# 2011–12 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team

The 2011–12 Louisville Cardinals men's basketball team represented the University of Louisville during the 2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Louisville's 98th season of intercollegiate competition. The Cardinals competed in the Big East Conference and were coached by Rick Pitino, who was in his 11th season. The team played their home games on Denny Crum Court at the KFC Yum! Center. The Cardinals finished the season with a record of 30–10, 10–8 to finish in sixth place in Big East play. They defeated Seton Hall, Marquette, and Notre Dame to advance to the Big East tournament championship. In the championship game, they defeated Cincinnati to win the tournament for the second time. As a result of the win, the Cardinals received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 4 seed in the West region. Louisville defeated Davidson and New Mexico to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. There they defeated No. 1-seeded Michigan State and Florida to advance to the Final Four for the ninth time in school history. In the Final Four, they lost to the eventual National Champion Kentucky.
On February 20, 2018, the NCAA announced that the wins and records for the season and Louisville's 2012–13, 2013–14, and 2014–15 seasons were vacated due to the sex scandal at Louisville.

## Previous season

The Cardinals finished the 2010–11 season with a record 25–10, 12–6 to finish in a tie for third place in Big East play. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they were upset in the second round (round of 64) by Morehead State.

## Preseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| George Goode | 0 | C | 6'8" | 205 | Senior | Raytown, Missouri | Graduated |
| Terrence Jennings | 23 | C | 6'10" | 240 | Junior | Sacramento, California | Entered the 2011 NBA draft |
| Preston Knowles | 2 | G | 6'1" | 170 | Senior | Winchester, Kentucky | Graduated |

### 2011 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Chane Behanan PF | Cincinnati, OH | Bowling Green High School (KY) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 240 lb (110 kg) | Jul 9, 2010 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 96 ||||||
| Wayne Blackshear SG | Chicago, IL | Morgan Park High School (IL) | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Dec 25, 2009 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 96 ||||||
| Angel Nunez SF | Washington Heights, Manhattan | Notre Dame Preparatory School (MA) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Sep 30, 2010 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 91 ||||||
| Zach Price C | Louisville, KY | Jeffersontown High School (KY) | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 230 lb (100 kg) | Sep 8, 2009 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 95 ||||||
| Kevin Ware SG | Conyers, Georgia | Rockdale County High School (GA) | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 167 lb (76 kg) | May 31, 2011 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 92 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 7 Rivals: 9 ESPN: 5 ||||||
| 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. "2011 Louisville Basketball Commitment List". Scout.com. "ESPN". ESPN.com. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. "2011 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 26, 2011* 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 9 | Pikeville | W 74–55 | – | 16 – Behanan | 15 – Dieng | 5 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (18,866) Louisville, KY |
| November 3, 2011* 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 9 | Bellarmine | W 62–54 | – | 14 – Behanan/Swopshire | 9 – Behanan | 3 – C. Smith/Justice | KFC Yum! Center (19,911) Louisville, KY |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| November 11, 2011* 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 9 | Tennessee-Martin Global Sports Invitational | W 83–48 | 1–0 | 14 – Behanan/Kuric | 12 – Behanan | 9 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (20,485) Louisville, KY |
| November 13, 2011* 4:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 9 | Lamar Global Sports Invitational | W 68–48 | 2–0 | 13 – Swopshire | 13 – Behanan | 3 – Siva/Kuric | KFC Yum! Center (19,842) Louisville, KY |
| November 19, 2011* 2:00 p.m., ESPN3 | No. 8 | at Butler | W 69–53 | 3–0 | 17 – Kuric | 7 – Behanan | 3 – Kuric | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,071) Indianapolis, IN |
| November 22, 2011* 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 7 | Arkansas State Global Sports Invitational | W 54–27 | 4–0 | 12 – Kuric | 7 – Dieng/Swopshire | 7 – C. Smith | KFC Yum! Center (20,323) Louisville, KY |
| November 25, 2011* 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 7 | Ohio Global Sports Invitational | W 59–54 | 5–0 | 16 – Kuric | 16 – Dieng | 6 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (21,334) Louisville, KY |
| November 28, 2011* 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | No. 6 | Long Beach State | W 79–66 | 6–0 | 18 – C. Smith | 7 – Dieng | 5 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (20,468) Louisville, KY |
| December 2, 2011* 8:30 p.m., ESPN | No. 6 | No. 19 Vanderbilt 2011 SEC–Big East Invitational | W 62–60 $^{OT}$ | 7–0 | 15 – Kuric | 10 – Behanan | 5 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,728) Louisville, KY |
| December 7, 2011* 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 5 | IUPUI | W 90–60 | 8–0 | 19 – C. Smith | 12 – Dieng | 8 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (20,604) Louisville, KY |
| December 10, 2011* 4:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 5 | Fairleigh Dickinson | W 80–58 | 9–0 | 18 – Kuric | 12 – Dieng | 9 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (20,264) Louisville, KY |
| December 17, 2011* 4:00 p.m., CBS | No. 4 | Memphis Basketball Hall of Fame Shootout | W 95–87 | 10–0 | 24 – R. Smith | 14 – Dieng | 9 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,733) Louisville, KY |
| December 20, 2011* 9:00 p.m., ESPNU | No. 4 | College of Charleston | W 69–62 | 11–0 | 17 – Kuric | 10 – Dieng | 6 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (20,750) Louisville, KY |
| December 23, 2011* 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 4 | WKU Billy Minardi Classic | W 70–60 | 12–0 | 23 – R. Smith | 15 – Dieng | 4 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,150) Louisville, KY |
| December 28, 2011 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 4 | No. 12 Georgetown | L 68–71 | 12–1 (0–1) | 17 – Kuric | 11 – Benhanan/Dieng | 6 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,517) Louisville, KY |
| December 31, 2011* 12:00 p.m., CBS | No. 4 | at No. 3 Kentucky Battle for the Bluegrass | L 62–69 | 12–2 (0–1) | 30 – R. Smith | 5 – Tied | 4 – Siva | Rupp Arena (24,387) Lexington, KY |
| January 3, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | No. 11 | at St. John's | W 73–58 | 13–2 (1–1) | 17 – R. Smith | 9 – Dieng/Swopshire | 7 – R. Smith | Madison Square Garden (9,258) New York, NY |
| January 7, 2011 4:00 p.m., ESPNU | No. 11 | Notre Dame | L 63–67 $^{2OT}$ | 13–3 (1–2) | 17 – Behanan/Kuric | 10 – Behanan/Kuric | 5 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,687) Louisville, KY |
| January 10, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | No. 14 | at Providence | L 59–90 | 13–4 (1–3) | 16 – C. Smith | 9 – Kuric | 4 – C. Smith | Dunkin' Donuts Center (8,163) Providence, RI |
| January 14, 2012 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 14 | DePaul | W 76–59 | 14–4 (2–3) | 25 – R. Smith | 12 – Dieng | 6 – Siva/R. Smith | KFC Yum! Center (21,223) Louisville, KY |
| January 16, 2012 3:30 p.m., ESPN | No. 23 | at No. 21 Marquette | L 63–74 | 14–5 (2–4) | 10 – R. Smith | 12 – C. Behanan | 8 – P. Siva | Bradley Center (16,688) Milwaukee, WI |
| January 21, 2012 9:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 23 | at Pittsburgh ESPN College GameDay | W 73–62 | 15–5 (3–4) | 21 – Kuric | 14 – Deing | 7 – Siva | Petersen Events Center (12,508) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 25, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPN | | Villanova | W 84–74 | 16–5 (4–4) | 16 – Siva | 13 – Dieng | 5 – Siva/R. Smith | KFC Yum! Center (21,219) Louisville, KY |
| January 28, 2011 8:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | | at Seton Hall | W 60–51 | 17–5 (5–4) | 14 – R. Smith | 14 – Dieng | 4 – Siva | Prudential Center (9,573) Newark, NJ |
| February 4, 2012 4:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | | Rutgers | W 78–66 | 18–5 (6–4) | 23 – Behanan | 13 – C. Smith | 6 – C. Smith | KFC Yum! Center (21,298) Louisville, KY |
| February 6, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 24 | Connecticut Big Monday | W 80–59 | 19–5 (7–4) | 16 – C. Smith | 12 – Behanan | 9 – P. Siva | KFC Yum! Center (21,804) Louisville, KY |
| February 11, 2012 12:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 24 | at West Virginia | W 77–74 | 20–5 (8–4) | 17 – Kuric | 6 – Behanan/Dieng | 5 – Siva | WVU Coliseum (11,254) Morgantown, WV |
| February 13, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPN | No. 19 | No. 2 Syracuse Big Monday | L 51–52 | 20–6 (8–5) | 16 – Behanan | 10 – Dieng | 4 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,738) Louisville, KY |
| February 18, 2012 12:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 19 | at DePaul | W 90–82 $^{OT}$ | 21–6 (9–5) | 25 – Kuric | 9 – Dieng | 6 – Siva | Allstate Arena (13,674) Rosemont, Illinois |
| February 23, 2012 9:00 p.m., ESPNU | No. 17 | at Cincinnati | L 56–60 | 21–7 (9–6) | 14 – Siva | 13 – Dieng | 4 – Siva | Fifth Third Arena (13,176) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 26, 2012 2:00 p.m., CBS | No. 17 | Pittsburgh | W 57–54 | 22–7 (10–6) | 18 – R. Smith | 5 – Dieng/Siva | 5 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,746) Louisville, KY |
| February 29, 2012 7:00 p.m., BEN/WHAS | No. 19 | South Florida Senior Night | L 51–58 | 22–8 (10–7) | 14 – Kuric/C. Smith | 7 – Behanan | 3 – Siva | KFC Yum! Center (22,114) Louisville, KY |
| March 3, 2012 4:00 p.m., CBS | No. 19 | at No. 2 Syracuse | L 49–58 | 22–9 (10–8) | 10 – Behanan/R. Smith | 12 – Dieng | 4 – Siva | Carrier Dome (33,205) Syracuse, NY |
| Big East tournament |||||||||
| March 7, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPN | (7) | vs. (10) Seton Hall Second Round | W 61–55 | 23–9 | 14 – Siva | 10 – Dieng | 3 – Siva | Madison Square Garden (20,057) New York, NY |
| March 8, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPN | (7) | vs. (2) No. 9 Marquette Quarter Final | W 84–71 | 24–9 | 20 – Kuric | 12 – Swopshire | 6 – Siva | Madison Square Garden (20,057) New York, NY |
| March 9, 2012 9:00 p.m., ESPN | (7) | vs. (3) No. 23 Notre Dame Semi Final | W 64–50 | 25–9 | 16 – Dieng | 6 – Dieng | 9 – Siva | Madison Square Garden (20,057) New York, NY |
| March 10, 2012 7:00 p.m., ESPN | (7) | vs. (4) Cincinnati Final | W 50–44 | 26–9 | 15 – C. Smith | 10 – Dieng | 5 – Siva | Madison Square Garden (20,057) New York, NY |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 15, 2012* 1:40 p.m., TBS | (4 W) No. 17 | vs. (13 W) Davidson Second Round | W 69–62 | 27–9 | 17 – Siva | 11 – Behanan | 6 – Siva | Rose Garden Arena (17,519) Portland, Oregon |
| March 17, 2012* 9:52 p.m., TBS | (4 W) No. 17 | vs. (5 W) No. 21 New Mexico Third Round | W 59–56 | 28–9 | 17 – R. Smith | 10 – Deng | 5 – Siva | Rose Garden Arena (17,519) Portland, Oregon |
| March 22, 2012* 7:47 p.m., TBS | (4 W) No. 17 | vs. (1 W) No. 5 Michigan State Sweet Sixteen | W 57–44 | 29–9 | 15 – Behanan | 9 – Behanan/Dieng | 9 – Siva | US Airways Center (14,913) Phoenix, Arizona |
| March 24, 2012* 4:33 p.m., CBS | (4 W) No. 17 | vs. (7 W) No. 25 Florida Elite Eight | W 72–68 | 30–9 | 19 – Smith | 7 – Behanan | 8 – Siva | US Airways Center (13,456) Phoenix, Arizona |
| March 31, 2012* 6:09 p.m., CBS | (4 W) No. 17 | vs. (1 S) No. 1 Kentucky Final Four | L 61–69 | 30–10 | 11 – Siva | 12 – Dieng | 3 – Siva | Mercedes-Benz Superdome (73,361) New Orleans, LA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time (#) during NCAA Tournament is seed with Region. |||||||||

## Awards
### Big East All-Tournament Team

* Gorgui Dieng
* Kyle Kuric
* Peyton Siva

### Big East tournament Most Outstanding Player

* Peyton Siva

### NCAA (West) Regional All-Tournament Team

* Chane Behanan
* Gorgui Dieng
* Peyton Siva

### NCAA (West) Regional Most Outstanding Player

* Chane Behanan

## Rankings

Ranking Movement Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. ██ Not ranked the previous week. :
| Poll | Pre | Wk 1 | 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 | Final |
| AP | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 14 | 23 | – | – | 24 | 19 | 17 | 19 | – | 17 | |
| Coaches | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 15 | 21 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 18 | 17 | 18 | – | 17 | 4 |