Louisville Cardinals vs Clemson Tigers Prediction, 2/28/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Louisville Cardinals vs Clemson Tigers

Date: Saturday, February 28, 2026

Location: Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson, SC

TV: ESPN+

Littlejohn Coliseum is where the Clemson Tigers (20-8) will compete against the Louisville Cardinals (20-8) on Saturday.

The Louisville Cardinals faced off with North Carolina and ended up losing by a score of 77-74 in their last game. When talking about fouls, the Cardinals ended up walking away with 20 and North Carolina recorded 12 fouls. They also buried 8 of their 22 attempts from long range. North Carolina shot 47.4% at the charity stripe by burying 9 of 19 tries. Moreover, North Carolina snagged 25 boards (6 offensive, 19 defensive), but wasn't able to record a rejection. North Carolina distributed 13 assists and had 5 steals in this matchup. When discussing defending, Louisville allowed the other team to shoot 53.6% from the floor on 30 out of 56 shooting. They also dished out 9 assists for the game in addition to forcing the opposition into 9 turnovers and earning 9 steals. When talking about getting rebounds, they collected 37 with 13 of them being on the offensive end. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Cardinals knocked down 8 of their 11 attempts for a percentage of 72.7%. Louisville ended having earned a 38.8% field goal percentage (26 of 67) and buried 14 of their 39 shots from distance.

Mikel Brown Jr. is someone who had an impact in this matchup. He finished 36.0% from the field and totaled 2 assists. He played for 33 mins and collected 3 boards. He was able to score 24 points on 9 of 25 shooting.

Get all of our NCAA Picks Today

Louisville enters this matchup with a mark of 20-8 this year. They lose possession by turning the ball over 11.9 times per contest and as a squad they commit 18.5 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Louisville is collecting 39.5 boards per game and is sitting with 489 dimes this year, which is 32nd in the nation in terms of passing the rock. The Cardinals are hitting 36.1% on three-point attempts (332 of 920) and 77.8% from the free throw line. They are averaging 86.4 pts per contest (16th in Division 1) while connecting on 47.0% from the floor.

On defense, the Cardinals are able to force 12.2 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 18.2 fouls. They rank 66th in D-1 in giving up assists to their opponents with 339 conceded on the season. The Cardinals defense is allowing a field goal percentage of 41.6% (703 of 1,689) and they relinquish 33.4 rebounds per game as a team. They are relinquishing 32.4% on 3-point attempts while they are 125th in college in opponents points per game (72.0).

When they last stepped on the court, the Clemson Tigers took a defeat with a final score of 70-65 against Florida State. The Tigers were able to corral 17 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive boards for a total of 26 for the game. They also turned the ball over 8 times, while earning 5 steals for this contest. Florida State committed 15 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Tigers to the charity stripe for 15 tries. They were able to make 13 of the free throws for a percentage of 86.7%. Concerning shooting from downtown, Clemson converted 10 of their 33 attempts (30.3%). Overall, the Tigers walked away from this one shooting 21 out of 56 from the field which had them sitting at 37.5%. The Tigers allowed Florida State to bury 23 of their 46 attempts from the field which left them with a shooting percentage of 50.0% for this contest. They went 41.7% from beyond the arc by shooting 10 of 24 and finished the contest at 14 out of 16 at the charity stripe (87.5%). When talking about attacking the glass, Clemson allowed Florida State to pull down 24 in total (3 on the offensive side).

Ace Buckner pitched in for the Tigers for the contest. He racked up 15 points in his 32 minutes on the court and added 3 dimes in this matchup. He buried 5 of 11 in this matchup for a field goal rate of 45.5%, and had 4 rebounds.

Clemson has a record of 20-8 for the campaign. When it comes to executing on offense, the Tigers are hitting on 45.8% from the field, which ranks them 147th in the country. Clemson has accounted for 2,087 points on the season (74.5 per contest) and they average 34.8 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 13.0 times per game (254th in college) and they are losing possession via turnover 9.8 times per game. The Tigers are responsible for committing 16.3 personal fouls per game and they go 72.6% from the free throw line.

The Clemson defense allows 31.5% on shots from behind the 3-point line (201 of 638) and opponents are converting on 75.2% of their free throw shots. They have given up 10.3 dimes and 31.6 rebounds every game, which is 7th and 40th in the country. The Tigers on the defensive end are ranked 18th in D-1 in points allowed per contest with 65.6. They are forcing 11.6 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 41.2% from the floor (43rd in college).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Louisville

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Get college basketball picks on every single game, or if you want our very best bets by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.