NEW YORK, March 10 (UPI) -- Chris Smith paced Louisville with 15 points Saturday and the Cardinals ground out a rugged 50-44 win over Cincinnati to capture the Big East Tournament.
It was the second Big East championship in four years for the Cardinals, who handed Cincinnati its first loss in five games.
Louisville (26-9) claimed the title as the No. 6 seed, meaning the Cardinals had to win four games in as many days. Louisville defeated Seton Hall, second-seeded Marquette and third-seeded Notre Dame to get to the finals.
The Cardinals shot only 35 percent from the field while the Bearcats were good on 39 percent of their shots.
Louisville allowed just 14 points in the opening half, took a 10-point lead at the break and led by as many as 16 in the second period.
Kyle Kuric had 13 points for the Cardinals. Peyton Siva was the only other Louisville player in double figures with 10.
Cashmere Wright scored 16 points for Cincinnati (24-10), which was the tournament's No. 4 seed and had knocked off second-ranked Syracuse in the semifinals.
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