Louisville Obliterates South Carolina State in Season-Opener

To say year two of the Pat Kelsey era of the Louisville men's basketball program is off and running would be an understatement.

Taking the court for their first official game of the 2025-26 season, the Cardinals tipped off the new year of hoops in emphatic fashion, easily coasting to a 101-42 win over South Carolina State on Monday night from the KFC Yum! Center.

The 59-point win for Louisville is their sixth-largest margin of victory in program history, and their largest since a 61-point win over Rutgers on Mar. 13, 2014.

Regardless of which end of the floor the No. 11 Cardinals (1-0, 0-0 ACC) were on, they executed at an extremely high level. They finished their season-opener shooting 53.2 from the field, including 12-of-32 on three point tries.

Of their 33 made baskets, they assisted on 23 of them. The Cards also took advantage of multiple trips to the free throw line, going 26-of-33 from the charity stripe.

Additionally, their defensive intensity was much improved from their two exhibitions against Kansas and Bucknell, and it translated onto the court.

Not only did the Bulldogs (0-1, 0-0 MEAC) only shoot 22.8 percent from the floor and 2-of-19 on threes, they didn't make their first field goal until the 10:36 mark of the first half. Louisville also produced 36 points off 25 forced turnovers, and out-rebounded SC State 47-to-33.

Five Cardinals finished in double figures scoring, including four of their starters. Khani Rooths came off the bench to lead the way with 20 points and seven rebounds, both of which were career-highs.

Isaac McKneely had 17 points primarily on five made threes, J'Vonne Hadley tallied 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds, Ryan Conwell added 12 points, and Mikel Brown Jr. finished with 11 points plus six assists.

Unlike the exhibitions against Kansas and Bucknell, Louisville did not have a slow start against South Carolina State. The Cardinals hit their first five shots of the night and seven of their first nine, while forcing the Bulldogs to miss their first 12 attempts. This allowed UofL to not only score the first 13 points of the game, but go up 22-2 at the under-12 timeout.

These trends on both ends of the court did not slow down at the first half progressed. Not only did Louisville shoot a blazing 16-of-31 from the field before halftime, South Carolina State also shot 3-of-29 - including not making a field goal in the final eight minutes of the period. This produced an astounding 59-15 edge for the Cardinals at the break, with their 44-point halftime lead being the largest in program history.

Louisville took their foot off the gas in the second half, but that didn't stop them from having their way with South Carolina State. The Cardinals still shot 17-for-31 in the latter half of play, while also holding the Bulldogs to 10-of-28. SC State didn't cross the 20-point threshold until the 12:01 mark, while UofL led by as much as 61 and hit the 100-point mark with 2:32 left in the game.

Next up, Louisville will continue on their four-game home stand to open the 2025-26 season with a showdown against Jackson State. Tip-off against the Tigers is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 6 at 7:00 p.m. EST.