# 2008–09 Louisville Cardinals women's basketball team

The 2008–09 Louisville Cardinals women's basketball team represented the University of Louisville in the 2008–09 NCAA Division I basketball season. The Cardinals were coached by Jeff Walz, and the Cardinals played their home games at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky. The Lady Cardinals are a member of the Big East Conference and advanced to the NCAA championship match.

## Regular season
### Roster

| Number | Name | Height | Position | Class |
| 4 | Gwen Rucker | 6-1 | Forward | Freshman |
| 11 | Becky Burke | 5-11 | Guard | Freshman |
| 13 | Candyce Bingham | 6-1 | Forward | Senior |
| 14 | Janae Howard | 6-1 | Forward | Freshman |
| 24 | Laura Terry | 6-1 | Forward | Sophomore |
| 33 | Monique Reid | 6-1 | Forward | Freshman |
| 35 | Angel McCoughtry | 6-1 | Forward | Senior |
| 42 | Chauntise Wright | 6-3 | Center | Senior |
| 45 | Keshia Hines | 6-2 | Forward-Center | Sophomore |
| 50 | Deseree Byrd | 5-9 | Guard | Sophomore |

### Schedule

| Date | Location | Opponent | Cards Points | Opp. Points | Record |
| Nov. 15/08 | Cookeville, Tennessee | Tennessee Tech | 82 | 49 | 1–0 |
| Nov. 17/08 | KICC | Austin Peay | 72 | 42 | 2–0 |
| Nov. 22/08 | Cintas Center | Xavier | 65 | 55 | 3–0 |
| Nov. 25/08 | Huntsman Center (Salt Lake City) | Utah | 59 | 48 | 4–0 |
| Nov. 28/08 | Lawlor Events Ctr. (Reno) | Alabama | 73 | 56 | 5–0 |
| Nov. 29/08 | Lawlor Events Ctr. (Reno) | Nevada | 82 | 85 | 5–1 |
| Dec. 4/08 | Murfreesboro, Tennessee | Middle Tennessee | 67 | 44 | 6–1 |
| Dec. 7/08 | Freedom Hall | Ball State | 82 | 51 | 7–1 |
| Dec. 10/08 | Freedom Hall | Hartford | 70 | 42 | 8–1 |
| Dec. 14/08 | Freedom Hall | Kentucky | 75 | 59 | 9–1 |
| Dec. 21/08 | Freedom Hall | Vermont | 67 | 56 | 10–1 |
| Dec. 28/08 | Freedom Hall | Morehead State | 66 | 38 | 11–1 |
| Dec. 29/08 | Freedom Hall | Central Michigan | 95 | 72 | 12–1 |
| Dec. 30/09 | Freedom Hall | New Hampshire | 82 | 40 | 13–1 |
| Jan. 3/09 | Freedom Hall | DePaul | 78 | 60 | 14–1 |
| Jan. 6/09 | Freedom Hall | Seton Hall | 76 | 47 | 15–1 |
| Jan. 11/09 | Freedom Hall | Rutgers | 64 | 59 | 16–1 |
| Jan. 14/09 | USF Sun Dome (Tampa) | South Florida | 76 | 60 | 17–1 |
| Jan. 17/09 | Washington, D.C. | Georgetown | 74 | 58 | 18–1 |
| Jan. 20/09 | Freedom Hall | Cincinnati | 66 | 50 | 19–1 |
| Jan. 26/09 | Gempel Pavilion | Connecticut | 65 | 93 | 19–2 |
| Jan. 31/09 | Alumni Hall (Providence) | Providence | 81 | 49 | 19–2 |

## Big East tournament

* The Cardinals qualified for the finals of the Big East Women's Basketball Tournament. The Cardinals fell to Connecticut 75–36. The game was played at the XL Center in Hartford.

## Player stats

| Player | Games Played | Minutes | Field Goals | Three Pointers | Free Throws | Rebounds | Assists | Blocks | Steals | Points |
| Angel McCoughtry | 39 | 1252 | 329 | 43 | 200 | 362 | 73 | 42 | 164 | 901 |
| Candyce Bingham | 39 | 1196 | 170 | 10 | 138 | 284 | 66 | 13 | 63 | 488 |
| Desiree Byrd | 38 | 1221 | 105 | 21 | 58 | 105 | 191 | 2 | 35 | 289 |
| Keshia Hines | 39 | 820 | 104 | 0 | 40 | 188 | 25 | 25 | 54 | 248 |
| Monique Reid | 36 | 616 | 83 | 5 | 42 | 137 | 9 | 5 | 15 | 213 |
| Becky Burke | 38 | 770 | 58 | 37 | 38 | 67 | 30 | 1 | 24 | 191 |
| Brandie Reed | 21 | 398 | 29 | 19 | 2 | 39 | 18 | 1 | 7 | 79 |
| Janae Howard | 33 | 262 | 38 | 20 | 12 | 47 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 108 |
| Gwen Rucker | 32 | 354 | 23 | 2 | 32 | 68 | 4 | 14 | 10 | 80 |
| Laura Terry | 21 | 167 | 19 | 2 | 9 | 20 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 49 |
| Mary Jackson | 38 | 416 | 23 | 2 | 39 | 94 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 87 |
| Tiera Stephen | 37 | 378 | 9 | 2 | 14 | 30 | 51 | 5 | 28 | 34 |

## Postseason
### NCAA basketball tournament

* Raleigh Regional
** Louisville 62, Liberty 42
** Louisville 62, Louisiana State 52
** Louisville 56, Baylor 39
** Louisville 77, Maryland 60
* Final Four
** Louisville 61, Oklahoma 59
** Connecticut 76, Louisville 54

## Team players drafted into the WNBA

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1 | 1 | Angel McCoughtry | Atlanta Dream |
| 3 | 39 | Candyce Bingham | San Antonio Silver Stars |