Louisville basketball is set to take on South Carolina State on Nov. 3 from KFC Yum! Center. The Cardinals played two exhibition games before their 2025-26 regular season and finished with a 1-1 record. While the fans were disappointed in their debut against Kansas, they bounced back strong and dominated Bucknell in a 99-76 victory.
That Kansas loss is expected to be a crucial one for this Cardinals squad, as many are already comparing it to the Tennessee loss last year. Pat Kelsey and J'Vonne Hadley sent a strong message after the loss to Kansas that the loss to the Jayhawks was a crucial learning experience for the team, which had lost over 70 percent of its production from the previous season.
After Louisville's dominant win over Bucknell earlier this week, Isaac McKneely was interviewed following the victory, and the elite sharpshooter revealed what Kelsey's message was to the team in the film room.
Related: J’Vonne Hadley sends strong message to Louisville basketball fans after Kansas loss
Isaac McKneely reveals Pat Kelsey’s message after Kansas loss
With the Cardinals eyeing a historic season and a preseason contender for its first ACC Title, and trying to reach the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2015, the Kansas loss is a game that the fans and the team will bring up throughout the season. This new-looking Cardinals squad got much-needed experience against an elite team, and McKneely revealed Kelsey's message on what the team must improve after Louisville's loss to Kansas.
"The main emphasis of the film session wasn't like X's and O's. It was more toughness, attitude, mentality," McKneely stated on Tuesday after Louisville's win over Bucknell. "He thinks especially early in the game they were kind of taking it to us, and a big emphasis for us is to take it to the other team. We have to get off to better starts. A big emphasis was toughness and grit, and that was the main message."
The Cards got off to a slow start in both games, but against Kansas, they went down 9-0 to start the game and trailed 30-18 after about 13 minutes of the first half. Against Bucknell, it was back and forth, and the Cards trailed 30-27 at the under-eight-minute timeout.
So, McKneely and Kelsey are right; this team has to start faster. However, that was somewhat expected, as this team is brand new and led by many new faces. The grit and toughness are what Louisville basketball fans love to hear.
Kelsey is a high-energy coach who preaches effort. So, when fans watch the film of the Kansas game and then the Bucknell game, they will see that emphasis showed up against Bucknell, as the team played much harder and displayed the grit Kelsey wanted.
Louisville was down 30-27 at that TV timeout, but then went up 41-36 and never looked back. The Cardinals had the opportunity to play two Division I schools this preseason and learned a great deal about their team. Yes, they can shoot a team out of the gym, and Mikel Brown Jr. is an absolute stud. However, they also learned that against the elite teams, they must start faster and take the game to the other team, rather than letting the opponent dictate the pace.
This Cards team is poised for a deep postseason run, and Louisville's loss to Kansas continues to provide valuable lessons for this squad. Louisville takes on Kentucky on Nov. 11, and the fans can only assume that the massive rivalry game, following the Kansas loss, will light a fire in them to send a message to the rest of the nation that they are the real deal.
For all the latest news and updates on Louisville basketball's 2025-26 season and recruiting, stay tuned.