The key three: Duke basketball vs. Louisville

The No. 2 seed Blue Devils will face their greatest challenge at 5:05 P.M. Sunday against a streaking No. 1 seed Louisville for the right to go to the Final Four in Atlanta.

Here are the keys to this Elite Eight matchup:

Will Gorgui make the difference?

The first time these teams faced each other in November, Louisville center, Gorgui Dieng, was sidelined with a wrist injury. The 6-foot-11 center is certainly a force to be reckoned with and will be Mason Plumlee's main focus on the defensive end in the game. Dieng is the Cardinals second leading scorer averaging 10.0 points per game and leads the team in rebounding with 9.5 per game. On the defensive end, he averages 2.5 blocks and 1.4 steals per game. His size on the block allows Louisville to take more risks defensively knowing that he is protecting the basket. Duke will need to adjust to his presence on the court and exploit any holes in the Lousiville defense to attack the basket or to shot from beyond the arc.

Get Quinn Cook involved

Against the Spartans, Cook was less than stellar shooting 0-for-5 from the floor and committing three turnovers. The Blue Devils need him to be a presence on both ends of the floor with tight defense on Peyton Siva and controlling the flow of the game on the offensive end. The first time these teams matched up in November, Cook had 15 points, including Duke's final eight of the game.  He does not need to have so great of a contribution tonight, but if he can dictate the tempo of play and get his teammates involved with assists, Duke will have a much higher chance of reaching the Final Four. Most importantly, he'll be critical in breaking the high-pressure Louisville defense that forces the second most turnovers per game in the nation.

The amount of fouls called

Duke has been exceptional this season drawing fouls from opponents and hitting free throws at key junctures. Against Michigan State, the Blue Devils sunk 24-of-26 free-throw attempts on their way to a comfortable victory. Louisville beat No. 12 seed Oregon in the Sweet Sixteen despite playing most of the first half with Peyton Siva on the bench. If the Cardinals' key contributors including Siva and Dieng, are on the bench with foul trouble, Duke will have a great chance of pulling out the victory. Conversely, if Mason Plumlee gets into foul trouble early, the Blue Devils will be seriously impaired on the block with little depth at the position. For both sides, fouls will be a key factor in the final result.