NCAA Basketball Preview: No. 17 Notre Dame at No. 13 Louisville

Rick Pitino will be looking for ways to stop the Notre Dame attack on Thursday. (AP Images)

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are ranked four spots behind the Louisville Cardinals but if you listen to oach Rick Pitino, defeating the Irish will be one of their toughest tasks all season.

“They’ve been destroying zones,” Pitino said. “They shot like 56 percent for the game against Syracuse. I hate zone after watching that game.”

“We’ve got to try a little bit of everything and see which one works.”

The Irish have been flying past their opponents, winning eight of their last 10 and going over the total in nine of 10. They sit just one game back of the Cardinals in the Big East.

"They’re just very difficult to play against," Pitino said. "Shot selection is so important for us because if you take a bad shot against them they get out on the break so well. ”¦ They can beat you so many different ways.”

They rank 15th in points per game and are backed by arguably the Big East's best player Luke Harangody. He's averaging 20.2 points and 10.5 rebounds this season.

Despite the huge task ahead of them Pitino and the Cards shouldn't be overlooked on Thursday night. They've been rolling their last seven games. They've won seven straight, straight up and against the spread.

No. 17 Notre Dame plays No. 13 Louisville at 7 p.m. EST on ESPN.

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