Imari Berry Named to ACC Newcomer Watch List
October 15, 2024 | Women's Basketball
The Cardinals were predicted to finish fourth overall in the league
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Louisville women's basketball freshman Imari Berry was named to the ACC Newcomer Watch List, the ACC Blue Ribbon Panel announced Tuesday evening. The panel also announced the predicted order of finish for the league and the Cardinals were picked to finish fourth overall.
This will be Louisville's 11th season in the ACC and they have finished in the top-five of the league in each of their 10 seasons. They are the only team in the league to finish fifth or better in each of the last 10 seasons.
The Cardinals have had at least one player on the ACC Newcomer Watch List in five of the last six seasons.
Berry comes to the Cardinals as their highest-ranked recruit in the incoming class according to ESPN HoopGurlz. Berry was a five-star recruit ranked No. 19 overall and was one of four Louisville recruits ranked in the Top-100 overall. The Cardinals recruiting class as a whole was ranked No. 6 by ESPN, the highest-ranked class in the ACC.
Berry was a standout for Clarksville High School in Tennessee. She was named the 2024 Tennessee Girls Gatorade Player of the Year and the 2024 Tennessee Class 4A Ms. Basketball. She is the first player from Clarksville High School to be named Ms. Basketball for the state.In her senior season, she led Clarksville to an undefeated regular season and second-straight trip to the state tournament.
Berry was also named a McDonald's All-American and played in the All-American Game. She was one of two recruits (Mackenly Randolph) to be named a McDonald's All-American. The pair were the 16th and 17th McDonald's All-American the Cardinals have signed during head coach Jeff Walz's tenure at Louisville.
Berry and the Cardinals are set to begin the season in the City of Lights as they participated in the Aflac Oui-Play in Paris. The 17th-ranked Cardinals will square off with No. 5 UCLA on Monday, November 4 from Adidas Arena in Paris. The matchup will begin at 2:30 p.m. ET and aired nationally on ESPN2.
Blue Ribbon Panel Preseason All-ACC Team (First-place votes – 79 voters)
Hannah Hidalgo So., G, Notre Dame 921 (62 first-place votes)
Ta'Niya Latson, Florida State 734 (9 first-place votes)
Saniya Rivers, NC State 527 (2 first-place votes)
Aziaha James, NC State 473 (1 first-place vote)
Olivia Miles, Notre Dame 457 (4 first-place votes)
Sonia Citron, Notre Dame 331
Makayla Timpson, Florida State 315
Alyssa Ustby, North Carolina 308
Reigan Richardson, Duke 202
Kymora Johnson, Virginia 193 (1 first-place vote)
Newcomer Watch List
Toby Fournier, Duke 222
Imari Berry, Louisville 180
Kate Koval, Notre Dame 177
Zamareya Jones, NC State 116
Liza Karlen, Notre Dame 109
Blue Ribbon Panel Predicted Order of Finish (79 voters)
This will be Louisville's 11th season in the ACC and they have finished in the top-five of the league in each of their 10 seasons. They are the only team in the league to finish fifth or better in each of the last 10 seasons.
The Cardinals have had at least one player on the ACC Newcomer Watch List in five of the last six seasons.
Berry comes to the Cardinals as their highest-ranked recruit in the incoming class according to ESPN HoopGurlz. Berry was a five-star recruit ranked No. 19 overall and was one of four Louisville recruits ranked in the Top-100 overall. The Cardinals recruiting class as a whole was ranked No. 6 by ESPN, the highest-ranked class in the ACC.
Berry was a standout for Clarksville High School in Tennessee. She was named the 2024 Tennessee Girls Gatorade Player of the Year and the 2024 Tennessee Class 4A Ms. Basketball. She is the first player from Clarksville High School to be named Ms. Basketball for the state.In her senior season, she led Clarksville to an undefeated regular season and second-straight trip to the state tournament.
Berry was also named a McDonald's All-American and played in the All-American Game. She was one of two recruits (Mackenly Randolph) to be named a McDonald's All-American. The pair were the 16th and 17th McDonald's All-American the Cardinals have signed during head coach Jeff Walz's tenure at Louisville.
Berry and the Cardinals are set to begin the season in the City of Lights as they participated in the Aflac Oui-Play in Paris. The 17th-ranked Cardinals will square off with No. 5 UCLA on Monday, November 4 from Adidas Arena in Paris. The matchup will begin at 2:30 p.m. ET and aired nationally on ESPN2.
Blue Ribbon Panel Preseason All-ACC Team (First-place votes – 79 voters)
Hannah Hidalgo So., G, Notre Dame 921 (62 first-place votes)
Ta'Niya Latson, Florida State 734 (9 first-place votes)
Saniya Rivers, NC State 527 (2 first-place votes)
Aziaha James, NC State 473 (1 first-place vote)
Olivia Miles, Notre Dame 457 (4 first-place votes)
Sonia Citron, Notre Dame 331
Makayla Timpson, Florida State 315
Alyssa Ustby, North Carolina 308
Reigan Richardson, Duke 202
Kymora Johnson, Virginia 193 (1 first-place vote)
Newcomer Watch List
Toby Fournier, Duke 222
Imari Berry, Louisville 180
Kate Koval, Notre Dame 177
Zamareya Jones, NC State 116
Liza Karlen, Notre Dame 109
Blue Ribbon Panel Predicted Order of Finish (79 voters)
- Notre Dame (70), 1726
- NC State (8), 1617
- Duke, 1446
- Louisville, 1370
- Florida State, 1335
- North Carolina, 1279
- Stanford (1), 1214
- Miami, 883
- Virginia, 877
- Georgia Tech, 855
- Syracuse, 801
- Virginia Tech, 786
- Clemson, 553
- California, 546
- Boston College, 533
- SMU, 274
- Wake Forest, 259
- Pitt, 233
Players Mentioned
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