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The Courier Journal is en route to the Bahamas for a first look at Louisville basketball entering Year 3 of the Pat Kelsey era.
The Cardinals were originally scheduled to play two exhibitions in as many days against teams from the Caribbean country as part of the Baha Mar Hoops Summer League, but the second dress rehearsal has been scratched from the itinerary. Per a source close to the program, the change came because freshman center Obinna Ekezie Jr. and junior wing Karter Knox are not expected to play as they continue to work their way back from injuries that required surgery, leaving Kelsey with only nine available scholarship players.
The lone game is set for a 2 p.m. tipoff Tuesday, July 28, at Baha Mar Convention, Arts and Entertainment Center in Nassau. Unfortunately, you won't be able to watch or follow along on the radio (more on that in a bit).
Even with Ekezie and Knox expected to be sidelined, there is no shortage of new faces to keep up with. Eight of the nine available scholarship players will be making their (unofficial) UofL debuts, and Kelsey welcomed two associate head coaches to his staff this offseason — John Andrzejek and Sean Dixon.
One thing that hasn't changed? The expectations surrounding the storied program more than a decade removed from its last appearance in the NCAA Tournament's second weekend. Kelsey is hoping to end the drought in 2026-27 with a transfer portal class that 247Sports considers the best in the country, which is what makes this trip to the Bahamas so intriguing.
We begin our coverage with a tropical edition of our Louisville basketball mailbag. Stay tuned for more; we'll be your eyes and ears in paradise.
This was, understandably, the most popular question submitted to the mailbag.
Two summers ago, Floyd Street Media streamed both of Louisville's exhibitions in the Bahamas on its YouTube page. Game 1 has nearly 100,000 views; Game 2 is sitting at 61,000.
It's 2026. What gives? Why will a fan base that talks basketball 24/7 be flying blind back home?
The easiest answer: television rights, which belong to the ACC — and, therefore, ESPN. It declined picking up the game and won't be carrying any of the Baha Mar Hoops Summer League, whose other high-major participants include Arkansas, Cincinnati, South Carolina and Texas A&M.
This is where things get complicated. FloSports is advertising streams of those other teams' exhibitions for paid subscribers. A monthly plan costs $29.99. Worth it for one game? Something tells me most Cards supporters would gladly eat the cost.
So ... why isn't this happening?
One explanation is the athletics department wouldn't profit off the subscriptions FloSports sells for the game. Another is Kelsey doesn't want to give opponents film to pour over nearly four months before the season begins.
I'll leave it to you all to decide if either of those is reasonable.
I think it's a pretty safe bet Louisville won't take more than 52% of its shot attempts from behind the 3-point line this season like it did in 2025-26. There are capable deep threats on the roster, but none have the prerequisites of past marksmen such as Ryan Conwell, Isaac McKneely and Reyne Smith.
If you're looking for the green-light guy, it's probably point guard Jackson Shelstad, who attempted 8.8 triples per game across 12 starts as a junior at Oregon. He converted only 31.4% of those tries, but some of the misses can be chalked up to an injury to his shooting hand that ultimately ended his season. For his career, Shelstad is a 35.2% shooter from beyond the arc — 148 for 421. As a sophomore, he went 66 for 174 (37.9%).
Meanwhile, Adrian Wooley should see his volume increase as he steps into a larger and more clearly defined role in Year 2 with the Cards. Last season, he went 41 for 117 (35% — 37.8% from above the break, 30.2% from the corners, according to CBBAnalytics.com).
A few more upperclassmen to watch: Knox, who shot 36.1% (61 for 169) from 3 during his two seasons at Arkansas; senior forward Alvaro Folgueiras, who converted at a 52.2% rate from the corners for Iowa in 2025-26 and boasts a career clip of 35.2% (101 for 287); and senior guard De'Shayne Montgomery, who made a career-high 52 on 155 attempts (33.5%) at Dayton last year.
Then, there are freshmen Isaac Ellis and Boyuan Zhang. The former holds Overtime Elite's record for most career 3s. The latter has been known to get hot from beyond the arc, going 38 for 91 (41.8%) while representing China in the 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup and the FIBA U18 Asia Cup, and isn't shy about pulling the trigger — averaging 6.6 attempts per game as a senior at Veritas Academy.
"Sometimes, as a freshman, you're a little hesitant," Kelsey said June 22, when asked about Zhang. "He's not hesitant, which I love."
I think Andrzejek and Dixon's impact will be felt most on defense.
Andrzejek was named Louisville's defensive coordinator when he joined the program in April. He knows what it takes to build a championship contender on that end, having been Todd Golden's defensive coordinator during Florida's title run two seasons ago. According to KenPom.com, the Gators went from 94th in points allowed per 100 possessions during the 2023-24 campaign to sixth in 2024-25.
The Cards operated without a defensive coordinator last season after Kelsey's longest-tenured staffer, Brian Kloman, was promoted to a general manager-like role a few months before games began. The fact that Kelsey opted to hire someone as a defensive coordinator and do away with the GM position should tell you everything you need to know about his priorities for a program that, using BartTorvik.com's filter tool, finished 2025-26 ranked 131st in points allowed per 100 possessions against Quad 1A opponents.
"Being elite defensively as a team is your biggest pathway to winning championships," Kelsey said June 22.
Dixon, according to his bio on the Clemson's official website, worked in "in lockstep" with Brad Brownell and associate head coach Billy Donlon on the defensive end during his four seasons with the Tigers. They went 98-41 and allowed no more than 71.2 points per game while he was on the staff. The past two years, they ranked 17th (2024-25) and 24th (2025-26) in adjusted defensive efficiency.
If I learned one thing during the reporting process for a profile of Eli Foy two summers ago, it's that Kelsey's longtime strength and conditioning coach means it when he says, "We kind of break you down a little bit before we build you back up."
So it's fitting that, when I texted him your question, he wrote back: "My favorite summer workouts are the ones that test our players physically and mentally. The workouts where the players have a shared struggle.
"The summer is about individual physical development," he added. "But (it's) also about taking guys out of their comfort zone and forcing them to grow as a team."
You'll see what Foy means if you browse the workout videos Louisville has shared to X, formerly Twitter, the past few months. One Friday, he put 20 minutes on a clock in the gym at the Planet Fitness Kueber Center and ran the players through a circuit that included bar push-ups, medicine ball throws, air bikes and resistance sleds.
"You're working as hard as you (expletive) can for 20 straight minutes," he told them before they started. "If I don't like it when the 20 minutes are up, I'm going to add five more minutes. I guarantee you, after 20 minutes, those five minutes will feel like an hour. Give me the 20 minutes."
If you make it to the end of the video clip, you'll see freshman forward Boyuan Zhang bring the team home on the sled. That moment of jubilation when he crosses the finish line, with everyone gassing him up, is exactly what Foy is hoping to achieve.
As for taking them out of the comfort zone, check out the video of the Cards' trip to Baxter Jacks for a competition on its beach volleyball courts — or the day they teamed up with members of the Louisville Fire Department for a training session.
Reach Louisville men's basketball reporter Brooks Holton at [email protected] and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Why won't Louisville basketball fans be able to stream Bahamas game?
Continue reading...
The Cardinals were originally scheduled to play two exhibitions in as many days against teams from the Caribbean country as part of the Baha Mar Hoops Summer League, but the second dress rehearsal has been scratched from the itinerary. Per a source close to the program, the change came because freshman center Obinna Ekezie Jr. and junior wing Karter Knox are not expected to play as they continue to work their way back from injuries that required surgery, leaving Kelsey with only nine available scholarship players.
The lone game is set for a 2 p.m. tipoff Tuesday, July 28, at Baha Mar Convention, Arts and Entertainment Center in Nassau. Unfortunately, you won't be able to watch or follow along on the radio (more on that in a bit).
Even with Ekezie and Knox expected to be sidelined, there is no shortage of new faces to keep up with. Eight of the nine available scholarship players will be making their (unofficial) UofL debuts, and Kelsey welcomed two associate head coaches to his staff this offseason — John Andrzejek and Sean Dixon.
One thing that hasn't changed? The expectations surrounding the storied program more than a decade removed from its last appearance in the NCAA Tournament's second weekend. Kelsey is hoping to end the drought in 2026-27 with a transfer portal class that 247Sports considers the best in the country, which is what makes this trip to the Bahamas so intriguing.
We begin our coverage with a tropical edition of our Louisville basketball mailbag. Stay tuned for more; we'll be your eyes and ears in paradise.
Why can't we watch Louisville's Bahamas exhibition game on TV or livestream? — Everyone
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This was, understandably, the most popular question submitted to the mailbag.
Two summers ago, Floyd Street Media streamed both of Louisville's exhibitions in the Bahamas on its YouTube page. Game 1 has nearly 100,000 views; Game 2 is sitting at 61,000.
It's 2026. What gives? Why will a fan base that talks basketball 24/7 be flying blind back home?
The easiest answer: television rights, which belong to the ACC — and, therefore, ESPN. It declined picking up the game and won't be carrying any of the Baha Mar Hoops Summer League, whose other high-major participants include Arkansas, Cincinnati, South Carolina and Texas A&M.
This is where things get complicated. FloSports is advertising streams of those other teams' exhibitions for paid subscribers. A monthly plan costs $29.99. Worth it for one game? Something tells me most Cards supporters would gladly eat the cost.
So ... why isn't this happening?
One explanation is the athletics department wouldn't profit off the subscriptions FloSports sells for the game. Another is Kelsey doesn't want to give opponents film to pour over nearly four months before the season begins.
I'll leave it to you all to decide if either of those is reasonable.
Who's going to shoot all the 3s??? — Anonymous
You must be registered for see images attach
I think it's a pretty safe bet Louisville won't take more than 52% of its shot attempts from behind the 3-point line this season like it did in 2025-26. There are capable deep threats on the roster, but none have the prerequisites of past marksmen such as Ryan Conwell, Isaac McKneely and Reyne Smith.
If you're looking for the green-light guy, it's probably point guard Jackson Shelstad, who attempted 8.8 triples per game across 12 starts as a junior at Oregon. He converted only 31.4% of those tries, but some of the misses can be chalked up to an injury to his shooting hand that ultimately ended his season. For his career, Shelstad is a 35.2% shooter from beyond the arc — 148 for 421. As a sophomore, he went 66 for 174 (37.9%).
Meanwhile, Adrian Wooley should see his volume increase as he steps into a larger and more clearly defined role in Year 2 with the Cards. Last season, he went 41 for 117 (35% — 37.8% from above the break, 30.2% from the corners, according to CBBAnalytics.com).
A few more upperclassmen to watch: Knox, who shot 36.1% (61 for 169) from 3 during his two seasons at Arkansas; senior forward Alvaro Folgueiras, who converted at a 52.2% rate from the corners for Iowa in 2025-26 and boasts a career clip of 35.2% (101 for 287); and senior guard De'Shayne Montgomery, who made a career-high 52 on 155 attempts (33.5%) at Dayton last year.
Then, there are freshmen Isaac Ellis and Boyuan Zhang. The former holds Overtime Elite's record for most career 3s. The latter has been known to get hot from beyond the arc, going 38 for 91 (41.8%) while representing China in the 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup and the FIBA U18 Asia Cup, and isn't shy about pulling the trigger — averaging 6.6 attempts per game as a senior at Veritas Academy.
"Sometimes, as a freshman, you're a little hesitant," Kelsey said June 22, when asked about Zhang. "He's not hesitant, which I love."
How effective will Louisville's new coaches be? How will they replace the guys who left after having been with Pat Kelsey for so long? — Mark Clark
You must be registered for see images attach
I think Andrzejek and Dixon's impact will be felt most on defense.
Andrzejek was named Louisville's defensive coordinator when he joined the program in April. He knows what it takes to build a championship contender on that end, having been Todd Golden's defensive coordinator during Florida's title run two seasons ago. According to KenPom.com, the Gators went from 94th in points allowed per 100 possessions during the 2023-24 campaign to sixth in 2024-25.
The Cards operated without a defensive coordinator last season after Kelsey's longest-tenured staffer, Brian Kloman, was promoted to a general manager-like role a few months before games began. The fact that Kelsey opted to hire someone as a defensive coordinator and do away with the GM position should tell you everything you need to know about his priorities for a program that, using BartTorvik.com's filter tool, finished 2025-26 ranked 131st in points allowed per 100 possessions against Quad 1A opponents.
"Being elite defensively as a team is your biggest pathway to winning championships," Kelsey said June 22.
Dixon, according to his bio on the Clemson's official website, worked in "in lockstep" with Brad Brownell and associate head coach Billy Donlon on the defensive end during his four seasons with the Tigers. They went 98-41 and allowed no more than 71.2 points per game while he was on the staff. The past two years, they ranked 17th (2024-25) and 24th (2025-26) in adjusted defensive efficiency.
Eli Foy has been working the guys hard this summer in the weight room. What's his favorite workout routine? — Anonymous
You must be registered for see images attach
If I learned one thing during the reporting process for a profile of Eli Foy two summers ago, it's that Kelsey's longtime strength and conditioning coach means it when he says, "We kind of break you down a little bit before we build you back up."
So it's fitting that, when I texted him your question, he wrote back: "My favorite summer workouts are the ones that test our players physically and mentally. The workouts where the players have a shared struggle.
"The summer is about individual physical development," he added. "But (it's) also about taking guys out of their comfort zone and forcing them to grow as a team."
You'll see what Foy means if you browse the workout videos Louisville has shared to X, formerly Twitter, the past few months. One Friday, he put 20 minutes on a clock in the gym at the Planet Fitness Kueber Center and ran the players through a circuit that included bar push-ups, medicine ball throws, air bikes and resistance sleds.
"You're working as hard as you (expletive) can for 20 straight minutes," he told them before they started. "If I don't like it when the 20 minutes are up, I'm going to add five more minutes. I guarantee you, after 20 minutes, those five minutes will feel like an hour. Give me the 20 minutes."
If you make it to the end of the video clip, you'll see freshman forward Boyuan Zhang bring the team home on the sled. That moment of jubilation when he crosses the finish line, with everyone gassing him up, is exactly what Foy is hoping to achieve.
As for taking them out of the comfort zone, check out the video of the Cards' trip to Baxter Jacks for a competition on its beach volleyball courts — or the day they teamed up with members of the Louisville Fire Department for a training session.
Reach Louisville men's basketball reporter Brooks Holton at [email protected] and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Why won't Louisville basketball fans be able to stream Bahamas game?
Continue reading...
