# 1980–81 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team

The 1980–81 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team represented the University of Louisville during the 1980-81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Louisville's 67th season of intercollegiate competition. The Cardinals competed in the Metro Conference and were coached by Denny Crum, who was in his tenth season. The team played its home games at Freedom Hall.
The Cardinals won the Metro Conference tournament championship (their 3rd), defeating Cincinnati 42–31. As defending Champion Louisville was upset by a half-court shot by U.S. Reed and lost to Arkansas 74–73 in the NCAA tournament second round. The Cardinals finished with a 21–9 (11–1) record.

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| November 22* TVS | No. 3 | vs. No. 2 DePaul Hall of Fame Game | L 80–86 | 0–1 | Springfield Civic Center (8,937) Springfield, MA |
| December 4 | | at Tulsa | L 60–68 | 0–2 | Tulsa, OK |
| December 6* | | at Oklahoma State | L 71–72 | 0–3 | Stillwater, OK |
| December 13* NBC | | No. 4 Maryland | W 78–67 | 1–3 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| December 20* | No. 20 | Utah | L 59–78 | 1–4 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| December 22* | | Minnesota | L 59–62 | 1–5 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| December 29* | | vs. No. 6 North Carolina Winston Tire Classic | L 64–86 | 1–6 | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA |
| December 30* | | vs. USC Winston Tire Classic | W 79–50 | 2–6 | L.A. Sports Arena Los Angeles, CA |
| January 3* | | at Kansas State | L 47–64 | 2–7 | Ahearn Field House Manhattan, KS |
| January 5 | | at Tulane | W 73–53 | 3–7 (1–0) | Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA |
| January 10 | | at Cincinnati | W 83–68 | 4–7 (2–0) | Riverfront Coliseum Cincinnati, OH |
| January 17 | | Florida State | W 98–78 | 5–7 (3–0) | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| January 18* | | Missouri | W 71–49 | 6–7 | Freedom Hall (13,386) Louisville, KY |
| January 22* | | at Memphis State | L 55–60 $^{OT}$ | 6–8 (3–1) | Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, TN |
| January 27* | | Providence | W 71–55 | 7–8 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| January 29 | | St. Louis | W 61–57 | 8–8 (4–1) | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| January 31 | | Virginia Tech | W 92–70 | 9–8 (5–1) | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| February 2* | | US International | W 86–68 | 10–8 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| February 4 | | Tulane | W 85–58 | 11–8 (6–1) | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| February 7 | | at Florida State | W 82–73 $^{OT}$ | 12–8 (7–1) | Tully Gymnasium Tallahassee, FL |
| February 9 | | at Virginia Tech | W 71–66 | 13–8 (8–1) | Cassell Coliseum Blacksburg, VA |
| February 13* | | at Marquette | W 79–60 | 14–8 | MECCA Arena (11,052) Milwaukee, WI |
| February 16 | | Memphis State | W 95–65 | 15–8 (9–1) | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| February 18* | | Iona | W 91–57 | 16–8 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| February 23 | | Cincinnati | W 81–67 | 17–8 (10–1) | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| February 25 | | at St. Louis | W 97–85 | 18–8 (11–1) | The Checkersdome St. Louis, MO |
| February 28* | No. 20 | Western Kentucky | W 90–75 | 19–8 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| Metro Tournament ||||||
| March 7* | (1) | (4) Virginia Tech Semifinals | W 81–68 | 20–8 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| March 8* | (1) | (3) Cincinnati Final | W 42–31 | 21–8 | Freedom Hall Louisville, KY |
| NCAA tournament ||||||
| March 14* NBC | (4 MW) No. 12 | vs. (5 MW) No. 20 Arkansas First Round | L 73–74 | 21–9 | Frank Erwin Center Austin, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. MW=Midwest. All times are in Eastern Time. ||||||