The 2007–08 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team represented the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

in the

2007–08 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 2007–08 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 5, 2007 ended with the 2008 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament's championship game on April 7, 2008, at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. Season headlines ...

. The

Cardinals Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

, led by 7th year head coach

Rick Pitino Richard Andrew Pitino (; born September 18, 1952) is an American basketball coach who is the head men's basketball coach at St. John's University (New York City), St. John's University. He was also the head coach of Greece national basketball t ...

, played their home games at

Freedom Hall Freedom Hall is a multi-purpose arena in Louisville, Kentucky, on the grounds of the Kentucky Exposition Center, which is owned by the Kentucky State Fair Board. It is best known for its use as a basketball arena, previously serving as the home ...

and were a member of the

Big East Conference The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...

. The team finished their season with an overall record of 27–9 (14–5 in the Big East) (.750 overall, .737 in the Big East). The Cardinals entered the season as a co-favorite to win the 2007–08 Big East men's basketball title and was ranked sixth in the preseason Associated Press Poll. The Cardinals lost four graduating seniors from the previous season and graduated three after the season ended.

Regular season

The Cardinals entered the season as a co-favorite to win the 2007–08 Big East men's basketball title. The Associated Press also ranked the Cardinals sixth in their preseason poll. The Cardinals won the first three games of the season before losing to BYU 78–76 on November 23, 2007. Going into the new year, the team was 9–3 and had played all but one game at Freedom Hall. During the month of January, the team went 6–3 overall and 4–4 against Big East competition. Their first game in Big East competition was on New Years Day, 2008 against

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

, where the team lost 58–57. Between January 28 and March 8, 2008, the team went on a nine-game winning streak and did not lose during the month of February. The team finished the regular season with a loss to Big East rival Georgetown, losing 55–52. The team finished the regular season with an overall record of 24–7 (.774). Against Big East competition, the team compiled a 14–4 (.778) record and finished second in the conference. In three of the four losses to Big East rivals, the Cardinals lost by three or fewer points.

Postseason

The Cardinals made appearances in both the Big East tournament and the NCAA tournament. They finished the season ranked sixth in the Coaches Poll and thirteenth in the AP Poll. At the conclusion of the season, the team graduated three seniors.

Big East Tournament

The team made an early exit from the Big East tournament with a 76–69 overtime loss to Pitt. Pitt would go on to defeat Georgetown in the championship game and win the tournament.

NCAA Tournament

For the third time in four years, the Cardinals qualified for the NCAA tournament and were seeded third in the East bracket. They started off the tournament by defeating 14th-seeded

Boise State Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It ...

75–61. They also beat 6th-seeded

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

78–48 and 2nd-seeded

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

79–60 before getting eliminated by 1st-seeded

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

(lost 83–73) in the Elite Eight. The team finished the season with an overall record of 27–9 (14–4 in the Big East).

Roster

Schedule and results

, - !colspan=9 style=, Non–Conference regular season , - !colspan=9 style=, Big East regular season , - !colspan=9 style=, Big East Tournament , - !colspan=9 style=, NCAA Tournament

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2007-08 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team Louisville Cardinals men's basketball seasons

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

Louisville Cardinals men's basketball, 2007-08 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball, 2007-08

2007 in Louisville, Kentucky 2008 in Louisville, Kentucky