The Cardinals face high expectations thanks in large part to what coach Pat Kelsey did in his debut season. Louisville won 19 more games with Kelsey, the largest turnaround in program history. That's why Kelsey was named Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year, his third such honor each in a different Division I league. Kelsey faces a new challenge this season with only one starter back and five Cardinals who have played before at Louisville.
Guard Ryan Conwell averaged 16.5 points a game at Xavier. He's also a career 39.3% shooter from 3-point range, and the preseason All-ACC first team guard has started 93 of 104 games in a career that started at South Florida with a stop at Indiana State. Guard Mikel Brown Jr. is the other preseason All-ACC pick. He won gold with USA Basketball's U-19 national team this summer and also won the 3-point contest at the McDonald's All-American game.
Center James Scott, who started 31 of 35 games, now is at Ole Miss along with Koren Johnson. Kelsey added SG Isaac McKneely from Virginia, a 42.2% shooter outside the arc. Guard Adrian Wooley transferred from Kennesaw State is part of a portal class rated third nationally by 247Sports.
The annual game with No. 9 Kentucky is much earlier, on Nov. 11. The Cards visit Arkansas on Dec. 3 and play Indiana in Indianapolis on Dec. 6. Memphis visits Dec. 13, and Louisville goes to No. 18 Tennessee on Dec. 16. ACC play starts Dec. 30 at California. Sixth-ranked Duke visits Jan. 6 with a return trip Jan. 26. The Cards play No. 25 North Carolina only once on the road Feb. 23 as part of three of the final four away from home.
This is the 664th time the Cardinals have been ranked in the AP Top 25, which ranks sixth-most all-time. ... Louisville has only 22.9% of its scoring, 31.2% of rebounding and 25.7% of minutes played back from last season. ... Louisville has 10 newcomers on this roster. ... Aly Khalifa and Kobe Rodgers are back after missing last season with knee injuries. ... The Cards lost their NCAA Tournament opener to Creighton.
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