What Pat Kelsey, Louisville Players Said After 106-70 Win vs. Jackson State

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville men's basketball program is off to an explosive start to their 2025-26 season, taking down Jackson State 106-70 to post back-to-back 100-point games to start the new hoops year.

Here's what head coach Pat Kelsey, forward/center Sananda Fru, forward Kasean Pryor and guard Ryan Conwell had to say following the win:

Head Coach Pat Kelsey

(Opening Statement): “So far as tonight’s game, I give Coach Mo Williams a lot of credit at Jackson State. The first two games, from a defensive standpoint, I just saw a different team out there and that is the mark of a good coach. I think how those guys got beaten really badly at Illinois and I watched every second of it. You can go farther that way (down) or you can draw a line. And you can just tell what they did, so tip of the cap to them. I thought those guys came out ready to compete. Their point guard was a former McDonald’s All-American. He is a handful – that guy can go. They have a bunch of really good one-on-one players. I am proud of our guys. We got all of our metrics that we look at … effort, rebounding standpoint, all those things. (Vangelis) Zougris had three offensive rebounds in ten minutes of play. Sananda Fru had four offensive rebounds. And Jackson State had five offensive rebounds in the first six minutes of the game. They only had two the rest of the game and we held them to 17 percent. So, I was very, very pleased. I thought Kobe Rodgers was a catalyst off the bench for us. As captain, his job is to raise the level of intensity when he comes into the game. I thought he did a phenomenal job of accepting that role, embracing that role. Kobe had seven, five, four and no turnovers. That is what his job is and he did a really good job of that. Khani (Rooths) continued to impress tonight. We always say, ‘next man up’ and when J’vonne (Hadley) went down then Khani stepped up. It was so awesome to see Kasean (Pryor) out there. That is a long, grueling, lonely journey. To recover like an injury like that. I have never had an ACL injury but I have been around a lot of players who have. Kobe (Rodgers) got hurt for us at the College of Charleston in his last game. That moment when they check back into the game, shout out to our fan base and the people at the KFC Yum! tonight for the ovation that Kasean (Pryor) got which was well-deserved. It was great to see him out there tonight. It will take a little time, and he will get incrementally more comfortable and better. It was awesome to see him out there flying around being KP, deflecting and wreaking havoc and stuff like that. It was really, really good to see.”

(About the style of defense and aggression and the grind on the opposition) “The things that we really value like pace and offensive rebounding and relentlessness and a lot of depth on our roster as well as playing to a really high standard from an effort standpoint is the standard. You would like to think doing that all the time and adhering to that process over and over again throughout the game that the cumulative pressure of all that, the pace from an offensive standpoint, the offensive rebounds and how hard our guys play, we would like to break teams eventually.”

(About Kasean’s rehabilitation journey) “We all remember the level he was playing at in the Bahamas, that is when the ReviVille started when we went down there. It was on. Chucky (Hepburn) took off. Kasean took off. J’vonne took off. Then all the air was driven out of the balloon when that kid went down. It was like friendly fire, too. It was like a football injury because there was an impact. A lot of times in basketball it is a plant. That was like a football injury because Chucky got pushed into him and it was a gruesome deal. There was major damage there. He was diligent in his rehab. Kasean is an awesome dude. He is eccentric and he has all the stuff. I was watching him warm up out there and I saw people on social media asking what the heck is he wearing. Kasean is one of one. He is one of one, and he marches to the beat of his own drum. That is why we love him. He has a great heart. He is great to coach. He wants to be coached hard. I say ‘you gotta get on that Cap(tain)’ he says “yes, Coach”. I am just so excited that he back and he will allow our team to go to a whole other level. It is a process. We were really short when J’vonne went down and I said ‘are you ready?’ He said, ‘I am ready, let’s do it.’ It was kind of like a last second deal. It is awesome to see him back out there and see him get to the other side of all that.

(Coach Kelsey’s comment on the plane crash in Louisville) “The first thing I want to say is my heartfelt thoughts and deep prayers go out to all the people impacted by the horrible tragedy that happened a couple of nights ago in our beloved Louisville. It has been reported that there have been 14 total fatalities. Obviously, to the families and loved ones left behind, I want them to know that we Louisvillians put our arms around you and love you and will be there for you. That is what great communities do in tragedies like this happen, they come together. I think Mayor Greenberg tweeted before the game the names of the flight crew: Captain Richard Wartenberg, First Officer Lee Truitt, Captain Dana Diamond. I am sure that there were heroics on that flight to limit the damage and the carnage as much as they could. Huge thank you to our fire department, our police department and all our first responders. When things like this happen, normal people run away from it, they run toward it. There are people in my family in the fire department and police departments, who put their lives on the line. So, I wanted to mention that first because, again, it calls for prayers for the souls of the people we lost”

Forward/Center Sananda Fru, Forward Kasean Pryor and Guard Ryan Conwell

Kasean Pryor

(On his return to the court tonight and the reaction of the crowd

“It was an unbelievable feeling as I was checking in in front of the best fans in college basketball in the Yum! Center today. It was just a process talking to PK [Pat Kelsey], talking to my family. My deadline was to be back before Kentucky so I could be prepared to play against them. Whether it was an exhibition or one of the first games, I just wanted to be out there and get my feet wet, get back into it after being off for almost a year. Obviously very excited to be out there playing with these guys for the first time in the Yum Center. I got a few buckets early, it was very exciting. Just happy and blessed to be back and healthy.”

(On overcoming adversity)

"I've been fighting adversity all my life, especially in my basketball career. My first two years (in college basketball) I didn't even touch the court, barely. I bet on myself, went to junior college, and ended up being one of the best players in the country. Had a great year at South Florida and then was able to come here and be with the best staff and teammates in my career so far. So, it's all adversity and that's all life is. You just find a way to navigate and still be successful even with the bumps. I've had great staff behind me, my teammates have been pushing me, they've been excited for me to play, which has been making me a little too excited probably. It's happy to know those guys were ready to have me out there. Obviously, an emotional journey, being out for almost a year and coming back and playing in my first game in front of a bunch of fans in the YUM! Center is unbelievable. I was obviously excited early. The journey is not done, this is just the beginning now, just glad to be healthy and be back."

(On last year’s game against Kentucky)

“Actually, I was in New York at the time, that’s where I got my surgery done, so I was watching us on TV in my hotel. I’d just gotten surgery, my leg was up and I was just sitting back watching, very emotional still. The camaraderie that I’m hearing, the back-and-forth – (Brandon) Garrison and Khani (Rooths) and Reyne (Smith)… it just made me more excited to get out there and bring my energy, bring that edge to our team. Obviously they’re a good team, we’re going to be prepared for them and we’re going to handle business, so that’s the plan.”

Sananda Fru

(On how he is adjusting to playing in the United States after playing in Germany

“I think I’m doing pretty good. I think the team is doing a great job of helping me to be good on the court. I really enjoy it over here. I feel like the basketball play is amazing, super quick, that’s what I love. I just think I have a great team around me, they support me a lot. I think my transition over here is pretty good and we’re doing a good job as a team. I feel like we are growing together from game to game and I’m so happy to be here.”

(On what’s helped him get into the flow of things)

“I think what helps me the most is to trust my teammates. I feel like my teammates trust me 100 percent. Whatever I do they stand behind me and pushing me. So if it’s action or reaction, I can just choose basically.

I’m learning, they’re talking to me. If I do something great, they’re behind me, if I do something wrong they’re still behind me. I can just play with a lot of confidence, because I’ve got my team behind me pushing me.”

Ryan Conwell

(On what makes the team difficult to stop offensively)

“First and foremost, I want to give all glory to God. I would say [the score] just speaks volume to our defense as well. Just being able to play at a high level at both ends of the floor, we take a lot of pride in getting the stops and getting out in transition. Even when we’re not making as many shots as we may want to, we know that we still have to get stops and that is what will help us win a lot of games.”

(On getting ready for Kentucky)

“I’m sure it’s going to be a crazy atmosphere [on Tuesday night]. We just really got to take it day by day and trust the process. We’ll definitely be ready - just trusting in each other, trusting what the coaches are telling us. It’s definitely going to be a different type of game, but we will be ready for sure.”

(On feeding off the energy the crowd was giving after Pryor entered the game)

"Yeah, for sure. We definitely feed off the fan's energy, any chance we can get. Especially when Kasean (Pryor) came in the game and got his dunk. We just got going, you know we just definitely fed off the energy and just use it to our advantage. That's why we love playing here in the YUM Center."

Head Coach Pat Kelsey

Forward/Center Sananda Fru, Forward Kasean Pryor and Guard Ryan Conwell

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