Louisville Cardinals men's basketball

Louisville Cardinals
2016–17 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team
University	University of Louisville
First season	1911
All-time record	1778-892 (.666)
Conference	ACC
Location	Louisville, KY
Head coach	Rick Pitino (16th year)
Arena	KFC Yum! Center (2010 – present) (cap. 22,800) Freedom Hall (1956–2010) (cap. 18,885) (Capacity: 22,800)
Nickname	Cardinals
Colors	Red and Black[1]
Uniforms
Home Away Alternate
NCAA Tournament champions
1980, 1986, 2013
NCAA Tournament Final Four
1959, 1972, 1975, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1986, 2005, 2012, 2013
NCAA Tournament Elite Eight
1959, 1972, 1975, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1997, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2015
NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen
1951, 1959, 1961, 1967, 1968, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
NCAA Tournament appearances
1951, 1959, 1961, 1964, 1967, 1968, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
Conference tournament champions
1928, 1929, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014
Conference regular season champions
1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994, 2005, 2009, 2013, 2014

The Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team is the men's college basketball program representing the University of Louisville (U of L) in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) of NCAA Division I. The Cardinals have won three NCAA championships (1980, 1986, 2013) and have been to 10 Final Fours (6th all time) in 41 NCAA tournament appearances (5th all time) while compiling 72 tournament wins (6th all time).^[2][3]

History

"Peck" Hickman era (1944–1967)

Bernard "Peck" Hickman's 1944 team finished with a 16–3 record and started a string of 46 consecutive winning seasons, which was an NCAA record.^[4]

Hickman led Louisville to its first championship on a national level by winning the NAIB Tournament in 1948.^[5] In 1956, led by All-American Charlie Tyra, the Cardinals won the NIT Championship.^[6] In 1956 his team was placed on two years probation, to include bans on postseason play, by the NCAA due to recruiting violations.^[7] In 1959, Louisville made its first NCAA Final Four appearance behind the play of All-American Don Goldstein.

The Cardinals never had a losing season in Hickman's 23 seasons as head coach.^[8] He coached 11 20-win teams, appeared in five NCAA tournaments, coached six NIT appearances and finished with a 443–183 overall record, a .708 winning percentage that ranks him in the top 45 all time.

John Dromo (1967–1971)

John Dromo was Hickman's assistant for 17 years and succeeded him at head coach in 1967. In four seasons as head coach, Dromo led the Cardinals to a 68–23 record (.747 winning percentage) and the 1967 Missouri Valley Conference title.

A heart attack during the 1970–71 season forced Dromo to retire. His assistant, Howard Stacey, was named interim head coach for the final 20 games of the season.^[9]

Denny Crum era (1971–2001)

Denny Crum was hired as head coach from his alma mater, UCLA, where he was the top assistant coach to John Wooden. It was under the guidance of Crum that Louisville became a college basketball power. In his first season he guided the Cardinals to the NCAA Final Four, becoming the first coach ever to go to a Final Four in his first season as a head coach. Overall, Crum had six Final Fours with the Louisville Cardinals (1972, 1975, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1986). He is fifth all-time in Final Four appearances.^[10]

The Cardinals won the 1980 NCAA Tournament championship by defeating UCLA 59–54. Six years later, Louisville would overcome Duke 72–69 for a second title. Crum is one of only 11 coaches to win two or more national championships.^[11] He was named National Coach of the Year in 1980, 1983 and 1986.

He took the Cardinals to 23 NCAA tournaments, where they had an overall record of 43–21. While in the Metro Conference, the Cardinals won 12 regular season titles and 11 tournament championships. In its 19 years of naming a champion, the Metro had Louisville as first or second place 17 times. In 1993, Crum became the second fastest coach to reach 500 wins.^[12]

Crum was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 1994. He retired in 2001 with a career record of 675–295 (.696 winning percentage) over 30 seasons. He was a member of the College Basketball Hall of Fame's inaugural class in 2006.

Rick Pitino era (2001–present)

Rick Pitino was hired in 2001 after four years as head coach of the Boston Celtics, and previously as head coach of Louisville's in-state rival, Kentucky.

In 2013, as the No. 1 overall seed, Louisville won the 2013 NCAA Tournament championship, the third NCAA title in program history.

Pitino has guided the Cardinals to the NCAA Tournament in 12 of 15 seasons, reaching the Elite Eight six times and the Final Four three times (2005, 2012, and 2013). His teams have won six conference tournament championships and four regular season titles. The Cardinals have won at least 20 games every season since Pitino's first season at Louisville. Through the 2015–16 season, Pitino had amassed a record of 391–134 (.745) during his time at Louisville.

Pitino was selected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013,^[13] and is under contract through the 2025–26 season.^[14]

The University of Louisville self-imposed a postseason ban for the 2015–16 season amid an ongoing NCAA investigation over an escort sex scandal involving recruits between 2010 and 2014. The ban included both the ACC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament.^[15][16]

Notable achievements

As of the end of the 2015–16 season, Louisville had an all-time 1778–892 record in 102 seasons of intercollegiate basketball ranking 10th in all-time victories and seventh in all-time winning percentage among NCAA division I schools. From 1944 to 1990, Louisville had an NCAA-record 46 straight winning seasons, winning 20 or more games on 31 occasions during that period.

Louisville has made 41 NCAA Tournament appearances (5th all-time) and 14 NIT appearances. The Cardinals have reached the NCAA Tournament 32 of the last 40 years (12 of the last 15, 14 of the last 18 years, 20 of last 25). Since the NCAA began keeping Sweet Sixteen appearance records in 1975, Louisville's 21 Sweet Sixteens are 5th all-time behind North Carolina (26), Kentucky (25), Duke (24), and Kansas (22). The Cardinals have reached the Elite Eight on 14 occasions, including five of the past nine seasons. Louisville is sixth in tournament victories (75) with a 75–41 overall NCAA Tournament record, reaching the Final Four 10 times.

Louisville is the only school in the nation to have claimed the championship of three major national post-season tournaments including the 1948 NAIA championship, the 1956 NIT title and the 1980, 1986 and 2013 NCAA championships. When the Cardinals won the 2013 title, they became one of only eight programs to have ever won more than two NCAA championships.

By the numbers

Tradition	Number	National Rank
All-time NCAA Tournament titles	3	t-6th
All-time NCAA Tournaments	41	5th
All-time NCAA Tournament Wins	75	6th
All-time NCAA Final Fours	10	T-6th
All-time victories	1778	10th
All-time Winning Percentage	.666	7th

Post-season results

National championships

1948 NAIA Tournament Championship

1948 NAIA Tournament Results

Round	Opponent	Score
First Round	South Dakota State	63–60
Sweet Sixteen	Emporia State	82–66
Elite Eight	Beloit	85–76
Final Four	Xavier	56–49
Championship	Indiana State	82–70

1956 NIT Championship

1956 NIT Tournament Results

Round	Opponent	Score
First Round	BYE
Elite Eight	Duquesne	84–72
Final Four	Saint Joseph's	89–79
Championship	Dayton	93–80

1980 NCAA Tournament Championship

1980 NCAA Tournament Results

Round	Opponent	Score
First Round	BYE	–
Second Round	Kansas State	71–69 OT
Sweet Sixteen	Texas A&M	66–55 OT
Elite Eight	LSU	86–66
Final Four	Iowa	80–72
Championship	UCLA	59–54

1986 NCAA Tournament Championship

1986 NCAA Tournament Results

Round	Opponent	Score
First Round	Drexel	93–73
Second Round	Bradley	82–56
Sweet Sixteen	North Carolina	94–79
Elite Eight	Auburn	84–76
Final Four	LSU	88–77
Championship	Duke	72–69

2013 NCAA Tournament Championship

2013 NCAA Tournament Results

Round	Opponent	Score
Second Round	North Carolina A&T	79–48
Third Round	Colorado State	82–56
Sweet Sixteen	Oregon	77–69
Elite Eight	Duke	85–63
Final Four	Wichita State	72–68
Championship	Michigan	82–76

NCAA Tournament Final Four history

• 1959–Fourth place
• 1972–Fourth place
• 1975–Third place
• 1980–Champion
• 1982–Semifinalist
• 1983–Semifinalist
• 1986–Champion
• 2005–Semifinalist
• 2012–Semifinalist
• 2013–Champion

NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player

• 1980 – Darrell Griffith
• 1986 – Pervis Ellison
• 2013 – Luke Hancock

NCAA Tournament seeding history

The NCAA began seeding the tournament with the 1979 edition.

Years →	'79	'80	'81	'82	'83	'84	'86	'88	'89	'90	'92	'93	'94	'95	'96	'97	'99	'00	'03	'04	'05	'07	'08	'09	'10	'11	'12	'13	'14	'15
Seeds→	3	2	4	3	1	5	2	5	4	4	8	4	3	11	6	6	7	7	4	10	4	6	3	1*	9	4	4	1*	4	4

* – Overall number one seed. The committee began ranking 1 seeds in 2004.

Complete NCAA Tournament results

The Cardinals have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 41 times. Their combined record is 75–42.

Year	Seed	Round	Opponent	Result
1951		Sweet Sixteen	Kentucky	L 68–79
1959		First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National 3rd Place Game	Eastern Kentucky Kentucky Michigan State West Virginia Cincinnati	W 77–63 W 76–61 W 88–81 L 79–94 L 85–98
1961		First Round Sweet Sixteen Regional 3rd Place Game	Ohio Ohio State Morehead State	W 76–70 L 55–56 W 83–61
1964		First Round	Ohio	L 69–71OT
1967		Sweet Sixteen Regional 3rd Place Game	SMU Kansas	L 81–83 L 68–70
1968		Sweet Sixteen Regional 3rd Place Game	Houston Kansas State	L 75–91 W 93–63
1972		Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National 3rd Place Game	Southwest Louisiana Kansas State UCLA North Carolina	W 88–84 W 72–65 L 77–96 L 91–105
1974		Sweet Sixteen Regional 3rd Place Game	Oral Roberts Creighton	L 93–96 L 71–80
1975		First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National 3rd Place Game	Rutgers Cincinnati Maryland UCLA Syracuse	W 91–78 W 78–63 W 96–82 L 74–75OT W 96–88OT
1977		First Round	UCLA	L 79–87
1978		First Round Sweet Sixteen	St. John's DePaul	W 76–68 L 89–902OT
1979	#3	Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#6 South Alabama #2 Arkansas	W 69–66 L 62–73
1980	#2	Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#7 Kansas State #6 Texas A&M #1 LSU #5 Iowa #8 UCLA	W 71–69OT W 66–55OT W 86–66 W 80–72 W 59–54
1981	#4	Second Round	#5 Arkansas	L 73–74
1982	#3	Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#11 Middle Tennessee #2 Minnesota #4 UAB #1 Georgetown	W 81–56 W 67–61 W 75–68 L 46–50
1983	#1	Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#8 Tennessee #4 Arkansas #3 Kentucky #1 Houston	W 70–57 W 65–63 W 80–68OT L 81–94
1984	#5	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#12 Morehead State #4 Tulsa #1 Kentucky	W 72–59 W 69–67 L 67–72
1986	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#15 Drexel #7 Bradley #3 North Carolina #8 Auburn #11 LSU #1 Duke	W 93–73 W 82–68 W 94–79 W 84–76 W 88–77 W 72–69
1988	#5	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#12 Oregon State #4 BYU #1 Oklahoma	W 70–61 W 97–76 L 98–108
1989	#4	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#13 Arkansas–Little Rock #5 Arkansas #1 Illinois	W 76–71 W 93–84 L 69–83
1990	#4	First Round Second Round	#13 Idaho #12 Ball State	W 78–59 L 60–62
1992	#8	First Round Second Round	#9 Wake Forest #1 UCLA	W 81–58 L 69–85
1993	#4	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#13 Delaware #5 Oklahoma State #1 Indiana	W 76–70 W 78–63 L 69–82
1994	#3	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#14 Boise State #6 Minnesota #2 Arizona	W 67–58 W 60–55 L 70–82
1995	#11	First Round	#6 Memphis	L 56–77
1996	#6	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#11 Tulsa #3 Villanova #2 Wake Forest	W 82–80OT W 68–64 L 59–60
1997	#6	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#11 Massachusetts #3 New Mexico #10 Texas #1 North Carolina	W 65–57 W 64–63 W 78–63 L 74–97
1999	#10	First Round	#10 Creighton	L 58–62
2000	#7	First Round	#10 Gonzaga	L 66–77
2003	#4	First Round Second Round	#13 Austin Peay #12 Butler	W 86–64 L 79–71
2004	#10	First Round	#7 Xavier	L 70–80
2005	#4	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#13 Louisiana–Lafayette #5 Georgia Tech #1 Washington #7 West Virginia #1 Illinois	W 68–62 W 76–54 W 93–79 W 93–85OT L 57–72
2007	#6	First Round Second Round	#11 Stanford #3 Texas A&M	W 78–58 L 69–72
2008	#3	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#14 Boise State #6 Oklahoma #2 Tennessee #1 North Carolina	W 79–61 W 78–48 W 79–60 L 73–83
2009	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#16 Morehead State #9 Siena #12 Arizona #2 Michigan State	W 74–54 W 79–72 W 103–64 L 52–64
2010	#9	First Round	#8 California	L 62–77
2011	#4	Second Round	#13 Morehead State	L 61–62
2012	#4	Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#13 Davidson #5 New Mexico #1 Michigan State #7 Florida #1 Kentucky	W 69–62 W 59–56 W 57–44 W 72–68 L 61–69
2013	#1	Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#16 North Carolina A&T #8 Colorado State #12 Oregon #2 Duke #9 Wichita State #4 Michigan	W 79–48 W 82–56 W 77–69 W 85–63 W 72–68 W 82–76
2014	#4	Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen	#13 Manhattan #5 Saint Louis #8 Kentucky	W 71–64 W 66–51 L 69–74
2015	#4	Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#13 UC Irvine #5 Northern Iowa #8 NC State #7 Michigan State	W 57–55 W 66–53 W 75–65 L 70–76 OT

Complete NIT results

The Cardinals have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) 14 times. Their combined record is 14–14.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1951	First Round	WKU	L 59–62
1953	First Round Quarterfinals	Georgetown Manhattan	W 92–79 L 66–79
1954	First Round	St. Francis (NY)	L 55–60
1955	First Round Quarterfinals	Manhattan Duquesne	W 91–86 L 66–74
1956	Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals	Duquesne Saint Joseph's Dayton	W 84–72 W 89–79 W 93–80
1966	First Round	Boston College	L 90–96
1969	First Round Quarterfinals	Fordham Boston College	W 73–70 L 83–88
1970	First Round	Oklahoma	L 73–74
1971	First Round	Providence	L 58–64
1973	First Round Quarterfinals	American Notre Dame	W 97–84 L 71–79
1976	Quarterfinals	Providence	L 67–73
1985	First Round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd Place Game	Alcorn State South Florida Chattanooga UCLA Tennessee	W 77–75 W 68–61 W 71–66 L 66–75 L 84–100
2002	First Round Second Round	Princeton Temple	W 66–65 L 62–65
2006	First Round Second Round Quarterfinals Semifinals	Delaware State Clemson Missouri State South Carolina	W 71–54 W 74–68 W 74–56 L 63–78

Regular season conference championships

The Cardinals have won 23 conference regular season championships.

Since the 2014–15 season they have played in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Before that, they belonged to the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference from the 1925–26 to 1947–48 seasons, the Ohio Valley Conference for the 1948–49 season, the Missouri Valley Conference from 1964–65 to 1974–75, the Metro Conference from 1975–76 to 1994–95, Conference USA from 1995–96 to 2004–05, the Big East Conference from 2005–06 to 2012–13, and the American Athletic Conference in 2013–14.

They played as an independent school from 1911–12 to 1924–25 and from 1949–50 to 1963–64 (29 total seasons).

Missouri Valley Conference (7)

• 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1974, 1975 ^[17]

Metro Conference (12)

• 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1993, 1994 ^[18]

Conference USA (1)

• 2005

Big East Conference (2)

• 2009, 2013

American Athletic Conference (1)

• 2014

Conference tournament championships

The Cardinal have won 19 conference tournament championships.

Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament (2)

• 1928, 1929

Metro Conference Tournament (11)

• 1978, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995 ^[18]

Conference USA Tournament (2)

• 2003, 2005.

Big East Conference Tournament (3)

• 2009, 2012, 2013

American Athletic Tournament (1)

• 2014

Season by season results

The following is according to Louisville's 2011–12 media guide^[19] plus the results from the Louisville Athletics web site as of 01–28–12.^[20]

Season	Coach	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
1911–12	Craig Sand	0–3	—	—	—
1912–13	Captains	2–3	—	—	—
1913–14	Captains	2–6	—	—	—
1914–15	Captains	4–5	—	—	—
1915–16	Ed Bowman	8–3	—	—	—
1916–17	No Formal Team	Season cancelled	—	—	—
1917–18	Ed Bowman	3–4	—	—	—
1918–19	Earl Ford	7–4	—	—	—
1919–20	Tuley Brucker	6–5	—	—	—
1920–21	Jimmie Powers	3–8	—	—	—
1921–22	John T. O'Rouke	1–13	—	—	—
1922–23	No Formal Team	Season cancelled	—	—	—
Fred Enke (KIAC & SIAA) (1923–1925)
1923–24	Fred Enke	4–13	—	—	—
1924–25	Fred Enke	10–7	—	—	—
Fred Enke:		14–20
Tom King (KIAC& SIAA) (1925–1930)
1925–26	Tom King	4–8	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1926–27	Tom King	7–5	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1927–28	Tom King	12–4	—	—	KIAC Tournament Champion
1928–29	Tom King	12–8	—	—	KIAC Tournament Champion
1929–30	Tom King	9–6	—	—	KIAC and SIAA Tournament Participant
Tom King:		44–21
Edward Weber (KIAC & SIAA) (1930–1932)
1930–31	Edward Weber	5–11	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1931–32	Edward Weber	15–7	—	—	KIAC and SIAA Tournament Participant
Edward Weber:		20–18
C.V. Money (KIAC & SIAA) (1932–1936)
1932–33	C.V. Money	11–11	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1933–34	C.V. Money	16–9	—	—	KIAC and SIAA Tournament Participant
1934–35	C.V. Money	5–9	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1935–36	C.V. Money	14–11	—	—	KIAC and SIAA Tournament Participant
C.V. Money:		46–40
Lawrence Apitz (KIAC & SIAA) (1936–1940)
1936–37	Lawrence Apitz	4–8	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1937–38	Lawrence Apitz	4–11	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1938–39	Lawrence Apitz	1–15	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1939–40	Lawrence Apitz	1–18	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
Lawrence Apitz:		10–52
John C. Heldman, Jr. (KIAC & SIAA) (1940–1942)
1940–41	John C. Heldman, Jr.	2–14	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1941–42	John C. Heldman, Jr.	7–10	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
John C. Heldman, Jr.:		9–24
No Team (World War II) (1942–1943)
1942–43	No Formal Team	Season cancelled	—	—	—
Harold Church and Walter Casey (KIAC) (1943–1944)
1943–44	Harold Church and Walter Casey	10–10	—	—	—
Harold Church and Walter Casey:		10–10
Bernard Hickman (KIAC) (1944–1948)
1944–45	Bernard Hickman	16–3	—	—	—
1945–46	Bernard Hickman	22–6	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1946–47	Bernard Hickman	17–6	—	—	KIAC Tournament Participant
1947–48	Bernard Hickman	29–6	—	—	NAIB Champion
Bernard Hickman (Ohio Valley Conference) (1948–1949)
1948–49	Bernard Hickman	23–10	—	—	—
Bernard Hickman (Independent) (1949–1964)
1949–50	Bernard Hickman	21–11	—	—	—
1950–51	Bernard Hickman	19–7	—	—	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1951–52	Bernard Hickman	20–6	—	—	NIT
1952–53	Bernard Hickman	22–6	—	—	NIT
1953–54	Bernard Hickman	22–7	—	—	NIT
1954–55	Bernard Hickman	19–8	—	—	NIT
1955–56	Bernard Hickman	26–3	—	—	NIT Champion
1956–57	Bernard Hickman	21–5	—	—	—
1957–58	Bernard Hickman	13–12	—	—	—
1958–59	Bernard Hickman	19–12	—	—	NCAA Final Four
1959–60	Bernard Hickman	15–11	—	—	—
1960–61	Bernard Hickman	21–8	—	—	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1961–62	Bernard Hickman	15–10	—	—	—
1962–63	Bernard Hickman	14–11	—	—	—
1963–64	Bernard Hickman	15–10	—	—	NCAA First Round
Bernard Hickman (Missouri Valley Conference) (1964–1967)
1964–65	Bernard Hickman	15–10	—	—	—
1965–66	Bernard Hickman	16–10	8–6	4th	NIT
1966–67	Bernard Hickman	23–5	12–2	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Bernard Hickman:		443–183
John Dromo – Missouri Valley Conference (1967–1971)
1967–68	John Dromo	21–7	14–2	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1968–69	John Dromo	21–6	13–3	2nd	NIT
1969–70	John Dromo	18–9	11–5	3rd	NIT
1970–71	John Dromo and Howard Stacey	20–9	9–5	T-1st	NIT
John Dromo:		68–23	38–10
Howard Stacey:		12–8	9–5
Denny Crum – Missouri Valley Conference (1971–1975)
1971–72	Denny Crum	26–5	12–2	T-1st	NCAA Final Four
1972–73	Denny Crum	23–7	11–3	2nd	NIT
1973–74	Denny Crum	21–7	11–1	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1974–75	Denny Crum	28–3	12–2	1st	NCAA Final Four
Denny Crum – Metro Conference (1975–1996)
1975–76	Denny Crum	20–8	2–2	2nd	NIT
1976–77	Denny Crum	21–7	6–1	1st	NCAA First Round
1977–78	Denny Crum	23–7	9–3	2nd	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1978–79	Denny Crum	24–8	9–1	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1979–80	Denny Crum	33–3	12–0	1st	NCAA Champion
1980–81	Denny Crum	21–9	11–1	1st	NCAA Second Round
1981–82	Denny Crum	23–10	8–4	2nd	NCAA Final Four
1982–83	Denny Crum	32–4	12–0	1st	NCAA Final Four
1983–84	Denny Crum	24–11	11–3	T-1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1984–85	Denny Crum	19–18	6–8	T-4th	NIT
1985–86	Denny Crum	32–7	10–2	1st	NCAA Champion
1986–87	Denny Crum	18–14	9–3	1st	—
1987–88	Denny Crum	24–11	9–3	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1988–89	Denny Crum	24–9	8–4	T-2nd	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1989–90	Denny Crum	27–8	12–2	1st	NCAA Second Round
1990–91	Denny Crum	14–16	4–10	8th	—
1991–92	Denny Crum	19–11	7–5	T-2nd	NCAA Second Round
1992–93	Denny Crum	22–9	11–1	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1993–94	Denny Crum	28–6	10–2	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1994–95	Denny Crum	19–14	7–5	T-2nd	NCAA First Round
Denny Crum – Conference USA (1996–2001)
1995–96	Denny Crum	22–12	10–4	T-3rd	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1996–97	Denny Crum	26–9	9–5	T-5th	NCAA Elite Eight
1997–98	Denny Crum	12–20	5–11	5th (American Division)	—
1998–99	Denny Crum	19–11	11–5	2nd (American)	NCAA First Round
1999–00	Denny Crum	19–12	10–6	2nd (American)	NCAA First Round
2000–01	Denny Crum	12–19	8–8	T-5 (American)	—
Denny Crum:		675–295
Rick Pitino – Conference USA (2001–2005)
2001–02	Rick Pitino	19–13	8–8	5th (American)	NIT
2002–03	Rick Pitino	25–7	11–5	2nd (American)	NCAA Second Round
2003–04	Rick Pitino	20–10	9–7	T-6th	NCAA First Round
2004–05	Rick Pitino	33–5	14–2	1st	NCAA Final Four
Rick Pitino – Big East (2005–2013)
2005–06	Rick Pitino	21–13	6–10	11th	NIT
2006–07	Rick Pitino	24–10	12–4	2nd	NCAA Second Round
2007–08	Rick Pitino	27–9	14–4	2nd	NCAA Elite Eight
2008–09	Rick Pitino	31–6	16–2	1st	NCAA Elite Eight
2009–10	Rick Pitino	20–13	11–7	2nd	NCAA First Round
2010–11	Rick Pitino	25–10	12–6	4th	NCAA Second Round
2011–12	Rick Pitino	30–10	10–8	7th	NCAA Final Four
2012–13	Rick Pitino	35–5	14–4	1st	NCAA Champion
Rick Pitino – American Athletic Conference (2013–2014)
2013–14	Rick Pitino	31–6	16–3	T-1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
Rick Pitino – Atlantic Coast Conference (2014–present)
2014–15	Rick Pitino	27–9	12–6	4th	NCAA Elite Eight
2015–16	Rick Pitino	23–8	12–6	4th	Self-imposed post-season ban due to pending NCAA investigation
Rick Pitino:		391–134
Total:		1778–892
National champion         Postseason invitational champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion       Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion       Conference tournament champion

KIAC – Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
SIAA – Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association
NAIB – National Association for Intercollegiate Basketball
NAIA – National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics was NAIB until 1952 when they picked up other sports.^[21]
NIT – National Invitation Tournament
NCAA – National Collegiate Athletic Association

Notable Cardinals

Retired numbers

Retired numbers
Number	Player	Years
8	Charlie Tyra	1954–57
31	Wes Unseld	1966–68
35	Darrell Griffith	1977–80
42	Pervis Ellison	1986–89

Louisville basketball has honored four former players by retiring their numbers. These are the last players to wear these numbers for a Louisville men's squad:

• Charlie Tyra #8 – A consensus All-American during the 1956 and 1957 seasons, Charlie Tyra led the University of Louisville to its first NIT title in 1956 and was named the tournament's MVP for his performance. Tyra was named Helms Athletic Foundation All-American in his junior and senior years. One of only five Cardinals to record over 1,000 rebounds in his career, Tyra ranks as the all-time rebounder in U of L history with 1,617. During the 1955–56 season, Tyra pulled down 645 rebounds, a mark that has been bettered by only three other players in NCAA history. He set the Louisville record for most rebounds in a game when he pulled down 38 against Canisius during the 1955–56 season. In his four seasons with Louisville, he helped his teams to a combined record of 88–23 and three straight NIT appearances. Tyra ranks third in career free throws made (448), second in career rebounding average (17.0), fourth in career scoring average (18.2), eighth in career scorers (1,728 points) and eighth in field goals made (640). Tyra is one of only four players in UofL history to score 40 points or more in a game (achieved against Notre Dame when he hit 12 of 16 field goals and all 16 of his free throw attempts). Tyra died on December 29, 2006, at the age of 71. He was drafted #2 by in the Detroit Pistons in the 1957 NBA draft.
• Wes Unseld #31 – When Wes Unseld ended his career with the University of Louisville following the 1967–68 season, he left as the Cardinals' all-time leading scorer for a three-year player. Today, Unseld ranks 10th on the all-time scoring list, but his career point total of 1,686 is still tops for a three-year player. A consensus All-American during his junior and senior years, Unseld is one of only five other Cardinal players to pull down over 1,000 rebounds in his career. His 1,551 career rebounds ranks second behind Tyra's 1,617. Unseld began his senior season with a 45-point effort against Georgetown College, a UofL record that still stands today. Unseld, chosen as second player overall in the NBA draft by Baltimore, was honored on the All-Missouri Valley Conference team all three years at UofL and the Cardinals were 60–22 during his three seasons. During his junior year, Unseld led the Cardinals to a final No. 2 ranking in both wire service polls. Unseld's 20.6 scoring average still ranks as the top scoring average in Louisville history. His 18.9 rebounding average also ranks as the top average for a Cardinal. While playing on the Cardinals' freshmen team, Unseld averaged 35.8 points and 23.6 rebounds, and hit 68.6 percent from the field.
• Darrell Griffith #35 – The 1980 Player of the Year and consensus first team All-American led Louisville to four consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, winning the 1980 Championship as he had promised when he committed to his hometown Cardinals. Griffith's career 2333 points and single-season 825 points rank first in Louisville history. He scored in double figures in 41 straight games and 111 of his 126 games with the Cardinals. His play earned him the nickname "Dr. Dunkenstein".^[22] He was drafted #2 by the Utah Jazz in the 1980 NBA draft.
• Pervis Ellison #42 – Ellison won the 1986 NCAA Tournament MOP award after leading the Cardinals to their second NCAA Tournament Championship. A consensus first team All-American in 1989, he is the only Louisville player to score 2000 points and grab 1000 rebounds in a career. His 374 career rejections rank first at Louisville and ranked Ellison third all time in the NCAA when he left in 1989. He was drafted #1 by the Sacramento Kings in the 1989 NBA draft.

Cardinals in the Hall of Fame

Louisville has three representatives in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame: Cardinal All-American and former Washington Bullets All-Star Wes Unseld, who was inducted in 1988, former coach Denny Crum, who was inducted in 1994, and coach Rick Pitino, who was inducted in 2013. Darrell Griffith, a national player of the year and consensus All-American at the University of Louisville, is part of the 2014 induction class for the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

National Player of the Year awards

• 1980 – Darrell Griffith (John R. Wooden Award)

All-Americans

Twenty one Louisville players have earned 25 All American selections. 7 players received 8 consensus All-American selections.^[23][24]

Consensus selections

• 1957– Charlie Tyra
• 1967– Wes Unseld
• 1968– Wes Unseld
• 1972– Jim Price
• 1980– Darrell Griffith
• 1989– Pervis Ellison
• 1994– Clifford Rozier
• 2014– Russ Smith

Other selections

Other major national awards

• 2013 – Peyton Siva (Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award – top Division I senior no taller than 6 feet/1.83 m)
• 2014 – Russ Smith (Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award)
• 2015 - Montrezl Harrell (Karl Malone Award)

Honored jerseys

Louisville has honored the jerseys of 20 former players. Their numbers remain active.

Honored Jerseys
Number	Player	Position	Years
14	Alfred "Butch" Beard	Guard	1966–69
10	Ulysses "Junior" Bridgeman	Guard/Forward	1972–75
16	Jack Coleman	Forward/Center	1946–49
24	Don Goldstein	Forward	1956–59
4	Lancaster Gordon	Guard	1980–84
13	George Hauptfuhrer	Center	1944–46
20	Bob Lochmueller	Forward	1949–52
22	Rodney McCray	Forward/Center	1979–83
12	Jim Morgan	Guard	1953–57
20	Allen Murphy	Guard/Forward	1972–75
16	Chuck Noble	Forward/Guard	1950–54
13	Bud Olsen	Center	1959–62
15	Jim Price	Guard	1969–72
13	Kenny Reeves	Guard	1946–50
9	Phil Rollins	Guard	1952–56
43	Derek Smith	Guard/Forward	1978–82
55	Billy Thompson	Forward	1982–86
22	John Turner	Forward	1958–61
20	Milt Wagner	Guard	1981–86
32	DeJuan Wheat	Guard	1993–97

Conference Player of the Year

Key

†	Co-Players of the Year
Player (X)	Denotes the number of times the player has been awarded the Player of the Year award at that point

Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year
Season	Player	Position	Class
1973–74	Bridgeman, JuniorJunior Bridgeman	Small forward	3 !Junior
1974–75	Bridgeman, JuniorJunior Bridgeman (2)	Small forward	4 !Senior
Metro Conference Player of the Year
Season	Player	Position	Class
1977–78†	Wilson, RickRick Wilson	Shooting guard/Point guard	4 !Senior
1979–80	Griffith, DarrellDarrell Griffith	Shooting guard	4 !Senior
1980–81†	Smith, DerekDerek Smith	Shooting guard	3 !Junior
1982–83	McCray, RodneyRodney McCray	Small forward	4 !Senior
1986–87	Crook, HerbertHerbert Crook	Small forward/Shooting guard	3 !Junior
1987–88†	Ellison, PervisPervis Ellison	Center	3 !Junior
1992–93	Rozier, CliffordClifford Rozier	Center	3 !Sophomore
1993–94	Rozier, CliffordClifford Rozier (2)	Center	4 !Junior

Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player

Metro Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player
Season	Player	Position	Class
1978	Rick Wilson	Shooting guard/Point guard	4 !Senior
1980	Darrell Griffith	Shooting guard	4 !Senior
1981	Rodney McCray	Small forward	2 !Sophomore
1983	Rodney McCray(2)	Small forward	4 !Senior
1986	Pervis Ellison	Center	1 !Freshman
1988	Herbert Crook	Small forward	4 !Senior
1989	Pervis Ellison(2)	Center	4 !Senior
1990	LaBradford Smith	Shooting guard	3 !Junior
1991	LaBradford Smith(2)	Shooting guard	4 !Senior
1993	Dwayne Morton	Small forward	2 !Sophomore
1994	Clifford Rozier	Center	3 !Junior
1995	DeJuan Wheat	Point guard	2 !Sophomore
Conference USA Tournament Most Outstanding Player
Season	Player	Position	Class
2003	Luke Whitehead	Small forward	3 !Junior
2005	Taquan Dean	Shooting guard/Point guard	3 !Junior
Big East Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player
Season	Player	Position	Class
2012	Peyton Siva	Point guard	3 !Junior
2013	Peyton Siva	Point guard	4 !Senior
American Athletic Conference Tournament Most Valuable Player
Season	Player	Position	Class
2014	Russ Smith	Shooting guard/Point guard	4 !Senior

1000-point scorers

As of 2015, Louisville has 67 1000-point career scorers, second only to North Carolina for most all time.^[25]

Cardinals in the pros

The Cardinals have had 64 players taken in the NBA Draft, the most recent being Terry Rozier and Montrezl Harrell, who were chosen in the 2015 NBA Draft. 28 former Cardinal players are playing professional basketball, with three of those (Gorgui Dieng, Harrell, and Rozier) currently playing in the NBA.

Name	League	Team
Derrick Caracter [26]	NBA Development League	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Earl Clark	NBA	Brooklyn Nets
Damion Dantzler	Korisliiga	Tampereen Pyrintö
Kendall Dartez	LNB Pro A	Chorale Roanne
Taquan Dean	Lega Basket Serie A	S.S. Felice Scandone
Nouha Diakite	LNB Pro A	ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne
Gorgui Dieng	NBA	Minnesota Timberwolves
Reece Gaines	LNB Pro A	JA Vichy
Francisco García	NBA	Houston Rockets
Otis George	Korean Basketball League	Daegu Orions[27]
Montrezl Harrell	NBA	Houston Rockets
Terence Jennings[28]	Basketball League Belgium	Liège Basket
Preston Knowles [29]	NBA Development League	Springfield Armor
Kyle Kuric	Liga ACB	CB Gran Canaria
Alhaji Mohammed	Liga ACB	CB Valladolid
Dwayne Morton	Bulgarian A1 First	Balkan Botevgrad
Joseph N'Sima	Nationale 1 (3rd Level), France	USA Toulouges
Larry O'Bannon	Israeli Basketball Super League	Hapoel Eilat
Jason Osborne	Liga Nacional de Básquetbol	Peñarol Mar del Plata
Juan Palacios	LKL	Lietuvos rytas
Tick Rogers	Israel National League	Hapoel Beer-Sheva
Terry Rozier	NBA	Boston Celtics
Samardo Samuels	Liga ACB	FC Barcelona
Peyton Siva	Bundesliga	Alba Berlin
Chris Smith	Kosovo Basketball Superleague	KB Peja
Jerry Smith [29]	Lega Basket Serie A	Pallacanestro Cantù
Russ Smith	NBA	Memphis Grizzlies
Édgar Sosa	Lega Basket Serie A	Dinamo Sassari
Tony Williams	LNB Pro A	Hyères-Toulon Var Basket

* – player has been drafted by the listed team but has not yet played professionally.

Several other former players have played in the NBA, including:

• Butch Beard
• Junior Bridgeman
• Jack Coleman
• Wesley Cox
• Pervis Ellison
• Lancaster Gordon
• Darrell Griffith
• Rodney McCray
• Scooter McCray
• Greg Minor
• Dwayne Morton
• Kenny Payne
• Jim Price
• Clifford Rozier
• Derek Smith
• LaBradford Smith
• Felton Spencer
• Barry Sumpter
• Billy Thompson
• Charlie Tyra
• Wes Unseld
• Milt Wagner
• Samaki Walker
• Rick Wilson
• Terrence Williams

Facilities

Home courts

KFC Yum! Center (2010–present)

Since the 2010–11 season the Cardinals have played their home games at the KFC Yum! Center located along the banks of the Ohio River in downtown Louisville. Louisville has a 99–14 record (.876) in 6 seasons in the KFC Yum! Center. (current 03–01-16) ^[30][31]

The facility has a seating capacity of 22,800 with 71 suites and 62 loge boxes.^[32] It is the second-largest college arena in the Commonwealth (behind only Kentucky's Rupp Arena) and the third-largest in the nation (behind only Syracuse's Carrier Dome and Rupp Arena). Louisville ranked among the top 3 in attendance in the first three seasons at the KFC Yum! Center.^[33] The attendance record of 22,815 was set on March 9, 2013 against #24 Notre Dame.

The playing surface at the KFC Yum! Center is named Denny Crum Court in honor of Hall of Fame coach Denny Crum. The University of Louisville first renamed its home court after Crum in January 2007.^[34]

Since the opening of the KFC Yum Center, the University of Louisville has become the most valuable college basketball team in the nation. In 2012 the Cardinals were worth $36.1 million, up nearly 40% from two years earlier, before the Yum Center opened.^[35]

Freedom Hall (1956–2010)

From 1956 to the completion of the KFC Yum! Center in 2010, the Cardinals played their home games at Freedom Hall. Louisville had a 664–136 record in 54 seasons in Freedom Hall (.83 winning percentage). Freedom Hall has been the site of six NCAA Final Fours, four additional NCAA events and 10 conference tournaments. ESPN College Basketball magazine once named Freedom Hall as the nation's "Best Playing Floor."

Louisville ranked among the top 10 nationally in average home attendance at Freedom Hall for 31 years, including the last 28 in the nation's top five (19,397 in '09-10, third in the nation). In 2010, a new Freedom Hall attendance record was set when 20,135 fans witnessed the Cardinals defeat the #1 ranked Syracuse Orange in the final University of Louisville game in the arena.^[36]

Jefferson County Armory (1945–72)

Jefferson County Armory was the primary home of Louisville Cardinals basketball starting in 1945 when Bernard "Peck" Hickman was head coach until the 1957–58 season, when Freedom Hall became their primary home game site. The Cardinals played 10 of their home games in the Jefferson County Armory in 1956–57 and three games in Freedom Hall. Louisville played one game at the armory in 1958–59.In the 1960s the armory was renamed the Louisville Convention Center. The Cardinals played two games at the Convention Center in 1963–64 and three games in the Convention Center in 1964–65. The last game the Cardinals played there was November 30, 1972. Louisville was 153–23 all time at the Jefferson County Armory which is now named the Louisville Gardens.^[37][38]

Belknap Gymnasium (1931–44)

After playing home games at numerous venues in its early years, the Cardinals moved to the newly constructed Belknap Gymnasium in 1931. The gym housed 600 bleacher seats and the baskets were mounted directly to the wall. Louisville compiled a 56–35 (.615 winning percentage) before moving to the Jefferson County Armory. The gym was razed in 1993 to make way for Lutz Hall.^[39]

Practice facilities

The Yum! Center (2007–present)

Since 2007 the Cardinals have practiced at the $15.2 million, 60,000 square feet (5,600 m²) Yum! Center on campus. The Yum! Center houses the teams basketball offices, practice facilities, film room and training areas.

See also

• Louisville–Memphis rivalry
• Kentucky–Louisville rivalry
• Big East Conference rivalries
• List of college men's basketball coaches with 600 wins

References

External links

• Official website