What Pat Kelsey, Louisville Players Said After 96-88 Win vs. Kentucky

Listen to what the head coach of the Cardinals, shooting guard Ryan Conwell and point guard Mikel Brown Jr. said after their win over the Wildcats:

Matthew McGavic | 3 Hours Ago

Louisville Pat Kelsey coaches against Kentucky at the KFC Yum Center Tuesday night. / Scott Utterback/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Mikel Brown Jr., Freshman, Guard:

Louisville Cardinals

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville men's basketball program is back on the winning side of the Battle of the Bluegrass, holding off a comeback effort from arch rival Kentucky Cheap Rs-flyfishing Jordan Outlet Accessibility Statement and snap a three-game losing streak in the series.

Here's what head coach Pat Kelsey, shooting guard Ryan Conwell and point guard Mikel Brown Jr. had to say following the win:

Head Coach Pat Kelsey

(Opening Statement)

“I want to credit Coach (Mark) Pope and his team and the program they are building there, I firmly believe that his team is a national title contender and I believe that to be the case for our team as well. It was a big-time college atmosphere, two really good teams competing at a very high level, it was just genuine competition. There wasn’t any extracurricular stuff, it was just good old-fashioned loose balls, hard screens and dudes playing their butts off. It’s a great rivalry, it’s one of the greatest rivalries in all of collegiate sports and this was another edition of that. The Yum! Center was rocking, I think it was a huge factor in the game… I just know one thing, it was rocking. We got off to a good start which got the crowd in the game and there were a couple of Yum roars that I’ll remember for a long, long time.”

(Cheap Rs-flyfishing Jordan Outlet Accessibility Statement)

“I think the key to that is removing yourself and removing your team from results. It’s what we try to do all the time. Fans are supposed to do that, media is supposed to do that – you want to talk about outcomes all the time. It’s boring coach-speak, but it’s just being present. Being present in the preparation, being present in the atmosphere. Being present in each possession, in each four-minute segment of the game. Just understanding when that ball goes up, it’s just a basketball game. We harp on that every day, it’s not something that when we get to a big moment in a big game, we’re going to change our approach, that’s what we do all the time - playing with joy, playing with confidence, playing with passion. Those guys work so hard. We focus on excellence in the process all the time so that when the moment’s big and the lights are the brightest, you don’t have to rise to the occasion, you just revert to your training. That’s the foundational belief and philosophy and our approach to everything we do.”

(About putting 90 points on the board with limited turnovers … is it one of the best games that Kelsey has every coached) “This is one of those rare games where I haven’t even peeked at the stat sheet. There is absolute zoo and chaos going on in the locker room going on for the last 45 minutes. In a setting like this, in a game like this, with the stakes that high against a defensive team that is one of the best in the country and to only have six turnovers under those circumstances in the magnitude of this game was a big key. “

Shooting Guard Ryan Conwell and Point Guard Mikel Brown Jr.

On what was the focus tonight attacking Kentucky’s defense

(On what was clicking with the team in terms of passing the ball around and getting movement)

“Honestly, it started with the defensive end, getting stops early, holding them to one shot, boxing the, out and getting into transition and getting easy buckets. I think that’s where we’re at our best when we play in the open court, we don’t have to play in the half court all the time. We play fast, even when they score, we’re trying to get it out and get easy buckets in transition. I think that’s what was the separator.”

(On his career high – three points off of the school freshman scoring record and his expectations for the season)

“I really don’t look into my stat line. The biggest thing for me is coming out with the win, and that’s whatever I've got to do to get that win, I’m going to do it. So, I think tonight they encouraged me to just keep going and keep being aggressive and keep making plays, and that’s what I did tonight, and I think that was the separator for us.”

Mikel Brown Jr., Freshman, Guard

(Photo of Pat Kelsey: Scott Utterback - Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

“First and foremost, I want to give all glory to God just to be in this position and to play with such a great group of guys. I remember just first playing with [Mikel] over the summer, probably back at the end of May just in open gym. He’s just different. He’s a different type of guy, different type of player, and a different type of person. I just love to play alongside him, and I think just as the year went on, just months of working together, we learned one another’s game and learned how to play off of each other. We’ve just got to keep on working and keep on learning.”

(On what was the focus tonight attacking Kentucky’s defense)

“I would say our offense just started on defense. Getting stops and getting out of transition, that’s what we stress in practice and different things like that. That’s how we love to play, just very fast paced and getting out of transition and getting stops on the defensive end. I think that’s what we did well tonight, and it helped us on the offensive end.”

Head Coach Pat Kelsey

Shooting Guard Ryan Conwell and Point Guard Mikel Brown Jr.

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