Film: Mikel Brown Jr. has turnaround performance against Bucknell
One of the storylines emerging from the first exhibition against Kansas was how the team would respond.
Well, Louisville responded with a 99-76 victory over the Bucknell Bison on Tuesday night with what would have been one of the best shooting performances in school history.
Additionally, one of the underlying narratives from the first outing was the performance of Mikel Brown, Jr., and how he had struggled. The preseason All-ACC guard finished with 28 points, six assists, four rebounds, and only one turnover in 26 minutes played.
When asked by the media about the feedback he received from teammates after the loss, he responded with, “My teammates kept instilling confidence in me and kept telling me to be myself.”
Learning Experience vs. Kansas
The freshman guard struggled in his first taste of college basketball against the Kansas Jayhawks this past Friday. He finished with 10 points, five rebounds, two assists, one turnover, and four fouls, while shooting 2-of-15 from the field. He was also 2-of-10 from three in the contest.
The 6-foot-4 guard forced the issue a bit and struggled to play within the flow of the game. He overdribbled, leading to forced shots or turnovers, while also having issues at the point of attack defensively. He found himself out of position on defense, leading to his four fouls, as well.
“We didn’t play our brand of basketball that first game,” Brown added after the Bucknell win. “Our pace wasn’t there, our ball speed wasn’t there, we really weren’t moving the ball like we wanted to. We also weren’t getting paint touches as well, so I think coming into the game, our emphasis was getting paint touches and getting great shots.”
After the game, Brown, Jr. was on the court getting shots up, honing his craft, and getting additional reps. He was not satisfied with his performance and wanted to address it immediately after the game.
Positive Response vs. Bucknell
Furthermore, his response in the second game against Bucknell was noteworthy and a positive one. He settled in early, picking his spots offensively and letting the ball find him.
In the first half alone, the 6-foot-4 guard had 18 points on 6-of-9 from deep, including a buzzer-beater as time expired. He also had four assists with 0 turnovers.
However, this wasn’t just about his shots offensively; it was about his court-mapping too. He found open teammates constantly, whether it was through attacking poor closeouts, making the extra pass, or quickly shoveling passes off of offensive rebounds. He made multiple high-level reads, threading passes with either hand quickly to open teammates.
Additionally, he leveraged his shooting gravity to generate open shots for his teammates.
When asked about his rhythm, he mentioned that getting his teammates involved assists in his rhythm; “I got to get more paint touches as a guard, I got to make plays for my teammates. Making plays for them kind of gets me in the rhythm just because we get to see the ball go through the hoop, and I think as a team that gets us going.”
Brown, Jr. did a lot of damage off the ball, too, running off screens to get into his catch-and-shoot jumper or play off the advantage created from the screen or his pumpfake. They also utilized him in handoffs, where he could shoot it when defenders went under the handoff actions.
He also thrived as a stationary, catch-and-shoot option from deep, playing off space and the ball movement of his teammates.
After the conclusion of the exhibitions versus Kansas and Bucknell, the Cardinals will open their season against South Carolina State at home on Monday, November 3 at 9 pm ET.
