# 2023–24 Louisville Cardinals women's basketball team

The 2023–24 Louisville Cardinals women's basketball team represented the University of Louisville during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Cardinals were led by seventeenth-year head coach Jeff Walz, and played their home games at the KFC Yum! Center. This season was their tenth year competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Cardinals started the season ranked seventeenth in the nation and won their first four games of the season before losing to Alabama. After the loss, they would go on a six-game win streak that included wins over number 19 Ole Miss in the ACC–SEC Challenge and over rivals Kentucky. Their non-conference season concluded with a loss at number 17 Connecticut and a win over number 23 Washington. The Cardinals finished the non-conference season 11–2. Louisville started the ACC season with five straight wins to reach their highest ranking of thirteenth. However, they lost at number 23 North Carolina before winning three more games. In their final nine games, each loss was followed by a win. They defeated number 12 Notre Dame but lost to four ranked teams in that span, including a final day loss to then number 17 Notre Dame.
The Cardinals finished the season 24–10 overall and 12–6 in ACC play to finish in a tie for fifth place. As the fifth seed in the ACC tournament, they defeated thirteenth seed Boston College in the Second Round before losing to fourth seed and eventual champion Notre Dame in the Quarterfinals. They received an at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament, marking the thirteenth straight time the Cardinals qualified for the tournament. As the sixth seed in the Albany 2 they were upset by eleventh seed Middle Tennessee in the First Round to end their season.

## Previous season

The Cardinals finished the season 26–12 overall and 12–6 in ACC play to finish in a tie for fourth place. As the fourth seed in the ACC tournament, they earned a bye to the quarterfinals where they defeated twelfth seed Wake Forest. They then defeated first seed Notre Dame in the semifinals before falling short in the final to third seed Virginia Tech. They received and at-large bid to the NCAA tournament and were the fifth seed in the Seattle 4 Regional. They defeated twelfth seed Drake in the first round, fourth seed Texas in the second round, and eighth seed Ole Miss in the Sweet Sixteen, before losing to second seed Iowa in the Elite Eight to end their season. The Cardinals' 24 total wins was their lowest season win total since 2011–12.

## Off-season
### Departures

Departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Zyanna Walker | 1 | G | 5'8" | Freshman | Wichita, Kansas | Transferred to Kansas State |
| Chrislyn Carr | 3 | G | 5'5" | Graduate Student | Davenport, Iowa | Graduated |
| Mykasa Robinson | 5 | G | 5'7" | Graduate Student | Ashland, Kentucky | Graduated |
| Hailey Van Lith | 10 | G | 5'7" | Junior | Wenatchee, Washington | Transferred to LSU |
| Norika Konno | 11 | G | 5'10" | Senior | Sendai, Japan | Graduated |
| Payton Verhulst | 12 | G | 6'1" | Sophomore | De Soto, Kansas | Transferred to Oklahoma |
| Jalyn Brown | 15 | G | 6'0" | Freshman | Baltimore, Maryland | Entered transfer portal |
| Elizabeth Dixon | 22 | F | 6'5" | Graduate Student | Memphis, Tennessee | Graduated |
| Morgan Jones | 24 | G | 6'2" | Graduate Student | Jonesboro, Georgia | Graduated |
| Imani Lester | 32 | F | 6'3" | Freshman | Raleigh, North Carolina | Transferred to Kansas State |
| Josie Williams | 40 | C | 6'5" | Graduate Student | West Haven, Utah | Graduated |

### Incoming transfers

Incoming Transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Sydney Taylor | 1 | G | 5'9" | Graduate Student | Long Island, New York | UMass |
| Hennie van Schaik | 3 | F | 6'2" | Junior | Urk, Netherlands | Cal State Bakersfield |
| Kiki Jefferson | 12 | G | 6'1" | Graduate Student | Lancaster, Pennsylvania | James Madison |
| Nina Rickards | 15 | G | 5'9" | Graduate Student | Queens, New York | Florida |
| Eylia Love | 24 | G/F | 6'1" | Junior | Kansas City, Missouri | Georgia Tech |
| Jayda Curry | 30 | G | 5'6" | Sophomore | Corona, California | California |

### Recruiting class

Source:
College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight |
| Eseosa Imafidon C | Benin City, Nigeria | Proctor Academy | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | N/A |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Elif Istanbulluoglu F | Istanbul, Turkey | Fenerbahçe S.K. | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | N/A |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| 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: ||||||

## Schedule and results

Source
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-Conference Regular season ||||||
| November 6, 2023* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 17 | at Cincinnati | W 77–59 | 1–0 | Fifth Third Arena (1,725) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 12, 2023* 4:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 17 | DePaul | W 81–74 | 2–0 | KFC Yum! Center (7,456) Louisville, KY |
| November 16, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 19 | Bellarmine | W 111–33 | 3–0 | KFC Yum! Center (7,486) Louisville, KY |
| November 19, 2023* 4:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 19 | Bucknell | W 77–44 | 4–0 | KFC Yum! Center (7,383) Louisville, KY |
| November 24, 2023* 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 20 | vs. Alabama Betty Chancellor Classic | L 73–78 | 4–1 | Merrell Center Katy, TX |
| November 25, 2023* 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 20 | vs. Liberty Betty Chancellor Classic | W 72–63 | 5–1 | Merrell Center (256) Katy, TX |
| November 26, 2023* 1:45 p.m., ESPN+ | No. 20 | vs. Gonzaga Betty Chancellor Classic | W 81–70 | 6–1 | Merrell Center Katy, TX |
| November 29, 2023* 9:15 p.m., ESPNU | No. 22 | at No. 19 Ole Miss ACC–SEC Challenge | W 64–58 | 7–1 | SJB Pavilion (2,694) University, MS |
| December 3, 2023* 12:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 22 | North Carolina A&T | W 80–40 | 8–1 | KFC Yum! Center (7,618) Louisville, KY |
| December 10, 2023* 2:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 18 | Kentucky Rivalry | W 73–61 | 9–1 | KFC Yum! Center (11,291) Louisville, KY |
| December 13, 2023* 4:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 18 | Morehead State | W 74–48 | 10–1 | KFC Yum! Center (7,086) Louisville, KY |
| December 16, 2023* 12:00 p.m., Fox | No. 18 | at No. 17 Connecticut | L 62–86 | 10–2 | XL Center (13,028) Hartford, CT |
| December 20, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 19 | No. 23 Washington | W 59–51 | 11–2 | KFC Yum! Center (8,018) Louisville, KY |
| ACC Regular season ||||||
| December 31, 2023 4:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 19 | at Miami (FL) | W 77–72 | 12–2 (1–0) | Watsco Center (2,120) Coral Gables, FL |
| January 4, 2024 8:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 17 | Duke | W 61–44 | 13–2 (2–0) | KFC Yum! Center (7,789) Louisville, KY |
| January 11, 2024 6:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 15 | at Pittsburgh | W 74–44 | 14–2 (3–0) | Peterson Events Center (868) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 14, 2024 2:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 15 | Wake Forest | W 83–62 | 15–2 (4–0) | KFC Yum! Center (8,901) Louisville, KY |
| January 18, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 13 | at Clemson | W 81–64 | 16–2 (5–0) | Littlejohn Coliseum (868) Clemson, SC |
| January 21, 2024 2:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 13 | at No. 23 North Carolina | L 68–79 | 16–3 (5–1) | Carmichael Arena (6,073) Chapel Hill, NC |
| January 25, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 18 | Boston College | W 88–60 | 17–3 (6–1) | KFC Yum! Center (7,606) Louisville, KY |
| January 28, 2024 2:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 18 | Pittsburgh | W 77–58 | 18–3 (7–1) | KFC Yum! Center (9,452) Louisville, KY |
| February 1, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 16 | No. 21 Syracuse | W 81–69 | 19–3 (8–1) | KFC Yum! Center (8,254) Louisville, KY |
| February 5, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 15 | at No. 3 NC State | L 67–77 | 19–4 (8–2) | Reynolds Coliseum (5,500) Raleigh, NC |
| February 8, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 15 | No. 12 Notre Dame | W 73–66 | 20–4 (9–2) | KFC Yum! Center (9,417) Louisville, KY |
| February 11, 2024 12:00 p.m., The CW | No. 15 | at No. 23 Syracuse | L 72–73 | 20–5 (9–3) | JMA Wireless Dome (3,912) Syracuse, NY |
| February 15, 2024 7:00 p.m., ACCNX | No. 18 | at Boston College | W 69–67 | 21–5 (10–3) | Conte Forum (937) Chestnut Hill, MA |
| February 18, 2024 1:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 18 | No. 12 Virginia Tech | L 70–86 | 21–6 (10–4) | KFC Yum! Center (12,249) Louisville, KY |
| February 22, 2024 6:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 20 | at Georgia Tech | W 80–62 | 22–6 (11–4) | McCamish Pavilion (1,554) Atlanta, GA |
| February 25, 2024 12:00 p.m., The CW | No. 20 | Virginia | L 68–73 | 22–7 (11–5) | KFC Yum! Center (10,305) Louisville, KY |
| February 29, 2024 8:00 p.m., ACCN | No. 22 | Florida State | W 70–55 | 23–7 (12–5) | KFC Yum! Center (7,932) Louisville, KY |
| March 3, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 22 | at No. 17 Notre Dame | L 58–74 | 23–8 (12–6) | Purcell Pavilion (9,149) Notre Dame, IN |
| ACC Women's Tournament ||||||
| March 7, 2024 11:00 a.m., ACCN | (5) No. 24 | vs. (13) Boston College Second Round | W 58–55 | 24–8 | Greensboro Coliseum (10,823) Greensboro, NC |
| March 8, 2024 11:00 a.m., ACCN | (5) No. 24 | vs. (4) No. 14 Notre Dame Quarterfinals | L 68–77 | 24–9 | Greensboro Coliseum (10,488) Greensboro, NC |
| NCAA Women's Tournament ||||||
| March 22, 2024* 1:30 p.m., ESPN2 | (6 A2) No. 23 | vs. (11 A2) Middle Tennessee First Round | L 69–71 | 24–10 | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (12,957) Baton Rouge, LA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. A2=Albany 2. All times are in Eastern. ||||||

## Rankings

Note: The AP does not release a final poll.
Legend :
| | Increase in ranking |
| | Decrease in ranking |
| | Not ranked previous week |
| (RV) | Received Votes |

## 2024 WNBA Draft

| Player | Team | Round | Pick # | Position |
| Kiki Jefferson | Minnesota Lynx | 3 | 31 | G |