Record	Conf	ATS	RPI	SOS	PF	PA
Notre Dame	12-7	3-5	4-8	79	64	79.2	70.2
Pittsburgh	18-2	6-2	9-6	2	7	76.3	60.2

	FG%	D. FG%	3P%	D. 3P%	FT%	RPG	SPG	APG	TPG
Notre Dame	44.1	43.0	40.0	33.3	70.7	43.7	6.3	18.1	9.8
Pittsburgh	47.4	38.4	34.7	32.0	64.8	43.6	8.1	17.8	12.1

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Prediction

Current Line: Pitt -12.0

Notre Dame ATS: 4-8, 0-3 when underdog
Pittsburgh ATS: 9-6, 7-5 when favored

Harrangody is going to have his hands full in the paint, but he has found a way to be successful against other elite big men, so Saturday's game should not be any different. In their last two games, the Irish have lost by eight and seven to Connecticut and Marquette.

Pitt has had both close games and blowouts in Big East play this season, but their average margin of victory is nine points (including their losses). Without the two losses, the Panthers have won by an average of 14 points. At home, though, the Panthers have won by 23, 13, and 18 this season.

The Irish are going to have a lot of trouble on the road, and Blair should give Harrangody a lot more trouble then he's used to.

Pick: Pitt -12.0

*All statistics for this article have come from StatSheet.com*

*This article is also featured on CBBPlace.com*