2023–24 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team represented the University of Louisville during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team played its home games on Denny Crum Court at the KFC Yum! Center in downtown Louisville, Kentucky as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). They were led by second-year head coach Kenny Payne.

2023–24 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Record	8–24 (3–17 ACC)
Head coach	Kenny Payne (2nd season)
Associate head coach	Danny Manning (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Nolan Smith (2nd season) Josh Jamieson (2nd season)
Home arena	KFC Yum! Center
Seasons ← 2022–23 2024–25 →

2023–24 ACC men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 7 North Carolina	17	–	3		.850			29	–	8		.784
No. 9 Duke	15	–	5		.750			27	–	9		.750
Virginia	13	–	7		.650			23	–	11		.676
Pittsburgh	12	–	8		.600			22	–	11		.667
Wake Forest	11	–	9		.550			21	–	14		.600
No. 14 Clemson	11	–	9		.550			24	–	12		.667
Syracuse	11	–	9		.550			20	–	12		.625
Virginia Tech	10	–	10		.500			19	–	15		.559
Florida State	10	–	10		.500			17	–	16		.515
No. 10 NC State †	9	–	11		.450			26	–	15		.634
Boston College	8	–	12		.400			20	–	16		.556
Notre Dame	7	–	13		.350			13	–	20		.394
Georgia Tech	7	–	13		.350			14	–	18		.438
Miami (FL)	6	–	14		.300			15	–	17		.469
Louisville	3	–	17		.150			8	–	24		.250
† 2024 ACC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

The Cardinals began the season with a one-point win against UMBC but lost to Chattanooga in their second game of the season. After defeating Coppin State, they lost both of their games in the Empire Classic. They then went on a two-game winning streak, including an overtime victory over New Mexico State. They went on a three-game losing streak from there, including an opening ACC game loss to Virginia Tech. Their only other win in 2023 was on December 17 against Pepperdine. The Cardinals first ACC win came at Miami (FL) on January 10, 2024. This was Payne's first road win as head coach.^[1] The team lost six straight games after the win. Their next wins came on February 3 and February 10, 2024, and were split by a road loss to Syracuse. The Cardinals would lose their final seven games of the ACC regular season.

The Cardinals finished the 2023–24 season 8–24 and 3–17 in ACC play to finish in fifteenth place. As the fifteenth seed in the ACC tournament, they lost to tenth seed NC State in the First Round. They were not invited to the NCAA tournament or the NIT. After their ACC tournament loss, the Cardinals fired head coach Kenny Payne.^[2]

The Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team drew an average home attendance of 11,504 in 18 games in 2023–24, the 28th highest in college basketball.^[3]

Previous season

The team's 0–9 start was its worst since the 1940–41 season, when the Cardinals began the season 0–11. Before their first win of the season against Western Kentucky on December 14, 2022,^[4] the Cardinals contended with California for the worst start in modern history for any team that was at the time a member of a power conference, defined here as a member of a Power Five conference or the Big East Conference. California was the first such team to fall to 0–7, doing so on November 26, 2022; Louisville reached that mark three days later.^[5] California fell to 0–12 before its first win of the season.^[6] The Cardinals' start was still the worst for any team in ACC history.^[4]

The Cardinals finished the 2022–23 season 4–28 and 2–18 in ACC play to finish in fifteenth place. As the fifteenth seed in the ACC tournament, they lost to tenth seed Boston College in the First Round. They were not invited to the NCAA tournament or the NIT. Their 28 losses were the most in program history, and their four wins were the lowest since 1940–41.^[7]

Offseason

Departures

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for Departure
Devin Ree	0	F	6'8"	180	Freshman	Jackson, MS	Transferred to Louisiana Tech[8]
El Ellis	3	G	6'3"	180	Junior	Durham, NC	Transferred to Arkansas[9]
Roosevelt Wheeler	4	F/C	6'11"	240	Sophomore	Richmond, VA	Transferred to VCU[10]
Fabio Basili	11	G	6'4"	175	Freshman	Orlando, FL	Transferred to UT Arlington[11]
Sydney Curry	21	F	6'8"	270	Junior	Fort Wayne, IN	Transferred to Grand Canyon[12]
Kamari Lands	22	F	6'8"	220	Freshman	Indianapolis, IN	Transferred to Arizona State[13]
Jae'Lyn Withers	24	F	6'9"	230	Junior	Charlotte, NC	Transferred to North Carolina[14]
Ashton Myles-Devore	30	G	6'1"	165	Junior	Versailles, KY	Walk-on; transferred

Incoming transfers

Incoming Transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Koron Davis	3	G	6'7"	185	Junior	Gary, IN	Los Angeles Southwest College[15]
Danilo Jovanovich	13	F	6'8"	205	Sophomore	Milwaukee, WI	Miami (FL)[16]
Tre White	22	G	6'7"	190	Sophomore	Dallas, TX	USC[17]
Skyy Clark	55	G	6'3"	200	Sophomore	Los Angeles, CA	Illinois[18]

2023 recruiting class

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Dennis Evans #12 C	Riverside, CA	Hillcrest High School	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Mar 12, 2023
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (85)
Kaleb Glenn #20 PF	Louisville, KY	Louisville Male High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Sep 24, 2021
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (84)
Curtis Williams #11 SF	Birmingham, MI	Brother Rice High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Sep 19, 2022
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (84)
Ty-Laur Johnson #21 PG	Bronx, NY	Our Savior Lutheran High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	May 22, 2023
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (82)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Louisville Commitments". Rivals. "Men's Basketball Recruiting". Scout. "ESPN- Louisville Cardinals Men's Basketball Recruiting". ESPN. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout. "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.

2024 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2024)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
T.J. Robinson #36 PG	Montclair, NJ	Immaculate Conception High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	150 lb (68 kg)	Sep 24, 2021
	Recruit ratings: Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:    (81)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2024 Louisville Commitments". Rivals. "Men's Basketball Recruiting". Scout. "ESPN- Louisville Cardinals Men's Basketball Recruiting". ESPN. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout. "2024 Team Ranking". Rivals.

Roster

2023–24 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G/F 0 Mike James 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS So Oak Ridge Orlando, FL G/F 1 Curtis Williams 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Brother Rice Detroit, MI G 3 Koron Davis 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Bowman Academy Los Angeles Southwest College Gary, IN G 4 Ty-Laur Johnson 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Our Saviour Lutheran School Brooklyn, NY F 5 Brandon Huntley-Hatfield 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Jr Scotland Campus Prep (PA) Tennessee Clarksville, TN F 10 Kaleb Glenn 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr La Lumiere School Louisville, KY C 11 Dennis Evans 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Fr Hillcrest Riverside, CA F 12 JJ Traynor 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Sr Bardstown Bardstown, KY F 13 Danilo Jovanovich 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Whitnall Miami (FL) Milwaukee, WI G 15 Hercy Miller 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr Minnehaha Academy Xavier Minneapolis, MN G 22 Tre White 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Prolific Prep USC Dallas, TX G/F 23 Zan Payne (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 230 lb (104 kg) GS Lexington Catholic Kentucky Lexington, KY G 33 Aidan McCool (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sr Bishop England Maryland Charleston, SC F/C 34 Emmanuel Okorafor 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So NBA Academy Africa Abia, Nigeria G 55 Skyy Clark 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Montverde Academy Illinois Los Angeles, CA	Head coach Kenny Payne (Louisville) Assistant coach(es) Danny Manning (Kansas) Nolan Smith (Duke) Josh Jamieson (Southern Oregon) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 18, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX/ESPN+		Simmons (KY)	W 91–50	–	15 – Williams	9 – Evans	6 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (11,118) Louisville, KY
October 30, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX/ESPN+		Kentucky Wesleyan	L 68–71	–	24 – Clark	7 – Tied	2 – Tied	KFC Yum! Center (10,112) Louisville, KY
Regular season
November 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX/ESPN+		UMBC	W 94–93	1–0	25 – James	10 – Tied	3 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (11,010) Louisville, KY
November 10, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX/ESPN+		Chattanooga	L 71–81	1–1	17 – Tied	14 – Huntley-Hatfield	4 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (10,634) Louisville, KY
November 15, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX/ESPN+		Coppin State	W 61–41	2–1	12 – James	12 – White	2 – Tied	KFC Yum! Center (10,501) Louisville, KY
November 19, 2023* 3:30 p.m., ESPN		vs. No. 19 Texas Empire Classic semifinals	L 80–81	2–2	20 – Tied	9 – Huntley-Hatfield	6 – Johnson	Madison Square Garden (17,647) New York, NY
November 20, 2023* 4:30 p.m., ESPNU		vs. Indiana Empire Classic consolation game	L 66–74	2–3	19 – Clark	9 – Huntley-Hatfield	4 – Johnson	Madison Square Garden (10,988) New York, NY
November 26, 2023* 1:00 p.m., ACCNX/ESPN+		New Mexico State	W 90–84 OT	3–3	29 – Clark	9 – Traynor	6 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (10,527) Louisville, KY
November 29, 2023* 8:00 p.m., ACCNX/ESPN+		Bellarmine	W 73–68	4–3	21 – Clark	10 – Huntley-Hatfield	5 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (11,538) Louisville, KY
December 3, 2023 4:00 p.m., ACCN		at Virginia Tech	L 68–75	4–4 (0–1)	16 – Clark	9 – James	4 – Tied	Cassell Coliseum (8,925) Blacksburg, VA
December 9, 2023* 2:00 p.m., FS1		at DePaul	L 68–75	4–5	18 – James	8 – White	5 – Johnson	Wintrust Arena (4,255) Chicago, IL
December 13, 2023* 8:00 p.m., ACCN		Arkansas State	L 63–75	4–6	20 – Huntley-Hatfield	5 – Huntley-Hatfield	3 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (10,401) Louisville, KY
December 17, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ACCN		Pepperdine	W 85–63	5–6	20 – Huntley-Hatfield	12 – Huntley-Hatfield	5 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (10,475) Louisville, KY
December 21, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPN		No. 9 Kentucky Rivalry	L 76–95	5–7	20 – Clark	11 – Huntley-Hatfield	5 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (17,293) Louisville, KY
January 3, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN2		at Virginia	L 53–77	5–8 (0–2)	14 – Williams	9 – Tied	4 – Tied	John Paul Jones Arena (13,703) Charlottesville, VA
January 6, 2024 12:00 p.m., The CW		Pittsburgh	L 70–83	5–9 (0–3)	23 – James	7 – Glenn	6 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (10,883) Louisville, KY
January 10, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCN		at Miami (FL)	W 80–71	6–9 (1–3)	26 – James	9 – Huntley-Hatfield	6 – Clark	Watsco Center (6,929) Coral Gables, FL
January 13, 2024 12:00 p.m., The CW		NC State	L 83–89	6–10 (1–4)	20 – James	10 – Huntley-Hatfield	5 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (12,114) Louisville, KY
January 17, 2024 9:00 p.m., ACCN		at No. 4 North Carolina	L 70–86	6–11 (1–5)	16 – Clark	6 – Huntley-Hatfield	4 – Tied	Dean Smith Center (20,298) Chapel Hill, NC
January 20, 2024 12:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Wake Forest	L 65–90	6–12 (1–6)	17 – White	6 – White	6 – Clark	LJVM Coliseum (9,261) Winston-Salem, NC
January 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCN		No. 12 Duke	L 69–83	6–13 (1–7)	20 – Huntley-Hatfield	11 – Huntley-Hatfield	4 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (12,620) Louisville, KY
January 27, 2024 12:00 p.m., The CW		Virginia	L 52–69	6–14 (1–8)	10 – White	10 – Huntley-Hatfield	2 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (11,381) Louisville, KY
January 30, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCN		at Clemson	L 64–70	6–15 (1–9)	29 – White	14 – White	2 – White	Littlejohn Coliseum (6,760) Clemson, SC
February 3, 2024 8:00 p.m., ACCN		Florida State	W 101–92	7–15 (2–9)	29 – Huntley-Hatfield	7 – Tied	11 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (11,287) Louisville, KY
February 7, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCN		at Syracuse	L 92–94	7–16 (2–10)	23 – Clark	13 – Huntley-Hatfield	6 – Johnson	JMA Wireless Dome (19,426) Syracuse, NY
February 10, 2024 6:30 p.m., ACCN		Georgia Tech	W 79–67	8–16 (3–10)	15 – Glenn	13 – Glenn	5 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (11,891) Louisville, KY
February 13, 2024 9:00 p.m., ACCN		at Boston College	L 77–89	8–17 (3–11)	21 – Tied	9 – Huntley-Hatfield	7 – Johnson	Conte Forum (3,459) Chestnut Hill, MA
February 17, 2024 6:30 p.m., ACCN		at Pittsburgh	L 59–86	8–18 (3–12)	17 – Glenn	11 – White	5 – James	Petersen Events Center (11,419) Pittsburgh, PA
February 21, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPNU		Notre Dame	L 50–72	8–19 (3–13)	18 – Clark	8 – Clark	3 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (11,342) Louisville, KY
February 28, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCN		at No. 10 Duke	L 59–84	8–20 (3–14)	15 – White	10 – Huntley-Hatfield	4 – Tied	Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC
March 2, 2024 8:00 p.m., ACCN		Syracuse	L 76–82	8–21 (3–15)	18 – James	11 – Huntley-Hatfield	5 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (11,011) Louisville, KY
March 5, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPNU		Virginia Tech	L 64–80	8–22 (3–16)	19 – Huntley-Hatfield	8 – Glenn	4 – Johnson	KFC Yum! Center (10,544) Louisville, KY
March 9, 2024 5:30 p.m., The CW		Boston College	L 61–67	8–23 (3–17)	14 – Huntley-Hatfield	9 – Huntley-Hatfield	5 – Clark	KFC Yum! Center (11,615) Louisville, KY
ACC Tournament
March 12, 2024 4:30 p.m., ACCN	(15)	vs. (10) NC State First round	L 85–94	8–24	36 – Clark	7 – Huntley-Hatfield	4 – Huntley-Hatfield	Capital One Arena (7,523) Washington, D.C.
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

Schedule Source:^[19]

Rankings

See also: 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: — = Not ranked

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Final
AP	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Coaches	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—