Tuesday, October 28
Louisville, Ky.
7 p.m.
Bucknell University
at
Louisville (exhibition)
Photo by: Keith Lucas
Men's Basketball Takes on No. 11 Louisville in Exhibition Game Tuesday
10/27/2025 1:34:00 PM | Men's Basketball
GAME DIGEST
What:Â Bucknell at No. 11 Louisville
Where:Â KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Ky.
When:Â Tuesday, Oct. 28, 7 p.m.
Watch:Â ACC Network Extra
Live Stats: GoCards.com
COMPLETE GAME NOTESÂ
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The official start of the 2025-26 basketball season is one week away (DO YOU HAVE YOUR TICKETS YET?), but the Bison men will get a good early test on Tuesday night with an exhibition game at No. 11 Louisville. The contest, which can be seen on ACC Network Extra, is a benefit for the Kentuckiana Friends of V (KFV) organization.Â
Bob Valvano, brother of the legendary coach Jim Valvano, founded Kentuckiana Friends of V as an offshoot of his work with the V Foundation to raise funds that will stay in and directly impact the Kentuckiana region. Besides cancer research, KFV supports other cancer-related initiatives, including prevention, education, and screening.
Jim Valvano was Bucknell's head coach from 1972-75 before moving on to Iona (1975-80) and North Carolina State (1980-90). He won a national championship at NC State and later became a popular commentator on ESPN until his passing from cancer in 1993. Several members of Valvano's family live in the broader Louisville area, including Bob Valvano, who serves as a radio color analyst for the Cardinals. Â
Bucknell and Louisville have never met in an official men's basketball contest. The Bison will be traveling to the state of Kentucky for the second straight season. They took on Kentucky at Rupp Arena last November. Even though these two teams have never met, two freshmen suited up against each other in the championship game of the FIBA U19 World Cup in Switzerland over the summer. Bucknell's Amon Dörries played for Team Germany, and Louisville's Mikel Brown Jr. played for Team USA. Brown recorded 12 points in 25 minutes, and Dörries tallied three rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench for Germany. The U.S. squad won the game 109-76, but it was a great run for Germany, which went 6-1 in the tournament and medaled for the first time at the U19 level.Â
The Bison had a closed scrimmage against UAlbany in Ithaca, N.Y., last week, but this will be this group's first time playing together in a full game-like setting. Louisville hosted Kansas in an exhibition contest on Friday and fell 90-82, despite 26 points from Ryan Conwell.Â
Bucknell's 131st season of men's basketball tips off next Monday, Nov. 3, with a home game against Delaware at 7 p.m. The Bison will have to replace three starters and five lettermen, including a pair of First Team All-Patriot League selections in center Noah Williamson (17.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg) and guard Josh Bascoe (15.8 ppg, 4.4 apg). The Bison also lost starting guard Elvin Edmonds IV (8.0 ppg) and backup center Pip Ajayi (4.4 ppg), along with wing Ian Motta (10.1 ppg), who suffered a season-ending injury seven games into his senior year. Bascoe and Ajayi are now playing professionally in France and Denmark, respectively. Edmonds is currently a graduate assistant coach at Penn State. Motta is using his medical redshirt year as a graduate student at Denver, and Williamson transferred to Alabama for his senior season.Â
John Griffin III's squad returns two senior starters in forward Ruot Bijiek (8.8 ppg) and wing Achile Spadone (8.6 ppg). In the backcourt, junior Brandon McCreesh (5.7 ppg) and sophomore Jayden Williams (2.8 ppg) are expected to replace Bascoe and Edmonds in the starting lineup, with help from two talented first-year players. Bucknell welcomes five newcomers to the squad this season, three true freshmen and two transfers. The vets are center Grgur Brcic, who spent two seasons as a reserve at Toledo, and guard Aleksander Pachucki, who comes in after one season at Fordham. The rookies are 6'11" German center Amon Dörries and guards Pat Curtin and Jacob Meachem.
Second-year head coach Pat Kelsey has a loaded roster at Louisville this season, and his squad is ranked No. 11 in the Associated Press preseason poll. The Cardinals were picked second in the ACC preseason poll, behind only Duke, and Mikel Brown Jr. and Conwell were named to the Preseason All-ACC Team. Â Â
Brown earned the honor as a true freshman. The five-star recruit won the 3-point contest at last year's McDonald's All-American Game and was a semifinalist for the Naismith Trophy Boys High School Player of the Year. Conwell is a Xavier transfer who averaged 16.5 ppg for the Musketeers last season.
Louisville finished 27-8 overall and 18-2 in the ACC last season, just one year removed from an 8-24/3-17 campaign in 2023-24. The turnaround helped Kelsey earn ACC Coach of the Year honors, and he was a semifinalist for the Naismith Coach of the Year award. The Cardinals advanced to the ACC Tournament final, where they fell 73-62 to Duke, and then were upset by Creighton in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.Â
What:Â Bucknell at No. 11 Louisville
Where:Â KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Ky.
When:Â Tuesday, Oct. 28, 7 p.m.
Watch:Â ACC Network Extra
Live Stats: GoCards.com
COMPLETE GAME NOTESÂ
LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The official start of the 2025-26 basketball season is one week away (DO YOU HAVE YOUR TICKETS YET?), but the Bison men will get a good early test on Tuesday night with an exhibition game at No. 11 Louisville. The contest, which can be seen on ACC Network Extra, is a benefit for the Kentuckiana Friends of V (KFV) organization.Â
Bob Valvano, brother of the legendary coach Jim Valvano, founded Kentuckiana Friends of V as an offshoot of his work with the V Foundation to raise funds that will stay in and directly impact the Kentuckiana region. Besides cancer research, KFV supports other cancer-related initiatives, including prevention, education, and screening.
Jim Valvano was Bucknell's head coach from 1972-75 before moving on to Iona (1975-80) and North Carolina State (1980-90). He won a national championship at NC State and later became a popular commentator on ESPN until his passing from cancer in 1993. Several members of Valvano's family live in the broader Louisville area, including Bob Valvano, who serves as a radio color analyst for the Cardinals. Â
Bucknell and Louisville have never met in an official men's basketball contest. The Bison will be traveling to the state of Kentucky for the second straight season. They took on Kentucky at Rupp Arena last November. Even though these two teams have never met, two freshmen suited up against each other in the championship game of the FIBA U19 World Cup in Switzerland over the summer. Bucknell's Amon Dörries played for Team Germany, and Louisville's Mikel Brown Jr. played for Team USA. Brown recorded 12 points in 25 minutes, and Dörries tallied three rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench for Germany. The U.S. squad won the game 109-76, but it was a great run for Germany, which went 6-1 in the tournament and medaled for the first time at the U19 level.Â
The Bison had a closed scrimmage against UAlbany in Ithaca, N.Y., last week, but this will be this group's first time playing together in a full game-like setting. Louisville hosted Kansas in an exhibition contest on Friday and fell 90-82, despite 26 points from Ryan Conwell.Â
Bucknell's 131st season of men's basketball tips off next Monday, Nov. 3, with a home game against Delaware at 7 p.m. The Bison will have to replace three starters and five lettermen, including a pair of First Team All-Patriot League selections in center Noah Williamson (17.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg) and guard Josh Bascoe (15.8 ppg, 4.4 apg). The Bison also lost starting guard Elvin Edmonds IV (8.0 ppg) and backup center Pip Ajayi (4.4 ppg), along with wing Ian Motta (10.1 ppg), who suffered a season-ending injury seven games into his senior year. Bascoe and Ajayi are now playing professionally in France and Denmark, respectively. Edmonds is currently a graduate assistant coach at Penn State. Motta is using his medical redshirt year as a graduate student at Denver, and Williamson transferred to Alabama for his senior season.Â
John Griffin III's squad returns two senior starters in forward Ruot Bijiek (8.8 ppg) and wing Achile Spadone (8.6 ppg). In the backcourt, junior Brandon McCreesh (5.7 ppg) and sophomore Jayden Williams (2.8 ppg) are expected to replace Bascoe and Edmonds in the starting lineup, with help from two talented first-year players. Bucknell welcomes five newcomers to the squad this season, three true freshmen and two transfers. The vets are center Grgur Brcic, who spent two seasons as a reserve at Toledo, and guard Aleksander Pachucki, who comes in after one season at Fordham. The rookies are 6'11" German center Amon Dörries and guards Pat Curtin and Jacob Meachem.
Second-year head coach Pat Kelsey has a loaded roster at Louisville this season, and his squad is ranked No. 11 in the Associated Press preseason poll. The Cardinals were picked second in the ACC preseason poll, behind only Duke, and Mikel Brown Jr. and Conwell were named to the Preseason All-ACC Team. Â Â
Brown earned the honor as a true freshman. The five-star recruit won the 3-point contest at last year's McDonald's All-American Game and was a semifinalist for the Naismith Trophy Boys High School Player of the Year. Conwell is a Xavier transfer who averaged 16.5 ppg for the Musketeers last season.
Louisville finished 27-8 overall and 18-2 in the ACC last season, just one year removed from an 8-24/3-17 campaign in 2023-24. The turnaround helped Kelsey earn ACC Coach of the Year honors, and he was a semifinalist for the Naismith Coach of the Year award. The Cardinals advanced to the ACC Tournament final, where they fell 73-62 to Duke, and then were upset by Creighton in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.Â
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