For Louisville basketball, the next step forward is a step back

It’s been just 24 months since I was writing and all of us were talking incessantly about the desire for the Louisville men’s basketball program to return to a state of normalcy”normal.”

It might as well have been 24 years ago.

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Chucky Hepburn, Terrence Edwards and “The Revivalists” will be remembered forever. Of this I have no doubt.

The group won 27 games — more than the previous three seasons combined — became the first Cardinal team to play for an ACC Tournament title, made the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019, and created a load of faith from the fan base in a head coach most of them couldn’t have picked out of a lineup the year before.

Perhaps more important than all of those accomplishments was the fact that they made winter in the city of Louisville feel like it’s supposed to again. No more talk about scandals, no more talk about who the next coach might be, no more talk about whether or not the fans would even watch the games (shoutout, Corito); The buzz was back in the city, and it was all centered around actual basketball talk.

Here’s the thing about normalcy, though: It’s an illusion. In all walks of life. There are no universally accepted and clearly defined borders within which all “normal” activity must exist. “Normal” is always changing, and any understanding of what is “normal” is always temporary.

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The word “normal” feels particularly out of place when using it in the realm of a sport that is largely defined by its “madness.”

There are 368 teams competing in Division-I men’s basketball this season. A normal season for North Carolina and a normal season for North Carolina A&T are two extremely different things. The definition is only slightly easier to pinpoint when talking about each program specifically. A national title winning season or a Final Four run isn’t necessarily “normal” for the Tar Heels. Neither is missing the NCAA tournament or being on the wrong end of a first round upset.

Clarity in college basketball is…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/louisville-basketball-next-step-forward-180912261.html

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Publish date : 2026-11-02 18:09:00

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