Louisville basketball is coming off an impressive 14-point win over the SMU Mustangs that should give this Cardinals team a major boost moving forward.
The Cardinals improve to 15-6 on the season and 5-4 in conference play, with just a little over a month of regular-season basketball remaining. Louisville saw multiple players step up in their win over SMU, including Mikel Brown Jr. and Isaac McKneely, who combined for 34 points. However, the Cardinals got their glaring X-factor back on the floor in Khani Rooths, and he immediatley showed how valuable he is.
The Field of 68’s Rob Dauster went as far as to say Rooths brings a lot to the table that J’Vonne Hadley doesn’t, and Louisville missing him was just as important as Louisville missing Brown.
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Rob Dauster makes it clear Khani Rooths is crucial for Louisville
Louisville fans have been begging for Pat Kelsey to start Khani Rooths recently, as the 6-foot-10, 215-pound forward brings a lot to the floor that Hadley doesn’t. The Cardinals' frontcourt has been a huge weakness for Louisville, but when Rooths is on the floor and plays 20-minutes or more, the Cardinals are 6-1.
“One of the things that I kind of highlighted from this game was the play of Khani Rooths,” Dauster stated on the show Saturday night. “He is a guy at 6-foot-10, can kind of play on the wing and be your “3” slash “4”. He gives a level of length and athleticism that you don’t get when you play J’Vonne Hadley at “4”. Right? Because Hadley is like 6’5 "or 6’6".”
Now, Louisville fans want Hadley to remain a starter, but they want McKneely to come off the bench. Louisville needs length and athleticism, as Dauster highlighted, and in the win over SMU, he showed why he is the Cardinals' key X-factor.
After missing three weeks of basketball with an illness, Rooths returned with a huge double-double performance, scoring 12 points and bringing in 10 rebounds, while shooting 80 percent from the field in 20 minutes. The Cardinals' frontcourt needs to make a change, and while Hadley is a player who can do it all, he is more of a small forward at 6-foot-6.
“I think he (Roothsa) is a really, really, really important piece to what Louisville does and is an important option for them on both ends of the floor,” Dauster stated. “I think it's going to help Louisville to get him back into the fold as well.”
Rooths is a productive forward who is an elite cutter who can get open and soar for a monster slam, while also being an athletic defender who holds his ground and can rim protect or intercept passing lanes. Louisville has just 10 games remaining, and it is crucial for Kelsey to give Rooths more minutes and to increase his role. When he was out, the Cardinals clearly didn’t just miss Brown, but they missed their key X-factor as well.
Louisville returns to action Wednesday, Feb. 4 inside KFC Yum! Center against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.