Louisville Head Coach Chris Mack has led our Cards to an excellent season so far. Yes, there have been bumps in the road, but Louisville sits at 22-5 and in first place in the ACC with a 13-3 conference record. The Cards hold their destiny in their own hands because if they can win out, they will be outright ACC regular season champs for the first time since joining the conference.
Coach Mack is a big reason why the Cards are in this position. His ability to adapt, to change things up on the court and in the lineup, and to motivate his team have led to big victories over Duke and Virginia in the ACC. It also led to Louisville being ranked number 1 for a spell early in the season after a big victory over then 4th ranked Michigan.
This season’s success has led to Coach Mack being named one of 15 coaches on the late season watch list for the Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year Award. Coach Mack joins a pretty distinguished list of candidates that includes Baylor’s Scott Drew, Gonzaga’s Mark Few, and former Louisville assistant and current Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard. The only other ACC coach on the list is actually Leonard Hamilton of Florida State.
This award has been given out annually since 1987 by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. Last year’s winner was Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes. Coach Mack will be looking to become the first Louisville head coach to win the award.
You can read more about the award and Coach Mack’s candidacy in the press release from UofL below.
PRESS RELEASE FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT:
Mack a Candidate for Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – University of Louisville men’s basketball coach Chris Mack is one of 15 coaches on the late season watch list for the 2020 Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
In his second season with the Cardinals, Mack has guided No. 11/11 Louisville to a 22-5 record and a 13-3 ACC record which places UofL atop the league standings with four games remaining in the regular season. It is the best start for a Louisville team in six years and marks the most conference victories for the Cardinals in their six years in the ACC. This year is the just the fourth time in Louisville history that the Cardinals have remained among the top 13 of the Associated Press poll through the first 16 polls of the season (also 1966-67, 1974-75, 2012-13; poll for 1966-67 was only 15 weeks total).
Louisville is among the national leaders in three-point field goal percentage (.384, 11th in the nation), field goal percentage defense (.385, 16th), rebounding margin (+6.6, 19th) and scoring margin (+11.4, 21st). Louisville ranks among the nation’s top 35 teams in both offensive and defensive efficiency and stand at No. 9 in the nation in the NCAA’s NET rankings.
Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton is the only other ACC coach on the list with Mack. The others included on the late season watch list are Patrick Chambers, Penn State; Scott Drew, Baylor; Brian Dutcher, San Diego State; Mark Few, Gonzaga; Anthony Grant, Dayton; Bob Huggins, West Virginia; Ben Jacobson, Northern Iowa; LaVall Jordan, Butler; Greg McDermott, Creighton; Bruce Pearl, Auburn; Steve Pikiell, Rutgers; Brad Underwood; Illinois; and Kevin Willard, Seton Hall.
Louisville plays its second straight at home in the KFC Yum! Center on Saturday as the Cardinals face the North Carolina Tar Heels (Feb. 22, 4:05 p.m. ET, TV: ESPN, Radio: WKRD 790 AM).
This information may be found online at this link: https://uofl.me/39Qxvx5
