Louisville Cardinals
Overall record: 23-8, 12-6 in ACC
Head coach: Rick Pitino
Tenure at Louisville: 16th season
Career coaching record: 745-262
Home court: KFC Yum! Center
Starters: G Quentin Snider, G Donovan Mitchell, F Deng Adel, F Jaylen Johnson, F Mangok Mathiang
Bench: F Anas Mahmoud, G Tony Hicks, F V.J. King, F Ray Spalding,
Overview: After NCAA sanctions kept the Cardinals out of the NCAA tournament a year ago, Louisville enters this season with a deep roster and a chip on its shoulder.
With Pitino on the sidelines, the Cardinals will continue to press full court and look to force turnovers that can turn into easy transition points. After losing big man Chinanu Onuaku to the NBA Draft, Louisville will turn to the the duo of Mangok Mathiang and Anas Mahmoud to control the paint. Mathiang missed two-thirds of last season and some of this summer due to a foot injury and will need to stay healthy to give the Cardinals enough size to contend with talented big men in the ACC.
In the backcourt, junior Quentin Snider and sophomore Donovan Mitchell should receive the bulk of the minutes with last year's two leading scorers Damion Lee and Trey Lewis gone. Pitino and company will also have to wait for freshman V.J. King to adjust to the college game. King is the first McDonald's All-American to sign with Louisville in five years and is most dangerous in the open court—a place he may find himself often if the Cardinal defense can force turnovers.
A big key for Louisville will be to get one of its perimeter players to develop a consistent jumpshot. Although Snider is one of only two returning players who shot better than 35 percent from deep for the Cardinals, the addition of Pennsylvania transfer Tony Hicks could allow Louisville to space the floor more on offense.
The Cardinals' pressure defense will continue to give teams with poor guard play trouble. But with six rotation players standing 6-foot-6 or taller, Louisville is also one of the few teams that could have the size and versatility to match up with the Blue Devils.
One thing that needs to go right: Mathiang stays healthy and combines with Mahmoud to clean the glass and serve as a rim protector when opponents break the press.
One thing that could go wrong: The Cardinals rely too heavily on transition points for offense and struggle to find a reliable scoring option in the halfcourt.
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