How it happened: No. 11 Louisville stomps Bucknell 99-76
In the University of Louisville basketball’s final exhibition game of the season, the Cards stomped Bucknell 99-76 in an impressive offensive performance.
The game was back and forth for the majority of the first 15 minutes, and behind a strong shooting performance, Louisville was able to pull away from the Bison relatively early.
Bucknell was leading 30-27 with just over seven minutes to go in the first half, but Louisville went on a 29-9 run over the last 7:33 before the break. The Cards really slammed the door on the Bison with a strong defensive close to the half as Bucknell was 1-of-its-last-8 from the floor.
Mikel Brown Jr. stole the show with an excellent bounce-back performance from his Louisville debut against Kansas. Brown finished with 28 points on 8-of-13 shooting, four rebounds, six assists, and just one turnover. All eight of his makes were from beyond the arc. The freshman was used off-ball, allowing him to be used as a spot-up shooter but also made plays off the bounce as a passer.
All five Cardinal starters finished in double figures. Sananda Fru, who gave the U of L 11 points and three blocks in 15 minutes. Ryan Conwell and Isaac McKneely also added 15 plus, with the two combining for 10 made 3-pointers. As a team, Louisville shot 50 percent from the field and 50 percent from distance, with 23 of its 31 made field goals coming from behind the arc. Twenty-six of the Cards makes were assisted.
Sophomore wing Khani Rooths was valuable off the bench, providing a defensive spark in the first half, and tallied nine points and three rebounds.
Bucknell’s Ruot Bijiek led the Bison in scoring with 15 on 5-of-14 shooting in 29 minutes.
In all, it was a better night for Louisville than last Friday, especially on the defensive end. The Cardinals scored 17 points off 13 Bucknell turnovers and held the Bison to 40 percent shooting.
Tuesday night’s game was a charity exhibition game, raising funds for the Kentuckiana Friends of V Foundation (KFV). The game was conceptualized by UofL staff and radio color analyst Bob Valvano, who established KFV, and a portion of the game’s ticket sales will be donated to cancer research in the Louisville area.
The Cardinals host South Carolina State next Monday night to officially tip off the 2025-26 season. The game will be at 9 PM EST on the ACC Network.
