Watch: Pat Kelsey, Louisville Players Preview NCAA Tournament Draw

The Cardinals earned a No. 6 seed for the NCAA Tournament, and will face South Florida to get their run started.

Mar 12, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Louisville Cardinals head coach Pat Kelsey reacts in the second half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - March Madness, at long last, is finally here. Selection Sunday has come and gone, and later this week, the 2026 iteration of the annual NCAA Tournament will get started later this week.

For the Louisville men's basketball program, they received the No. 6 seed in the East Region for the Big Dance, and are set to kick off their NCAA Tournament run against 11th-seeded South Florida. They got sent to the pod that is being hosted at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y., with No. 3 Michigan State and No. 14 North Dakota State also heading to the pod.

"They're red hot," head coach Pat Kelsey said of USF. "They've won 10 or 11 consecutive games. They have a Conference Player of the Year, the conference Defensive Player of the Year, the Conference Newcomer of the year. They are top five in the country in offensive rebounding. They have two of the best three point shooters in the entire country. They have two guys that have made over 100 threes. They play very fast. They're extremely dangerous, and a team that's red hot playing their best basketball at the right time of the year."

Kelsey has guided the Cardinals to the NCAA Tournament in both of his first two seasons as head coach, with his first berth snapping a five-year streak of not making the postseason. It was a one-and-done outing for the Cardinals last season, as the fell 89-75 to Creighton in Rupp Arena.

Despite splitting their last eight games, including only making it to the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament, Kelsey believes that his team can catch fire and make a run in the NCAA Tournament.

"We're fortunate to have a lot of guys have tournament experience on our team," Kelsey said. "They've been through it before, night in, night out. We play on a big stage under big lights in the conference that we're in ... They've kind of been there and done that. I don't think they're going to walk in all wide eyed. They know this is a big stage under big lights."

On Monday, Kelsey, plus shooting guards Ryan Conwell and Isaac McKneely took time to meet with the media. They discussed their time in the ACC Tournament, their draw for the NCAA Tournament, their first round matchup against South Florida, the status of point guard Mikel Brown Jr., and more.

Below are the video from their press conferences:

Head Coach Pat Kelsey

Shooting Guards Ryan Conwell and Isaac McKneely

(Photo of Pat Kelsey: Bob Donnan - Imagn Images)

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