Ole Miss Basketball in SEC/ACC Challenge: Q&A With Louisville On SI

The Ole Miss Rebels and Louisville Cardinals will square off in the SEC/ACC Challenge on Tuesday night.

Nov 29, 2024; Paradise Island, Bahamas, BHS; Louisville Cardinals guard Chucky Hepburn (24) dribbles against the Oklahoma Sooners during the first half at Imperial Arena at the Atlantis resort. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images / Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The No. 23 Ole Miss Rebels will look to return to their winning ways on Tuesday night when they face the Louisville Cardinals on the road as part of the SEC/ACC Challenge.

Ole Miss split its two games last week in the Rady Children's Invitational in San Diego, picking up an overtime win over BYU and suffering a two-point loss to the Purdue Boilermakers who moved up to No. 8 in this week's AP Poll.

Now the Rebels will take on Louisville who currently sits with a 5-2 record on the year. We sat down with Louisville On SI's Matt McGavic to discuss Tuesday's matchup and what the Cardinals bring to the table.

1. Louisville is 5-2 on the year, so it looks like there has been some good and bad in the early going this season. What are the current strengths and weaknesses of the Cardinals?

An unexpected strength of this team early in the season has been the defensive intensity and execution that they have played with. Traditionally, Pat Kelsey-led teams have been anchored by their offense with defense lagging behind. So far, it’s actually been the opposite. They have done an incredible job at bringing ball pressure in half court sets, whether that’s swarming the ball handler, jumping passing lanes, etc. 

However, an unexpected weakness has been three-point shooting. On paper, this should be an elite three-point shooting team. But for some reason, shots just have not been falling from long range. Considering just how big the three-point shot is for Kelsey’s system (Cards are currently 13th nationally in 3PA/FGA), this is something that has to get remedied very quickly.

2. Talk to me about Chucky Hepburn. What has he brought to the floor so far this season as he leads the team in scoring?

Hepburn has the lynchpin of Louisville’s efforts on the defensive end of the court. It’s not hyperbole to say he’s probably the best on-ball defender in college basketball right now (his 7.6 steal percentage leads the nation). He not only does a phenomenal job of staying in front of his man, but has great timing and discipline when it comes to reaching for the ball on a steal attempt.

Then on the offensive side, he’s the straw that stirs the drink. Hepburn’s court vision is next level, whether that’s his ability to see 2-3 steps ahead who is going to be open, as well as his actual passes themselves. On top of that, he’s off to a good start shooting the ball, and is better at finishing at the rim than I expected.

3. What's the overall mood surrounding the Louisville program? This is obviously a proud basketball school, but the team has fallen on hard times in recent years.

The mood after the Battle 4 Atlantis is complicated. It’s clear that after beating Indiana like a drum and out-muscling West Virginia that Pat Kelsey seems to be the right man for the job, and that competent basketball is back in the Derby City.

However… injuries have started to pile up. They already entered the year with Aly Khalifa and Kobe Rodgers having to redshirt due to injuries at their previous stops. Then Aboubacar Traore and Koren Johnson have missed the last five games due to their own injuries, and Kasean Pryor, one of their three-top players, suffered a season-ending injury in the last game vs. Oklahoma.

Considering that, for the foreseeable future, Louisville only has eight healthy scholarship players, and depending on what happens vs. Ole Miss and Duke the game after, fans might have to reset expectations because of the mounting injuries.