Mikel Brown Jr.’s Louisville Cardinals are set to start their NCAA Tournament run against the South Florida Bulls at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Thursday.
South Florida had a good run in the American Athletic Conference. The Bulls went 15-2 in the conference, 25-8 overall, and are on an 11-game win streak, which includes a run to the AAC Tournament title.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, went 11-7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, 23-10 overall, and narrowly lost their ACC Tournament matchup against the Miami Hurricanes.
The South Florida Bulls have two players on their injury report. De’Ante Green, their star forward, is out with an Achilles injury. Guard Xavier Brown has also been ruled out due to an undisclosed injury. The rest of the Bulls unit is healthy and ready for the game.
The Louisville Cardinals, on the other hand, only have one injured player on the report, but it’s a major one. Mikel Brown Jr. is listed as questionable with a reaggravated back injury.
Brown last played against the Clemson Tigers and has been out of the team rotation since. Before his injury, he was averaging 18.2, 3.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting 41% from the field. He will likely be a game-time decision for the Louisville Cardinals.
Pat Kelsey Provided an Injury Update on Mikel Brown Jr.
Head coach Pat Kelsey understands how important Brown is for the team’s success, but does not want to rush him back into action.
“He made great progress last week,” Kelsey said. “We’ll see how the next couple of days of practice go.”
Brown also spoke about his injury and rehab during the ACC Tournament. When asked if he would be back for the NCAA Tournament, he said that he was solely focused on his rehab and getting back to being 100% ready.
Read More:
Embarrassment for ESPN as Jon Scheyer Interview Suffers Glitch Before NCAA Tournament
College Sports Network has you covered with the latest news, analysis, insights, and trending stories in baseball, tennis, college football, men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball, and college baseball!
