Watch: Pat Kelsey Previews Louisville's West Coast Trip vs. Cal

The Cardinals head out to the West Coast to take on the Golden Bears

Nov 26, 2025; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals head coach Pat Kelsey reacts during the first half against the NJIT Highlanders at KFC Yum! Center. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images | Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - It feels like it's been forever since the last time the Louisville men's basketball program laced 'em up, but they're finally returning to action this week.

Christmas break for the Cardinals is now in the rear view mirror, and their next order of business is a trip out to the West Coast to face both Cal and Stanford. First on the docket this week is the Golden Bears, with tip-off set for Tuesday, Dec. 30 at 9:00 p.m. EST.

"We're in Christmas break, so we don't have academic restrictions, and class, and things like that," head coach Pat Kelsey said. "Obviously, it's on the other side of the country, so just going out a day early for a long flight hopefully allows us to acclimate sooner. We got in yesterday evening, got a good night's sleep, and we're ready to go today."

It's been a near-perfect mark to start the 2025-26 season for Cal. Year three under head coach Mark Madsen has the Golden Bears off to a 12-1 start, with their lone loss coming at Kansas State in their only true road game this season.

While Cal's non-conference slate certainly does not stand up to Louisville's, Kelsey knows that they will be a tough matchup in their ACC opener.

"They're very good. ... You look at their roster, they are an older veteran team," head coach Pat Kelsey said. "In those teams, in today's day and age in college basketball, are obviously dangerous. They scare me in a lot of ways.

"They play very fast in transition, they're one of the leading three point shooting teams in the country from a percentage standpoint, they're fast, they push the ball extremely hard in transition. They got a bunch of guards that can touch the paint and put foul pressure on you. They have big, physical bigs with skill as well. Can really hurt you around the rim on offensive rebounding, on duck-ins, but they're also good with the ball in their hands out on the perimeter as they're getting into their actions as kind of hubs and facilitators. We have the ultimate respect for them."

Prior to their matchup with the Golden Bears, Kelsey, took time to meet with the media. He discussed Christmas break and the first half of the season overall, previewed the upcoming showdown vs. Cal, gave an injury update, and more.

Below is the video from his press conference:

Head Coach Pat Kelsey

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