What to Watch For During Louisville's Exhibition Games

Game day has finally returned for the Louisville men's basketball program. Well, sort of.

The Cardinals might have to wait until Nov. 3 to kick off the regular season, but until then, they have a pair of exhibition matches to get them warmed up - and the first one is finally here

No. 11 Louisville will welcome No. 19 Kansas to the KFC Yum! Center tonight, Friday, Oct. 24 at 7:30 p.m. EST. That will then be followed up by hosting Bucknell in the Kentuckiana Friends of V Classic on Tuesday, Oct. 28 at 7:00 p.m. EST.

Ahead of Louisville's two preseason games against the Jayhawks and Bison, here are some things to watch out for as the Cardinals kick off exhibition play:

The Mikel Brown Jr. Effect

It's not hyperbole to suggest that Louisville has one of the best backcourts, if not the very best, in all of college basketball. The crown jewel of the Cardinals' group of guards, without a doubt, is point guard Mikel Brown Jr.

While Brown is a true freshman, he's not your ordinary first-year player. He was the top-ranked point guard in all of high school hoops in the past recruiting cycle, and with a 0.9969 rating on the 247Sports Composite, he's the second-highest rated recruit to ever commit to the Cardinals in the modern era.

Between what he was able to do in high school, on the offseason circuit last summer, and even for Team USA this summer, expectations are through the roof for Brown. Between his own ability to score, and the fact that he is surrounded by elite shooters that he can distribute to, Louisville can go as far as Brown takes them.

On top of seeing just how deadly he can be on the offensive end, we'll get a glance at just how good he can be defensively as well. In the Kansas exhibition, Brown's expected to be matched up against Darryn Peterson, who was the second-ranked prospect in the 2025 cycle.

"Mikel is so seasoned," head coach Pat Kelsey said. "You look, for instance, on a really, really big stage in (FIBA) World Championships, he was the best darn player in the tournament, with the other best players in the world at his age. Chucky (Hepburn) was a big moments, big lights, big stage, wants the moment guy and Mikel is the exact same way."

The Frontcourt's Potential

Between Brown, as well as transfer guards Ryan Conwell, Isaac McKneely and Adrian Wooley, we know that Louisville will a team dominated by what their group of guards and wings will accomplish. That being said, the Cardinals have the potential to get good product out of the frontcourt.

Someone who has the potential to really thrive this season is Aly Khalifa. He is one of the best passing big men in all of college basketball, averaging 4.0 assists per game in 2023-24 at BYU. On top of that, during his rehabilitation process last season, Khalifa dropped nearly 50 pounds and is noticeably more muscular. Already a big man who can space the floor thanks to his shooting, it will be interesting to see how much more physical he is this year than in season's past.

That being said, the real wild card in the frontcourt is Sananda Fru. Coming from Germany after playing a few seasons professionally, Fru is an incredibly mobile and athletic player for his size. He plays very well around the rim, and is always in attack mode. While not nearly the shooter that Khalifa is, that is an element of his game he continues to work on. How his skill set translates to the college game remains to be seen, but there is a ton of upside here, and it could be tough to keep him out of the lineup.

While it remains to be seen if Kasean Pryor will be ready to go on day one, he is towards the very end of his rehab process, and will likely make his season debut sooner after the season-opener vs. SC State. He brings a rebounding edge to him and is a good shooter, so if you throw him into the mix with Khalifa and Fru, and Louisville has some versatile options down in the paint.

Since Pryor is likely not going to play in the exhibitions, this paves a way for Mouhamed Camara and Vangelis Zougris to get some playing time down low. Both are international pickups, and like with Fru, their ability to translate to the college game is a bit up in the air. We won't likely see either have a massive role this season, but the preseason will confirm or invalidate this notion.

Khani Rooths' Jump From Year One

Between the loaded backcourt and the potential in the frontcourt, Louisville is not exactly lacking in the talent department, and they're expected to have a lot of high end contributors for this upcoming season. But someone who could be an X-Factor is on this team is sophomore wing Khani Rooths.

Rooths was Kelsey's lone high school pickup from last offseason, flipping from Michigan after the Wolverines dismissed head coach Juwan Howard. He had a modest true freshman campaign last season, playing in all 35 games while averaging 3.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.

His season-long stat line might not jump off the page, but Rooths had a handful of noteworthy performances last season. He had 12 points and seven rebounds at SMU, as well as 10 points and six boards in the first matchup with Duke. While consistency was something that Rooths struggled with, he certainly showed flashes of his potential.

If you ask Kelsey, over the course of the current offseason, it seems that Rooth is starting to realize his true potential as a collegiate player. Considering how much talent Louisville already has, if Rooths can add to that mix and have a productive sophomore year on the wing, that could help bolster's Louisville's chances at winning a title.

"Khani has really grown as a player ... he had an unbelievable off season," Kelsey said. "He's a very conscientious kid. He wants coaching, he wants to improve, loves to watch film, and he's remarkably talented. Great athleticism, great personality, talented. My expectations for how he continues to grow is sky high."