2008–09 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team

The 2008–09 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team represented the University of Louisville

University of Louisville

The University of Louisville is a public university in Louisville, Kentucky. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of the first universities chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains. The university is mandated by the Kentucky General...

in basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

. The team was coached by Rick Pitino

Rick Pitino

Rick Pitino is an American basketball coach. Since 2001, he has been the head coach at the University of Louisville. He has also served as head coach at Boston University, Providence College and the University of Kentucky, leading that program to the NCAA championship in 1996...

in his eighth year at the school. Louisville played its home games in Freedom Hall

Freedom Hall

Freedom Hall is a multipurpose arena in Louisville, Kentucky, on the grounds of the Kentucky Exposition Center, which is owned by the Commonwealth of Kentucky...

and was a member of the Big East conference

Preseason

After an elite eight appearance in the 2008 tournament, Louisville entered the 2008–09 season ranked third in both the AP

AP Poll

The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...

and Coaches

Coaches Poll

The USA Today Coaches' Poll is the current name for a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and Division I college basketball teams....

polls in part due to a strong recruiting class. The incoming freshman class is ranked fifth overall by Scouts.com, led by number one ranked center Samardo Samuels

Samardo Samuels

Samardo Samuels is a Jamaican professional basketball player with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. He is a 6-foot-9-inch, 265-pound power forward/center who attended college at the University of Louisville....

. Louisville has been picked by many analysts to be a potential Final Four contender, including Sports Illustrated

Sports Illustrated

Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...

and Dick Vitale

Dick Vitale

Richard J. "Dick" Vitale , also known as "Dickie V", is an American basketball sportscaster. A former head coach in the college and professional ranks, he is well-known as a college basketball broadcaster and for the enthusiastic and colorful remarks he makes during games. He is known for his...

Regular season

Despite the #3 preseason ranking, Louisville struggled in the non-conference losing to three unranked opponents. After beating Kentucky on an Edgar Sosa

Edgar Sosa (basketball)

Edgar Sosa is a Dominican basketball player. He arrived in Italy in 2010 after completing his U.S. college career with the University of Louisville Cardinals....

buzzer-beating

Buzzer beater

In basketball, a buzzer beater is a shot taken just before the game clock of a period expires, when the buzzer sounds. The term is normally reserved for baskets that win or tie the game, but also refers to shots that beat an end-of-quarter or halftime buzzer...

three pointer, Louisville entered Big East play ranked #21. After beating South Florida

South Florida Bulls

The South Florida Bulls are the athletic teams for the University of South Florida. The university competes in NCAA Division I, USF is a member of the Big East Conference, and has been since 2005...

easily, Louisville beat three straight ranked teams in close games: #17 Villanova

2008–09 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

The Villanova Wildcats had a 22–13 record in the 2008 season. Their season resulted in a trip to the Final Four, with their last second win over the Pittsburgh Panthers in the Elite 8.For the 2008–09 season, Villanova returned all but one from their entire roster that made it to the Sweet 16 of...

, #12 Notre Dame

2008–09 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team

The 2008-09 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball team represents the University of Notre Dame in the 2008-09 college basketball season, competing in the Big East Conference. The team is led by ninth-year head coach, Mike Brey, and plays their home games in the Edmund P...

in overtime, and previously unbeaten #1 Pittsburgh

2008–09 Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball team

The 2008-09 Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball team represents the University of Pittsburgh in the 2008-09 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Head Coach is Jamie Dixon, who is serving for his 6th year as head coach at Pittsburgh and 10th overall at the University...

. Louisville would continue strong play, going undefeated in January and winning its first eight conference games before losing to #1 Connecticut

Connecticut Huskies men's basketball

The Connecticut Huskies is the name of the men's college basketball team representing the University of Connecticut, in Storrs, Connecticut, USA. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I, and the team competes in the Big East Conference...

on February 2. After beating St. John's, Louisville lost by their most lopsided margin since joining the Big East, a 33-point drubbing by Notre Dame. After that game, Louisville won its final seven regular season games to win the school's first ever regular season Big East championship.

Big East Tournament

By virtue of their outright regular-season title, Louisville received a double-bye in the Big East Tournament

2009 Big East Men's Basketball Tournament

- Championship Game :- Syracuse vs. Connecticut :The quarterfinal game on Thursday, March 12 between Syracuse and Connecticut lasted for six overtime periods, the second-longest game in NCAA Division I Men's Basketball history...

and played their first game in the tournament quarterfinals. In the tournament, Louisville beat Providence

2008–09 Providence Friars men's basketball team

The 2008–09 Providence Friars men's basketball team represented Providence College in the Big East Conference. The team finished with a 10–8 conference record and a 19–14 record overall....

73–55 in the quarterfinals and #10 Villanova

2008–09 Villanova Wildcats men's basketball team

69–55 in the semifinals to advance to the school's first ever Big East Tournament championship game in four seasons in the conference. In the finals, Louisville won its first Big East Tournament Championship, defeating #18 Syracuse 76–66. Due to losses in the early conference tournament rounds by several teams above them, the Cardinals finished #1 in the final regular season AP and coaches' polls—the first time in school history they have been ranked #1 in either poll.

NCAA Tournament

Louisville was awarded the top seed in the NCAA Tournament

2009 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament

The first and second round games were played at the following sites:First and Second Rounds: Thursday and Saturday, March 19 and 21, 2009-Qualifying teams:-Brackets:Results to date * – Denotes overtime periodAll times in U.S. EDT....

Midwest Region, as well as the overall #1 seed in the tournament. This is Louisville's second ever 1-seed. The Cardinals beat Morehead St. and Siena

Siena Saints men's basketball

The Siena Saints men's basketball team represents Siena College in Loudonville, New York, United States. The Division I program competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Saints are coached by Mitch Buonaguro who just completed his first season as head coach at Siena after serving as...

in the first two tournament rounds, advancing to face Arizona

Arizona Wildcats men's basketball

The Arizona Wildcats basketball team is the intercollegiate men's basketball program representing the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The team competes in the Pacific-12 Conference of NCAA Division I. They are currently coached by Sean Miller.Arizona has a long and rich...

in the Sweet 16 on March 27. After beating Arizona by 39 points, Louisville faced Michigan St.

2008–09 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

The 2008–09 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 2008–09 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The head coach was Tom Izzo who was in his 14th year. The team played their home games at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, MI...

in the Elite Eight and lost 64–52.

Roster

Name	#	Position	Height	Weight	Year	Home Town
Chris Brickley	11	Guard	6–4	175	Junior	Manchester, NH Manchester, New Hampshire Manchester is the largest city in the U.S. state of New Hampshire, the tenth largest city in New England, and the largest city in northern New England, an area comprising the states of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. It is in Hillsborough County along the banks of the Merrimack River, which...
Earl Clark Earl Clark Earl Rashad Clark is an American professional basketball player. Clark played collegiate basketball for the University of Louisville men's basketball team and was drafted 14th overall by the Phoenix Suns in the 2009 NBA Draft....	5	Forward	6–9	220	Junior	Plainfield, NJ Plainfield, New Jersey Plainfield is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population increased to a record high of 49,808....
Reginald Delk	12	Guard	6–4	175	Junior	Jackson, TN Jackson, Tennessee Jackson is a city in Madison County, Tennessee, United States. The total population was 65,211 at the 2010 census. Jackson is the primary city of the Jackson, Tennessee metropolitan area, which is included in the Jackson-Humboldt, Tennessee Combined Statistical Area...
George Goode	22	Guard	6–8	205	Freshman	Raytown, MO Raytown, Missouri Raytown is a city in Jackson County, Missouri, United States, and is a suburb of Kansas City. The population was at 29,526 in 2010 census. The mayor of Raytown is David Bower.-History:...
Terrence Jennings	23	Forward	6–10	225	Freshman	Sacramento, CA Sacramento, California Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
Preston Knowles Preston Knowles Preston Knowles was a shooting guard for the 2010-11 University of Louisville men's basketball team. Knowles has been a defensive leader for the Cardinals and finished the 2009 season as the Big East leader in three-point shooting percentage.He attended George Rogers Clark High School in...	2	Guard	6–1	170	Sophomore	Winchester, KY Winchester, Kentucky Winchester is a city in and the county seat of Clark County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 16,724 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Lexington-Fayette, KY Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
Kyle Kuric Kyle Kuric Kyle Kuric is an American college basketball player for the 2011-12 University of Louisville men's basketball team. Kuric grew up in Evansville, Indiana and graduated from Memorial High School in 2008...	14	Guard	6–4	175	Freshman	Evansville, IN Evansville, Indiana Evansville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 117,429. It is the county seat of Vanderburgh County and the regional hub for both Southwestern Indiana and the...
Andre McGee Andre McGee Andre McGee is an American professional basketball player of Phoenix Hagen. McGee's family has a history of playing college basketball. His father Anthony McGee played basketball at Long Beach State...	33	Guard	5–10	180	Senior	Moreno Valley, CA Moreno Valley, California Moreno Valley is a city located in Riverside County, California.A relatively young city, its rapid growth in the 1980s and the first decade of the 21st century made it second-largest city in Riverside County by population, and one of the Inland Empire's population centers. As of the 2010 census,...
Samardo Samuels Samardo Samuels Samardo Samuels is a Jamaican professional basketball player with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. He is a 6-foot-9-inch, 265-pound power forward/center who attended college at the University of Louisville....	24	Forward	6–9	240	Freshman	Trelawny, Jamaica Trelawny Parish, Jamaica Trelawny is a parish in Cornwall County in northwest Jamaica. Its capital is Falmouth. It is bordered by the parishes of Saint Ann in the east, Saint James in the west, and Saint Elizabeth and Manchester in the south.-History:...
Will Scott	20	Guard	6–3	185	Senior	New York, NY New York City New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
Jerry Smith Jerry Smith (basketball) Jerry Smith is an American basketball player who last played in New Zealand for the Waikato Pistons.-High school:Jerry Smith played for Wauwatosa East High School where he holds the school's career scoring record...	34	Guard	6–1	200	Junior	Wauwatosa, WI Wauwatosa, Wisconsin Wauwatosa is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States, and was incorporated on May 27, 1897. As of the 2006 census estimate, the city's population was 44,798. Wauwatosa is located immediately west of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and is a part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area...
Edgar Sosa Edgar Sosa (basketball) Edgar Sosa is a Dominican basketball player. He arrived in Italy in 2010 after completing his U.S. college career with the University of Louisville Cardinals....	10	Guard	6–1	200	Junior	New York, NY
Lee Steiden	25	Forward	6–4	185	Sophomore	Louisville, KY Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
Jared Swopshire	21	Forward	6–7	215	Freshman	St. Louis, MO St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
Terrence Williams Terrence Williams Terrence Deshon Williams is an American professional basketball player with the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association. Williams was drafted 11th overall in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Nets. He was the senior co-captain for Rick Pitino's 2008-09 University of Louisville Cardinals...	1	Forward	6–6	215	Senior	Seattle, WA

Schedule and Results

Big East Conference

The Big East Conference is a collegiate athletics conference consisting of sixteen universities in the eastern half of the United States. The conference's 17 members participate in 24 NCAA sports...

regular season

|-
!colspan=8| Big East Tournament