Cardinals’ Russ Smith Drops Chance to Go Pro and Stays at Louisville for Senior Season

Going pro is the goal of many college basketball players, but for Russ Smith, there are more important things in this life. At least that what Louisville's 6-foot-1 guard announced this Wednesday.  Smith, who was expected to enter this year’s NBA Draft and become a pro, told the media that he’s staying in school for his senior season and that he will play another year with the current NCAA Men Basketball Champs.

Smith said he would like to have some extra time to develop his game skills before making the transition to the NBA. The announcement comes less than a month after his father, Russ Smith Sr. told the media that Russ was ready to leave Louisville and enter the NBA draft. But those words didn’t stick for too long.  Just yesterday, Smith gave his version of how he’d like to handle his future, saying that he’s not ready to join the NBA draft and that he’d like to return to Louisville for his senior season. 

With 18.7 points per game this season, including 22.3 in the NCAA tournament, Smith was a driving force behind his team’s success, leading the squad to back-to-back Final Fours and helping the Cardinals to win their first national championship since 1986.

Russ was named to the Big East All-Tournament Team and his team won the Big East Tournament Championship game versus Syracuse by a score of 78–61 after trailing by 13 at halftime.  In Louisville's 85–63 regional final win against Duke, Smith recorded 23 points and was subsequently named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament's Midwest Region.

The player said he consulted his decision with team coach and mentor Rick Pitino, whose coaching resume’ includes gigs with the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics. Pitino stated that he personally recommended Smith to take a week to make up his mind and clarify his situation before making any decision.

Both Louisville and Pitino are happy to have Smith for another campaign. His return leaves the Cardinals with three starters and eight regulars from the team that won the NCAA title. In addition to Smith, starting forwards Chane Behanan and Wayne Blackshear, guard/forward Luke Hancock, the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player, as well as reserves Stephan Van Treese, Montrezl Harrell and Tim Henderson are also confirmed to be back with the Cardinals this year.

"I'm happy I finally got it off my chest.” said Smith. ”What was crazy after doing all the pros and cons of staying or going, the pros of staying were so much better than the pros of leaving. All my pros I put down for me leaving were very immature. You have to put the work in to get better, you have to do this, you have to do that. Those are challenges I felt like, along with coach, we both felt I'd be running way from, getting better and maturing as a player.”

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UFC on Fox 7: Henderson vs. Melendez Odds and Preview

Date/Time: Saturday, April 20th, HP Pavilion, San Jose, CA

Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Fox Network this Saturday, April 20, 2013 with UFC on Fox 7: Henderson vs. Melendez, which is set to take place at the HP Pavilion Arena in San Jose, California.

The main card features a championship bout between reigning UFC Lightweight champion Benson Henderson and former Strikeforce 155-pound champion and UFC newcomer Gilbert Melendez.  But that’s not it, Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix winner Daniel Cormier will also make his Octagon debut against UFC Heavyweight veteran Frank Mir, then Josh Thomson and Nate Diaz will meet in a Bantamweight bout, while Jordan Mein and Matt Brown round up the card in an electrifying welterweight match.

Melendez (21-2 MMA) is the fifth UFC fighter in the history of the league that gets the chance to contend for the title in his or her debut. But a fact that Melendez’ corner should take in consideration is that all previous UFC newcomers loss their respective debut fights (Gil Castillo, Hayato Sakurai, Frank Trigg and Liz Carmouche).

Henderson (18-2 MMA) meanwhile will put his title on the line for the third time since beating former champ Frankie Edgar on February 26, 2012 at UFC 144 and enters the octagon as the clear favorite according to the latest odds on UFC. His first title defense was a rematch with Edgar held on August 11, 2012 at UFC 150, retaining the title thanks to a split decision.

Henderson then fought Nate Diaz on December 8, 2012 at UFC on Fox 5, punishing his rival with kicks, punches and ground and pound and improving his UFC record to 6-. Now Henderson has the chance to tie Jim Miller and George Sotiropoulos for the second longest win-streak in UFC lightweight history at seven. Former TUF 5 contender Gray Maynard holds the record with eight-straight lightweight wins.
UFC on Fox 7 Odds:

Gilbert Melendez: +215         
Benson Henderson: -275

Frank Mir: +320
Daniel Cormier: -420

Josh Thompson: +160
Nate Diaz: -200

Matt Brown: +275
Jordan Mein: -345

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2013 NCAA Final Four Preview

Time for some College Basketball Action! The NCAA basketball postseason gets to an end this Saturday with the top 4 teams in the college basketball rankings, Louisville, Wichita State, Syracuse and Michigan battling this weekend for a spot in national championship game on Monday.

The first game of features Top Seeded Louisville Cardinals (33–5, 14–4 Big East) and the tournament surprise: the No. 9 Wichita State. Louisville is clearly the strongest squad in the game. The Cardinals defeated its first two rivals in the NCAA Tournament by a combined margin of 57 points (79-48 vs. North Carolina A&T and 82-56 vs. Colorado State). The Cardinals handled No. 12 Oregon by 8-points in the Sweet 16 (77-69), and sent Duke back home in a 85-63 win in the Midwest Regional Final.

Seen by many oddsmakers and sportsbook betting fans as the last Cinderella team alive in the tourney, the Wichita State Shockers (30–8, 12–6 MVC) clinched their ticket to their first Final Four round in 47 years after defeating much stronger opponents. In the second round of the tournament, the Shockers handled No. 20 Pittsburgh 73-55, and then upset No. 1 Gonzaga in the third round with a 76-70 victory.  Victories continued with a 72-5 win over LaSalle in the Sweet Sixteen round. Wichita then advanced to the Elite Eight, winning their ticket to the Final Four with a 70-66 win vs. No. 2 Ohio State.

Game Odds:
Wichita St. Shockers: +10.5-110, ML +525
Louisville Cardinals: -10.5-110, ML -650
Game Total: 132.5, o/u-110

Right after the Wichita vs. Louisville game, the Syracuse Orange (30–9, 11–7 Big East) will face the Michigan Wolverines (30–7, 12–6, T-4th Big Ten).

Wichita is not the only surprise in this year’s NCAA Tournament. After scoring two victories vs. South Dakota State and VCU in the first two rounds of the tournament, Fourth-seeded Michigan surprised most bettors and fans after handling Kansas 87-85 in the Sweet Sixteen. The team moved forward to the Elite Eight, winning what at first seemed a complicated game against third-seeded Florida 79-59.

Now, the Syracuse Orange, also a four seed, handed out a couple of upsets as well.  After a smashing 81-34 victory over Montana and a 66-60 win over California, the Orange defeated #4 Indiana 61-50 in the Sweet Sixteen and defeated Marquette 55-39 last week to advance to the Final Four.

Game Odds:
Michigan Wolverines: -2-110, ML -140
Syracuse Orange: +2-110, ML +120
Game Total: 130.5, o/u-110

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