Andre McGee News

The University of Louisville's 2008-09 men's basketball season in the Big East Conference will include a slate of 18 games, including two games each against Notre Dame, West Virginia and South Florida.

The University of Louisville men's basketball team is among the top ten teams in the nation in a 2008-09 preseason ranking by a pair of national web sites.

Samardo Samuels, the No. 2 rated player in the '08 class, will play a key role at Louisville next season.

“I'm delighted he has made the prudent decision to return to school. He'll definitely be one of the premier forward in college basketball next season. He's a hard worker that has really improved each day and will continue to do so.”

Talk about it in the Message Boards Louisville sophomore Earl Clark has decided to stay in school and compete in his junior year of college basketball, according to the school and head coach Rick Pitino. via Rivals.com

“Before that game, when people talked, like around breakfast or dinner, we'd say, 'Yeah, we go to the Final Four, I'm leaving. Yeah, I'm leaving, too. All right.”

The University of Louisville has officially entered the reign of T-Will. No need for the full name. via The Courier-Journal

“They're used to Ritz Carltons and Four Seasons hotels, not the hotels we stay in.”

Tyler Hansbrough's dominant season has already ensured he'll have his number retired at North Carolina. The 6-foot-9 junior is third in career scoring at the school and has shattered numerous free throw records.

But the questions persist about how effective Hansbrough will be as an NBA player, playing his back-to-the-basket style against bigger players.

Coach Roy Williams said he hasn't had specific discussions with NBA personnel about whether it would be wise for Hansbrough to turn pro after this season. Read more

“When we first got him, he had these cramping problems like you wouldn't believe”

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- When Rick Pitino went to watch Andre McGee in high school, he came away very impressed and knew the guard would be a perfect fit for his scheme.

A few days later, he called McGee, but had trouble getting him on the phone.

Turns out, the recruit he coveted was in the hospital in Las Vegas.

In high school, McGee started suffering from severe cramping. The junior was eventually diagnosed as a carrier of the sickle cell trait and has had to take extreme measures to continue his college basketball career. Read more

“I think you see that this team has the capability of buckling down and being that great defensive team.”

Roy Williams has never stopped pushing his North Carolina team to play better defense, not even as it piled up lopsided wins and crowd-pleasing offensive displays that few teams can match. via Houston Chronicle

“But he came back and started pushing people into the offense. And when Coach P ain't talking, he was talking.”

CHARLOTTE, March 28 -- His teammates call him the 'Golden Child' because David Padgett doesn't have to practice as much as everyone else on the Louisville roster. And when he speaks in that heavy baritone, whether in the locker room or on the court, everyone listens.

Even Coach P, which is how the Louisville Cardinals refer to Rick Pitino, has given up trying to hide Padgett's special status on the squad.

But in a sport in which resentment and jealousy can sour team chemistry quicker than a costly turnover in overtime, Louisville players feel nothing but gratitude for their 6-foot-11, 250-pound Golden Child. Read more

“Yeah, the Georgetown loss is still on our mind”

Louisville coach Rick Pitino speaks during a news conference for the NCAA East Regional basketball tournament Friday, March 28, 2008, in Charlotte, N.C. North Carolina plays Louisville in the regional final ... via Buffalo News

Louisville's suffocating defense has coach Rick Pitino a step away from a sixth trip to the Final Four. Earl Clark scored 17 points and had 12 rebounds, and Pitino's mix of defenses made life miserable for Tennessee in a 79-60 win Thursday to put the third-seeded Cardinals in the East Regional final.

Pitino, who has won two NCAA titles and has taken three schools to the Final Four, has Louisville playing its best basketball of the season when it counts the most. After two blowout wins last weekend, Pitino's signature zone and pressure limited the high-scoring Volunteers to 34-percent shooting. The veteran coach improved to 8-0 in regional semifinals and secured a date with top-seed North Carolina on Saturday night. Read more

Remember the back-to-back losses for Louisville? The regular-season finale at Georgetown? The overtime loss in the first round of the Big East Conference Tournament against Pittsburgh? Forget about it. via The Mobile Register Online

“We were penetrating and getting people open looks. They just weren't going down.”

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Four times Thursday during a Louisville open practice, Andre McGee catapulted a basketball into the air from midcourt, bouncing it just inside the free-throw lane and back up through the rim. via The Cincinnati Enquirer

Rick Pitino and Louisville pressed on. Earl Clark scored 14 points and the Cardinals played to near-perfection on both ends, romping past Oklahoma 78-48 Sunday in the second round of the East Regional. via The Oregonian

“Just promise me this. Please get your spacing right in our press offense when they get down and have to press us.”

Maybe you've listened to University of Louisville men's basketball coach Rick Pitino over the past week or so and wondered what kind of dream world he's living in. via The Courier-Journal

“I thought our frontcourt played well”

NEW YORK University of Louisville coach Rick Pitino was asked after last night's 76-69 overtime loss to Pittsburgh if he was concerned about entering the NCAA Tournament with two straight losses. via The Courier-Journal

“I think it's a great compliment to us having played the sixth-toughest schedule in the nation and competing in the nation's toughest conference”

The consensus is that No. 3 seed Louisville has a 'good draw' in the NCAA Tournament's East Regional, with Boise State in the first round and an all-but-certain second-round against the winner of Oklahoma vs. via The Cincinnati Enquirer

“Teams always look much better when they shoot the ball well and you make the outside shot. It's always been that way. So we've got to regroup and make sure.”

NEW YORK -- The University of Louisville men's basketball players sat in their locker-room stalls Thursday night, expressionless and still. via The Courier-Journal

Sam Young had 21 points and 12 rebounds, and hit a pair of free throws with less than a minute left in overtime to help Pittsburgh beat No. via Fort Wayne Journal Gazette

“Catholics believe in purgatory. If you have a lot of sins, it's a way to stop over before you get to heaven. I always thought I'd have to spend time in purgatory. But after coaching Edgar Sosa, I'm going right to heaven.”

From keeping the players together in a huddle during pregame introductions to deflecting individual attention, University of Louisville men's basketball coach Rick Pitino has fostered a team-first mentality. via The Courier-Journal