Louisville Ranked No. 100 in CBS Sports' 2022-23 Preseason Top 101 Teams

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - A sure sign that the college basketball season is on the horizon is the emergence of a variety preseason polls. The Associated Press Top 25 and USA TODAY Coaches Poll have already been released, and several more extensive preseason polls have begun to trickle out.

One such poll is the CBS Sports' Top 100 and 1 college basketball teams, in which senior writer and college basketball analyst Matt Norlander - as the name suggests - ranks the top 101 teams in Division I basketball.

Louisville heads into the upcoming season with a fair amount of unknowns surrounding their program, and as a result, Norlander is not very high on the Cardinals, ranking them as No. 100 heading into the 2022-23 season.

"Guard play seems lacking and I'm afraid Louisville fans are going to have to endure big bumps in Kenny Payne's first season," Norlander wrote. "U of L's best player will probably be either Tennessee 6-10 transfer Brandon Huntley-Hatfield or 6-9 returnee Jae'Lyn Withers. Cards do have size, at least. We did a Summer Shootaround podcast episode on Louisville (because we're sickos), but the real intrigue here is whether or not Louisville can play spoiler in the ACC right away under Payne."

The only Atlantic Coast Conference teams to not get ranked in the top 101 by Norlander were Pitt and Georgia Tech. Four ACC teams placed in the top 25: North Caroline at No. 1, Duke at No. 15, Virginia at No. 16 and Notre Dame at No. 25. North Carolina, Kentucky, Gonzaga, Houston and Arkansas round out the top five.

This is far from the only preseason poll that isn't sold on Louisville heading into the 2022-23 season. The Cardinals were selected to finish 12th in the ACC race according to the league's preseason media poll, and were tabbed as the No. 91 team in the nation by KenPom.com's preseason numbers.

Last season, Louisville suffered their first losing campaign in over two decades, going 13-19 and mutually separating with head coach Chris Mack midway through the season. The Cardinals hired Kenny Payne, a former national champion with Louisville as a player and longtime assistant coach at Kentucky, as their next head coach.

The Cardinals have just six returners from last season in Sydney Curry, El Ellis, Mike James, Jae'Lyn Withers, J.J. Traynor and Roosevelt Wheeler. Louisville and Payne added 2022 prospects Kamari Lands, Devin Ree and Fabio Basili; as well as transfers Brandon Huntley-Hatfield and Hercy Miller to the fold to replace the departing talent.

Louisville will tip-off the regular season on Wednesday, Nov. 9 against Bellarmine at the KFC Yum! Center.

(Photo of Kenny Payne: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)

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