2015–16 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team

The 2015–16 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team represented the University of Louisville during the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. This was Louisville's 102nd season of intercollegiate competition. The Cardinals competed in their second season in the Atlantic Coast Conference and were coached by Rick Pitino, in his 15th season at U of L. The team played its home games on Denny Crum Court at the KFC Yum! Center in downtown Louisville. They finished the season 23–8, 12–6 in ACC play to finish in fourth place.

2015–16 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball
ConferenceAtlantic Coast Conference
Ranking
APNo. 16
Record23–8 (12–6 ACC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaKFC Yum! Center
Seasons
2015–16 ACC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 3 North Carolina 14 4   .778 33 7   .825
No. 4 Virginia 13 5   .722 29 8   .784
No. 10 Miami (FL) 13 5   .722 27 8   .771
No. 16 Louisville* 12 6   .667 23 8   .742
Notre Dame 11 7   .611 24 12   .667
No. 19 Duke 11 7   .611 25 11   .694
Virginia Tech 10 8   .556 20 15   .571
Clemson 10 8   .556 17 14   .548
Pittsburgh 9 9   .500 21 12   .636
Syracuse 9 9   .500 23 14   .622
Georgia Tech 8 10   .444 21 15   .583
Florida State 8 10   .444 20 14   .588
NC State 5 13   .278 16 17   .485
Wake Forest 2 16   .111 11 20   .355
Boston College 0 18   .000 7 25   .219
*Ineligible for both the 2016 ACC tournament and the 2016 NCAA tournament due to self-imposed postseason ban.
2016 ACC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

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. None of the players on this team were involved in the allegations. The ban included both the ACC tournament and the NCAA tournament.[1][2]

Previous season

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The Cardinals finished the 2014–15 season with a record of 27–9, 12–6 to finish in fourth place in ACC play. Louisville lost its first ever ACC tournament game to North Carolina, but received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Louisville defeated UC Irvine, Northern Iowa, and NC State to advance to the Elite Eight where they lost to Michigan State.

Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Terry Rozier 0 G 6'1" 190 Sophomore Cleveland, OH Declared for 2015 NBA draft
Anton Gill 1 G 6'4" 190 Sophomore Raleigh, NC Transferred to Nebraska
Chris Jones 3 G 5'10" 175 Senior Memphis, TN Dismissed from the team
Trent Gilbert 15 G 6'0" 180 Freshman Georgetown, KY Walk-on; transferred to Gulf Coast State College
Shaqquan Aaron 21 G 6'7" 170 Freshman Seattle, WA Transferred to USC
Akoy Agau 22 F 6'8" 230 Sophomore Omaha, NE Transferred to Georgetown
Montrezl Harrell 24 F 6'8" 240 Junior Tarboro, NC Declared for 2015 NBA draft
Wayne Blackshear 25 G/F 6'5" 215 Senior Chicago, IL Graduated

Incoming transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Damion Lee 0 G/F 6'6" 200 RS Senior Baltimore, MD Drexel
Trey Lewis 3 G 6'2" 190 RS Senior Garfield Heights, OH Cleveland State
Jay Henderson 11 G 6'4" 180 RS Freshman Orlando, Florida St. John's

Class of 2015 signees

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Deng Adel
SF
Melbourne, Australia Victory Rock Prep 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jul 14, 2014 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Donovan Mitchell
SG
Greenwich, CT Brewster Academy 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Aug 7, 2014 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Ray Spalding
PF
Louisville, KY Trinity High School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jul 20, 2014 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Ryan McMahon
SG
Sarasota, FL Cardinal Mooney High School 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Jul 20, 2014 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    RivalsN/A   247Sports:     ESPN: 
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 8   Rivals: 7  ESPN: 8
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, 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:

  • "Louisville Basketball Commitment List". Rivals.com.
  • "2015 Louisville Basketball Commitment List". Scout.com.
  • "ESPN". ESPN.com.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com.
  • "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Class of 2016 signees

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US college sports recruiting information for 2016 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
V. J. King
SF
Fairfax, VA Paul VI High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 179 lb (81 kg) Jun 12, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 8   Rivals: 7  ESPN: 8
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, 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:

Roster

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2015–16 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Damion Lee 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Sr Calvert Hall / Drexel Baltimore, Maryland
G 2 Quentin Snider 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So Ballard Louisville, Kentucky
G 3 Trey Lewis 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Sr Garfield Heights / Cleveland State Garfield Heights, Ohio
G 4 Dillon Avare (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 155 lb (70 kg) RS So Lexington Catholic Lexington, Kentucky
F/C 5 Matz Stockman 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 250 lb (113 kg) So Canarias (BAH) Oslo, Norway
F 10 Jaylen Johnson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) So Ypsilanti Ypsilanti, Michigan
G 11 Jay Henderson (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Fr Lake Highland Prep Orlando, Florida
F/C 12 Mangok Mathiang (C) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Jr IMG Academy (FL) Melbourne, Australia
F 13 Ray Spalding 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Trinity Louisville, Kentucky
F 14 Anas Mahmoud 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So West Oaks (FL) Cairo, Egypt
F 22 Deng Adel 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Victory Rock Prep Melbourne, Australia
F 23 David Levtich (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr North Oldham Goshen, Kentucky
G 30 Ryan McMahon   6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Fr Cardinal Mooney Sarasota, Florida
F/C 32 Chinanu Onuaku 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) So Riverdale Baptist Lanham, Maryland
G 45 Donovan Mitchell 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Brewster Academy Greenwich, Connecticut
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 1, 2015*
1:30 pm, WAVE-TV
Bellarmine W 71–55 
 14  Johnson   10  Tied   8  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (18,612)
Louisville, KY
Nov 9, 2015*
7:00 pm, WAVE-TV
Kentucky Wesleyan W 77–68 
 19  Lee   8  Mathiang   4  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (15,794)
Louisville, KY
Non-conference regular season
Nov 13, 2015*
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Samford W 86–45  1–0
 14  Tied   7  Mathiang   6  Lewis  KFC Yum! Center (20,347)
Louisville, KY
Nov 17, 2015*
7:00 pm, ESPN3
Hartford
Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational
W 87–52  2–0
 18  Tied   9  Onuaku   6  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (18,910)
Louisville, KY
Nov 21, 2015*
12:00 pm, ESPN3
North Florida
Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational
W 89–61  3–0
 24  Lee   12  Spalding   6  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (20,413)
Louisville, KY
Nov 24, 2015*
7:00 pm, RSN
St. Francis Brooklyn
Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational
W 85–41  4–0
 21  Lee   12  Onuaku   7  Lewis  KFC Yum! Center (19,112)
Louisville, KY
Nov 28, 2015*
8:00 pm, ESPN3
vs. Saint Louis
Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational
W 77–57  5–0
 22  Lewis   13  Mathiang   4  Snider  Barclays Center 
Brooklyn, NY
Dec 2, 2015*
7:15 pm, ESPN
No. 24 at No. 3 Michigan State
ACC–Big Ten Challenge
L 67–71  5–1
 23  Lee   6  Tied   5  Lee  Breslin Center (14,797)
East Lansing, MI
Dec 5, 2015*
12:00 pm, ESPN3
No. 24 Grand Canyon W 111–63  6–1
 24  Lee   7  Tied   8  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (20,380)
Louisville, KY
Dec 12, 2015*
2:00 pm, RSN
No. 22 Eastern Michigan W 86–53  7–1
 16  Lee   7  Tied   7  Mitchell  KFC Yum! Center (20,649)
Louisville, KY
Dec 16, 2015*
7:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 19 Kennesaw State W 94–57  8–1
 18  Lee   7  Tied   8  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (19,288)
Louisville, KY
Dec 19, 2015*
12:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 19 WKU W 78–56  9–1
 16  Snider   12  Onuaku   4  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (21,606)
Louisville, KY
Dec 22, 2015*
9:00 pm, RSN
No. 16 UMKC
Billy Minardi Classic
W 75–47  10–1
 17  Lewis   9  Tied   3  Mitchell  KFC Yum! Center (19,419)
Louisville, KY
Dec 23, 2015*
7:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 16 Utah Valley
Billy Minardi Classic
W 98–86  11–1
 21  Lewis   7  Lewis   4  Tied  KFC Yum! Center (19,147)
Louisville, KY
Dec 26, 2015*
12:00 pm, CBS
No. 16 at No. 12 Kentucky
Battle for the Bluegrass
L 73–75  11–2
 27  Lee   10  Onuaku   3  Mitchell  Rupp Arena (24,412)
Lexington, KY
ACC regular season
Jan 3, 2016
8:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 18 Wake Forest W 65–57  12–2
(1–0)
 18  Mitchell   15  Onuaku   2  Tied  KFC Yum! Center (21,302)
Louisville, KY
Jan 7, 2016
7:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 16 at NC State W 77–72  13–2
(2–0)
 21  Snider   14  Onuaku   4  Mitchell  PNC Arena (17,762)
Raleigh, NC
Jan 10, 2016
12:00 pm, RSN
No. 16 at Clemson L 62–66  13–3
(2–1)
 14  Onuaku   10  Tied   3  Lewis  Bon Secours Wellness Arena (9,562)
Greenville, SC
Jan 14, 2016
9:00 pm, ESPN
No. 21 No. 20 Pittsburgh W 59–41  14–3
(3–1)
 18  Tied   10  Onuaku   4  Lewis  KFC Yum! Center (21,632)
Louisville, KY
Jan 20, 2016
9:00 pm, ESPNU
No. 17 Florida State W 84–65  15–3
(4–1)
 20  Snider   14  Onuaku   5  Lewis  KFC Yum! Center (21,349)
Louisville, KY
Jan 23, 2016
4:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 17 at Georgia Tech W 75–71  16–3
(5–1)
 17  Lee   11  Onuaku   4  Onuaku  Hank McCamish Pavilion (7,829)
Atlanta, GA
Jan 27, 2016
8:00 pm, ACCN/WAVE-TV
No. 16 at Virginia Tech W 91–83  17–3
(6–1)
 29  Lee   9  Johnson   6  Lee  Cassell Coliseum 
Blacksburg, VA
Jan 30, 2016
1:00 pm, CBS
No. 16 No. 11 Virginia L 47–63  17–4
(6–2)
 12  Tied   7  Spalding   2  Tied  KFC Yum! Center (21,714)
Louisville, KY
Feb 1, 2016
7:00 pm, ESPN
No. 19 No. 2 North Carolina
Big Monday
W 71–65  18–4
(7–2)
 24  Lee   10  Onuaku   7  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (22,781)
Louisville, KY
Feb 6, 2016
12:00 pm, ACCN/WHAS-TV
No. 19 Boston College W 79–47  19–4
(8–2)
 16  Lewis   13  Onuaku   4  Adel  KFC Yum! Center (21,803)
Louisville, KY
Feb 8, 2016
7:00 pm, ESPN
No. 13 at Duke
Big Monday
L 65–72  19–5
(8–3)
 17  Mitchell   6  tied   4  Lee  Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314)
Durham, NC
Feb 13, 2016
4:00 pm, ESPN2
No. 13 at Notre Dame L 66–71  19–6
(8–4)
 13  Lee   5  Spalding   4  Snider  Edmund P. Joyce Center (9,149)
South Bend, IN
Feb 17, 2016
7:00 pm, ESPN
No. 13 Syracuse W 72–58  20–6
(9–4)
 15  Lee   15  Onuaku   6  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (21,654)
Louisville, KY
Feb 20, 2016
12:00 pm, ESPN
No. 18 No. 20 Duke W 71–64  21–6
(10–4)
 24  Lee   11  Onuaku   5  Lewis  KFC Yum! Center (22,785)
Louisville, KY
Feb 24, 2016
8:00 pm, ACCN/WAVE-TV
No. 11 at Pittsburgh W 67–60  22–6
(11–4)
 14  Snider   7  Adel   7  Snider  Petersen Events Center (10,425)
Pittsburgh, PA
Feb 27, 2016
2:00 pm, ACCN/WHAS-TV
No. 11 at No. 12 Miami (FL) L 65–73  22–7
(11–5)
 14  Snider   8  Onuaku   6  Onuaku  BankUnited Center (7,342)
Coral Gables, FL
Mar 1, 2016
8:00 pm, ACCN/WAVE-TV
No. 11 Georgia Tech W 56–53  23–7
(12–5)
 17  Onuaku   11  Onuaku   4  Snider  KFC Yum! Center (22,043)
Louisville, KY
Mar 5, 2016
8:30 pm, ESPN
No. 11 at No. 4 Virginia L 46–68  23–8
(12–6)
 11  Mitchell   6  Mitchell   2  tied  John Paul Jones Arena (14,088)
Charlottesville, VA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Rankings

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Ranking movement
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. ██ Not ranked the previous week. RV=Others receiving votes.
Poll Pre Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Wk 16 Wk 17 Wk 18 Post Final
AP RV RV RV 24 22 19 16 18 16 21 17 16 19 13 18 11 11 14 16 N/A
Coaches RV RV RV 22 19 16 15 18 16 20 16 14 18 RV NR* NR NR NR NR NR

* Following the announcement of their self-imposed postseason ban, they were no longer eligible for ranking in the coaches poll.

References

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  1. ^ "Louisville self-imposes postseason ban for men's hoops in 2016". ESPN. February 5, 2016. Retrieved February 5, 2016.
  2. ^ Jeff Greer (February 5, 2016). "U of L imposing postseason hoops ban". The Courier-Journal. Louisville, KY. Retrieved February 5, 2016.