Louisville basketball is making a strong push for one of the top recruits in the 2027 recruiting class, Reese Alston. The Cardinals continue to recruit point guards heavily out of high school, as they landed 5-star Mikel Brown Jr. in the 2025 recruiting class, and now Kelsey will look to land his second 5-star point guard since joining UofL.
Last night, the Cardinals got a major update from the 5-star point guard, as it was reported that Alston cut his list down to just seven schools, including Louisville. The other six schools included Kentucky, LSU, Vanderbilt, Wichita State, Tennessee, and Houston.
Now, as the Cardinals fans continue to keep a close eye on the 5-star point guard, Louisville continues to get more and more good news. On3 Sports' Joe Tipton recently revealed who the “frontrunner” is for Alston, and the Cardinals will be pleased to read that he named Louisville.
Louisville officially is frontrunner for Reese Alston
The Cardinals have had a lot of success recruiting point guards since Kelsey arrived. First, he turned Wisconsin transfer Chucky Heprburn into an All-ACC guard; then he landed Brown. The former 5-star point guard then went on to be the No. 6 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, and that is sitting well with Alston.
It is sitting so well that, given Brown’s success at Louisville and where he was drafted, Tipton reports Louisville is the frontrunner right now.
"Sources tell Rivals that one school is currently the frontrunner: Louisville." stated Tipton. "The way Pat Kelsey featured Mikel Brown Jr. this past season has resonated with the Alstons, and the Cardinals are currently viewed as the team with the best chance of landing him by sources."
Now, the Cardinals fans have thought they have been the frontrunner, but only because of Jamie Shaw’s recent predictions. The college basketball recruiting analyst has logged multiple way-too-early predictions favoring the Cardinals, but Tipton’s update gives Louisville a major recruiting boost over Kentucky and others.
While seven teams are on the final list, the Cardinals, LSU, Kentucky, Wichita State, and Tennessee have made the most noise. Louisville and Wichita State are the only two teams to earn official visits, while Kentucky has earned an unofficial visit.
Kelsey attended multiple games of Alston’s this summer and has made it crystal clear that the 5-star point guard is his dream target. The Cardinals continue to build their relationship with Alston, and now they have an update that they are trending as the early frontrunner.
There is still a lot of recruiting to be done, but for now the Cardinals are sitting right where they want to be. Alston ranks as high as No. 7 overall and No. 2 among point guards. The 5-star point guard averaged 22.2 points, 5.3 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.7 steals per game in his junior season.
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