Louisville basketball got back in the win column last night after they defeated the Syracuse Orange 77-62 inside the KFC Yum! Center. The Cards were led by Ryan Conwell last night as the senior scored a game-high 23 points on 40 percent shooting, while also leading the Cardinals with seven rebounds and three assists.
Louisville improves to 21-9 on the season and 10-7 in conference play, as they now quickly turn their focus to the final game of the regular season on the road against No. 22 Miami. With Louisville currently 0-6 against ranked teams and 0-8 in Quad 1A games, Cards fans are keeping a close eye on Mikel Brown Jr. and his back injury.
After Brown missed his ninth game of the regular season last night, Pat Kelsey addressed Brown’s injury and emphasized the Cardinals need him to be 100 percent.
Related: 2 things we know and 2 questions we have after Louisville's win over Syracuse
Louisville basketball fans get a cautious update on Mikel Brown Jr.
There is no debate that this team is much better when Brown is on the floor and fully healthy. The 5-star guard aggravated his back against North Carolina, limiting him against Clemson, and he played only 21 minutes in the Quad 1A loss. Last night, he missed his ninth game of the season with a back injury, and when Kelsey was asked about Brown, his message was that they need him at 100 percent when he returns, and they will wait and see how he feels closer to the Miami game.
“The fact of the matter is, we just need Kel (Mikel Brown Jr.) to be 100 percent,” Kelsey stated on Brown’s availability moving forward. “But, we just need him at 100 percent. So, we will just see how this process goes over the next several days as we get through the week and get closer to the Miami game, and we will see how he is then.”
The Cards fans are forced to play the waiting game and likely won’t get an answer until Friday, when the injury report comes out that night before the crucial showdown with the Hurricanes on Saturday. With the ACC Tournament next week and then the NCAA Tournament starting the week after, it makes sense to see the Cardinals are cautious with their starting point guard.
For now, Kelsey urges patience as Louisville fans will have to hold their breath and wait and see if their star guard is available for Saturday’s game. Louisville needs Brown available for the postseason if they want to make a run, as he is averaging 18.2 points, 4.7 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 41 percent from the floor and 34.4 percent from beyond the arc.
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