Men's Basketball to be Featured on ESPN College GameDay
August 11, 2011 | Men's Basketball
Aug. 11, 2011
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Among the many appearances the University of Louisville men's basketball team will make on national television, ESPN has announced that the Cardinals are slated to square off with BIG EAST foe Pittsburgh on ESPN College Game Day Driven by State Farm - the eight-week Saturday morning and evening college basketball program originating from the site of ESPN's Saturday Primetime Presented by DIRECTV telecast.
The contest between the Cardinals and Panthers is set for Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, at 9 p.m. at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh, Pa.
The Cardinals are coming off a remarkable 2010-11 season by tying for third in the BIG EAST Conference, earning 20 wins for the ninth-straight season, reaching the title game of the BIG EAST Championship, defeating seven Top 25 teams and rising to as high as 11th in both the AP and ESPN/USA Today polls. U of L had been picked to finish eighth in the league, did not receive a single vote in the AP preseason poll, had 10 players miss games with injuries last year and opened the season with no regular starters from the previous season.
Louisville enters the 2011-12 season with the eighth-best recruiting class nationally according to ESPN.com.
ESPN's College GameDay Driven by State Farm returns for its eighth season beginning Saturday, Jan. 14. In a one-time only switch, the season debut will be on ESPN with the second hour on ESPNU. Most other weeks, a two-hour show will air at 10 a.m. on ESPNU, continuing at 11 a.m. on ESPN with a one-hour edition at 8 p.m. on ESPN (except for Jan. 28 and March 3). The Saturday Primetime game-of-the-week series will generally be aired at 9 p.m. (exceptions noted below).
Nick Dawson, director, ESPN programming & acquisitions, said, "We worked to assemble the most exciting conference matchups for Saturday Primetime at sites we are confident will be enthusiastic and welcoming hosts for College GameDay."
For the eighth year, Rece Davis will serve as point guard for the College GameDay desk and will be joined by analysts Jay Bilas, Digger Phelps, Hubert Davis and Bob Knight to preview all the day's action and discuss the biggest storylines in college basketball.
ESPN COLLEGE GAMEDAY: RANKING THE CONFERENCES
(Information provided by ESPN)
| Conference | Hosted | Total Team Appearances |
| BIG EAST | 14 | 30 |
| ACC | 11-12 | 21-23 |
| Big 12 | 11-12 | 22-24 |
| SEC | 10 | 21 |
| Big Ten | 8 | 16 |
| Pac 12 | 4 | 9 |
| C-USA | 2 | 4 |
| WCC | 2 | 2 |
| MVC | 1 | 2 |
ESPN COLLEGE GAMEDAY: RANKING THE BIG EAST
*2011-12 schedule is included.
| School | Hosted | Total Team Appearances |
| Syracuse | 3 | 4 |
| LOUISVILLE | 2 | 6 |
| Pittsburgh | 2 | 5 |
| Connecticut Men | 2 | 5 |
| Notre Dame Men | 1 | 2 |
| Villanova | 1 | 2 |
| Marquette | 1 | 1 |
| Connecticut Women | 1 | 1 |
| West Virginia | 1 | 1 |
| Georgetown | 0 | 2 |
| Notre Dame Women | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 14 | 30 |
