Louisville Live is here. Recap U of L basketball tipoff event at KFC Yum! Center

brooks holton and alexis cubit, louisville courier journal

Sat, Oct 5, 2024, 7:07 AM·10 min read

Who's ready for some Louisville basketball?

The Cardinals' men's and women's teams are ringing in the start of their 2024-25 seasons Friday night with the return of Louisville Live; and this year, the traveling pep rally is taking on its largest venue yet: the KFC Yum! Center.

U of L's 22,090-seat home arena isn't as innovative as previous destinations (Fourth Street Live!, Churchill Downs and Louisville Slugger Field) but was an obvious choice considering new men's head coach Pat Kelsey and his overhauled roster have not yet taken center stage there; that coach Jeff Walz's women's team features eight freshmen and one transfer who haven't experienced that feeling, either; and that average scanned ticket for the men's team fell to 6,504 per game during former coach Kenny Payne's woeful two-year tenure.

Full recap: Louisville Live has U of L basketball fans feeling good about Pat Kelsey, Jeff Walz teams

"Obviously, the vision is for rear ends to be in all of those seats — to create one of the best atmospheres in college basketball," Kelsey said Monday. "When it's right, it is; and it'll be great to get that energy on Friday."

Courier Journal reporters Brooks Holton and Alexis Cubit will be at Louisville Live. Below, you'll find their live updates from the event:

Louisville Live ends with Khani Rooths winning dunk contest

The dunk contest came down to forwards Aboubacar Traore and Khani Rooths.

Traore, a 6-5 senior who transferred in from Long Beach State, had arguably the most impressive dunk, soaring over 6-11 center Aly Khalifa for a one-handed slam. But when the stakes were at their highest, the birthday boy couldn't pull off an alley-oop off the side of the backboard from junior guard Koren Johnson.

Birthday Boy has BUNNIES 🐰#GoCards pic.twitter.com/y2WogGmDKK
— Louisville Men's Basketball (@LouisvilleMBB) October 5, 2024

Rooths, the team's lone freshman, experienced similar difficulties with a couple of his dunks but got one to land before the buzzer every time. In the final round, he went with a behind-the-back, one-handed slam — then got to pose for a picture with Dr. Dunkenstein himself, Darrell Griffith. Not a bad first impression for the newcomer from Washington, D.C., who played his high school ball at prep powerhouse IMG Academy in Florida.

Rooths ranked 34th overall in the Class of 2024 on the 247Sports Composite. He was initially going to play at Michigan but decommitted in the wake of coach Juwan Howard's ouster.

Louisville women's basketball freshman Anaya Hardy joins dunk contest

Honorary dunk participant: Anaya Hardy pic.twitter.com/QL0rKZo0Ic
— Alexis Cubit (@Alexis_Cubit) October 5, 2024

After the first round of the dunk contest, one of Walz's eight freshmen, 6-foot-3 forward Anaya Hardy, stepped in. She had three attempts and tipped the last one in. Earlier in the evening, the Detroit native competed for the Red team during the 3-on-3 competition and blocked one of graduate forward Olivia Cochran's shots.

Reyne Smith wins Louisville Live 3-point contest

Reyne Smith tallied 19 points during the final round of the 3-point contest to beat Noah Waterman, who had 15.

Smith, a 6-2 senior guard from Australia who transferred in from Charleston, took a commanding lead when he hit six shots in a row.

Of the women's players competing in the event, freshman Reagan Bender had the best performance. The 5-10 Louisville native, who played at Sacred Heart, finished with 14 points.

Black Team beats Red Team during Louisville Live's three-on-three competition

Here’s the game-winning basket from Ja’Leah William.

Black 17, Red 15.

3-point shootout up next. pic.twitter.com/pZE1aC8qvf
— Brooks Holton (@brooksHolton) October 5, 2024

Miami transfer Ja’Leah William scored the game-winning bucket for the Black team, which also featured freshman Mackenly Randolph, men's players Terrence Edwards Jr. and J'Vonne Hadley and former Card Stephan Van Treese.

See Pat Kelsey's introduction, speech to Louisville basketball fans at Louisville Live

Here are Kelsey's intro and his speech to fans:

Louisville men's basketball player introductions

Louisville freshman guard Rebekah Graves injured

When the women's team was introduced, freshman guard Rebekah Graves came out on a scooter and sported a cast on her left foot.

Louisville women's basketball player introductions

Tyran Stokes, five-star Louisville basketball recruit, spotted at Louisville Live

Tyran Stokes is in the building‼️ pic.twitter.com/4g68wSTF5b
— Louisville Updates (@VilleUpdates) October 4, 2024

Tyran Stokes, a Louisville native who ranks No. 1 in the Class of 2026 on the 247Sports Composite, is attending Louisville Live during his official visit with the Cards.

Stokes lived in the 502 until age 9. He plays his high school ball at Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California. In addition to the U of L, his suitors include Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Houston, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Texas, UCLA and USC.

A look at Russ Smith's new Mr. & Mrs. Bourbon bar inside the KFC Yum! Center

A look at the @MrAndMrsBourbon Bar inside the KFC Yum Center this season. pic.twitter.com/s4e2OZCB33
— Jeff Lightsy Jr. (@jlightsy7) October 4, 2024

Louisville legend Russ Smith has a new bar in the Yum! Center featuring products from his Mr. & Mrs. Bourbon line.

Take a look at the bar in the video above. You'll find it on the arena's main concourse.

When and where is Louisville Live? What to know about Louisville basketball's season tipoff event

The Cardinal mascot hyped the crowd during pre-game introductions before Louisville took on Lipscomb at the KFC Yum! Center in downtown Louisville Tuesday night. The Cards fell to the Bisons, 75-67. Dec. 20, 2022

Louisville Live begins at 8 p.m. Friday inside the Yum! Center with hosts Bruce Dougherty and Ari Waller. The arena will open its doors to fans at 7 p.m.

There will be activities on the plaza in front of Yum! Center before Louisville Live — featuring giveaways while supplies last — and a pep rally, dubbed the "Rally in Whiskey Alley," on the block of Washington Street between First and Second streets. The block will be closed to vehicle traffic around 5 p.m.

What's on the Louisville Live schedule?

Louie the Cardinal mascot hypes up the crowd during the Louisville Live Hoops event at Churchill Downs on Saturday evening. Sept. 18, 2021

Louisville Live will feature introductions of men's and women's basketball teams, an intrasquad three-on-three competition, a 3-point shootout and a dunk contest.

One team in the three-on-three competition will be: men's players Terrence Edwards Jr. and J'Vonne Hadley, women's players Mackenly Randolph and Ja'Leah Williams and former Card Stephan Van Treese. The other team will be: men's players Koren Johnson and James Scott, women's players Imari Berry and Anaya Hardy and former Card Chelsie Hall

The 3-point shootout will include men's players Kasean Pryor, Noah Waterman and Reyne Smith and women's players Izela Arenas, Reagan Bender and Tajianna Roberts; while the dunk contest field is composed of men's players Frank Anselem-Ibe, Chucky Hepburn, Khani Rooths and Aboubacar Traore.

Louisville men's basketball 2024-25 schedule

Louisville coach Pat Kelsey instructs his team during practice before the Cards head to the Bahamas. July 26, 2024

Note: Tipoff times and TV assignments are to be determined, unless noted otherwise.

Monday, Oct. 21: vs. Young Harris College (exhibition), 7 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Monday, Oct. 28: vs. Spalding (exhibition), 7 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Monday, Nov. 4: vs. Morehead State, 7 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Saturday. Nov. 9: vs. Tennessee, noon, ACC Network
Tuesday, Nov. 19: vs. Bellarmine, 7 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Friday, Nov. 22: vs. Winthrop, 7 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Wednesday, Nov. 27: vs. Indiana (Battle 4 Atlantis in Paradise, Bahamas), noon, ESPN
Thursday, Nov. 28: vs. Gonzaga or West Virginia (Battle 4 Atlantis in Paradise, Bahamas), either noon or 2:30 p.m., ESPN or ESPN2
Friday, Nov. 29: vs. TBD (Battle 4 Atlantis in Paradise, Bahamas)
Tuesday, Dec. 3: Ole Miss (SEC/ACC Challenge), 9 p.m., ACC Network
Sunday, Dec. 8: vs. Duke, 6 p.m., ACC Network
Wednesday, Dec. 11: vs. UTEP, 7 p.m., ACC Network Extra
Saturday, Dec. 14: at Kentucky
Saturday, Dec. 21: at Florida State, 2 p.m., The CW
Saturday, Dec. 28: vs. EKU, noon, The CW
Wednesday, Jan. 1: vs. North Carolina, ACC Network
Saturday, Jan. 4: at Virginia, 4 p.m., ACC Network
Tuesday, Jan. 7: vs. Clemson, 7 p.m., either ESPN2 or ESPNU
Saturday, Jan. 11: at Pittsburgh, either ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU
Tuesday, Jan. 14: at Syracuse, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday, Jan. 18: vs. Virginia, either ESPN or ESPN2
Tuesday, Jan. 21: at SMU, 9 p.m., ACC Network
Tuesday, Jan. 28: vs. Wake Forest, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday, Feb. 1: at Georgia Tech, 3:45 p.m., The CW
Wednesday, Feb. 5: at Boston College, 7 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday, Feb. 8: vs. Miami
Wednesday, Feb. 12: at N.C. State, 7 p.m., either ESPN2 or ESPNU
Sunday, Feb. 16: at Notre Dame, 8 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday, Feb. 22: vs. Florida State, noon, The CW
Tuesday, Feb. 25: at Virginia Tech, 9 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday, March 1: vs. Pittsburgh, either ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU
Wednesday, March 5: vs. California, 9 p.m., ACC Network
Saturday, March 8: vs. Stanford, ESPNU
Tuesday, March 11, through Saturday, March 15: ACC Tournament (Spectrum Center; Charlotte, North Carolina)

Louisville men's basketball 2024-25 roster

Frank Anselem-Ibe (center, fifth year)
Patrick Antonelli (guard, fifth year)
Terrence Edwards Jr. (guard/forward, fifth year)
J'Vonne Hadley (guard, fifth year)
Chucky Hepburn (guard, senior)
Koren Johnson (guard, junior)
Aly Khalifa (center, senior, redshirt)
Spencer Legg (guard, junior)
Aidan McCool (guard, graduate student)
Kasean Pryor (forward, fifth year)
Kobe Rodgers (guard, senior, redshirt)
Khani Rooths (forward, freshman)
James Scott (forward, sophomore)
Cole Sherman (guard, junior)
Reyne Smith (guard, senior)
Aboubacar Traore (forward, senior)
Noah Waterman (forward, sixth year)

Louisville women's basketball 2024-25 schedule