Louisville basketball has gone 4-4 in its last eight games, and a large reason is because of Mikel Brown Jr.’s absence. With the Cardinals missing their former 5-star point guard and engine, a few players have stepped up and emerged as key X-factors. One key X-factor who has recently established himself is senior Aly Khalifa.
If you had asked the common Louisville basketball fan a few weeks ago about the Cardinals' senior, most would have suggested that he should stay on the bench for a longer period of time. However, across the last few games, Khalifa has begun to give this Cardinals team a much-needed spark, and surprisingly, beyond the arc.
Aly Khalifa has emerged as one of Pat Kelsey's key X-factors
Khalifa has rediscovered his 3-point stroke in recent games, turning his game and offensive prowess into an absolute weapon. It was an aspect of his game that the coaches and Pat Kelsey had boasted about all season that finally made its way to game action.
His dynamite sharpshooting made an unexpected appearance during Louisville’s first matchup against Duke and has been present ever since. Khalifa finished that game 5-for-5 from 3-point land with a total of 17 points. Since then, he has made seven additional 3-pointers, including a 3-for-4 shooting performance last Saturday night against the Pittsburgh Panthers.
Khalifa’s elite passing on the offensive end has always made him stand out above his peers, causing jaw after jaw to drop with the beautiful dishes he has made to other Cardinals cutting to the rim. Adding consistent 3-point shooting to his game not only gives the offense another weapon on the perimeter but also another player the defense has to respect within the Louisville offense.
Khalifa has already splashed 16 3-pointers this season, and is shooting at a career-high 44.4 percent from downtown. His career high for made 3-pointers in a season was 48, his sophomore season, when he connected on 38.1 percent of his 311 attempts.
The number one person this development of Khalifa’s outside shot helps the most has to be freshman point guard Mikel Brown Jr. Louisville’s ability to space the floor and have an almost 5-out offensive flow at times will do nothing but open up driving lanes for Brown to exploit, which in turn will lead to baskets at the rim, or kick outs for 3-point shots. It’s an aspect of the Louisville offense that the Cardinals are desperate to have back with Brown’s eventual return, and should be bolstered with Khalifa's elevated play.
The Louisville Cardinals will continue their way through ACC play on Saturday as they take on the Virginia Tech Hokies at home. Cardinal fans will be watching intently to see if Khalifa can keep this hot streak alive and ensure this side of Khalifa’s game is here to stay.