What was once a popular confrontation in college basketball, the Memphis vs. Louisville rivalry, has become history and faded from the spotlight in recent years. Conference realignments have separated these two storied programs, now leaving fans looking up to the days when their annual clash was a season highlight.
Evidently, the rivalry doesn’t carry the same heat today, unlike in the past, but the nostalgia it stirs up is still strong. Let us dig into the history of this matchup, the feelings it brings back for fans, and what might lie ahead for these two teams.
A Storied Rivalry
The Memphis vs. Louisville rivalry kicked off back in the 1960s when both teams called the Metro Conference home. For years, it was a showdown that delivered some unforgettable moments.
Let us take the 1983 Metro Conference Tournament for instance; Louisville edged out Memphis in a nail-biting overtime game that sent the Cardinals marching to the NCAA Tournament. Or rewind to 2005, when a John Calipari-led Memphis squad stunned Louisville in a nationally televised thriller, a win that put the Tigers on the map.
What actually made their rivalry special was not just the games mentioned above, but the stakes that came with it. The schools are just a few hours apart, and their fan bases brought a fiery energy that turned every matchup into a grudge match.
But things started to shift when conference realignments shook up college hoops. In 2005, Louisville jumped to the Big East while Memphis stayed put in Conference USA. Then 2014, Louisville bolted for the ACC, putting even more distance between them. The rivalry’s spark then began to dim with no regular-season games on the schedule.
Could the Rivalry Be Revived?
So, is there any hope for bringing this rivalry back to life? Maybe. One of the options that could make it happen is non-conference scheduling.
The teams have met a few times in recent years. The last time was in 2019, when Louisville scraped by in a tight game. But without the backdrop of a conference title chase, those matchups don’t hit the same as they did in the past.
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Another long-shot idea is a conference realignment that puts them back together. Could Memphis join the ACC someday? Or will Louisville slide back to a league with the Tigers? It’s fun to dream about, but there’s no sign of such happening anytime, maybe in the future.
Both teams seem locked into their current spots, and the college hoops landscape isn’t shifting anytime soon.
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