LOUISVILLE, Ky. — October 11, 2023
The University of Louisville men’s basketball team got its first chance to compete in front of the fans Wednesday with the annual Red and White Scrimmage at the KFC Yum! Center.
The event turned out to be a competitive showing, with the Red team claiming the first half 34-20 and the White squad taking the second half 31-28 after resetting the score to 0-0 at the break.
“I just thought today was good overall,” head coach Kenny Payne said. “We had some nervous guys out there to start in, which is normal, the first time playing in front of people. But overall, I’m pleased with it. I would like to tighten up on some turnovers and stuff like that, but I think you can tell that this is a competitive group. This is a together group. We got some talented young men that are going to be really good basketball players and we took a step in the right direction with this group.”
Sophomore guard Tre White, a transfer from USC, led the Cardinals with 17 points, nine rebounds and four assists across the full 32-minute scrimmage.
He scored the first five points of the game and later helped his Red squad spark a 17-0 run that built a big first-half advantage.
“For myself, I really just want to be a leader this year,” White said. “I want to show that I can lead a team. But besides me, I’m just really excited to be with this group of guys. Our chemistry is crazy. Off the court, we’ll be together all day. When we play on the court, it’s not even like a game. We’re just playing for each other. It’s really the bond, the brotherhood we have is going to go a long way.”
Redshirt sophomore guard/forward Mike James also had 12 points for the Red team, as did freshman center Dennis Evans. The 7-foot-1 big man also tallied five blocks and five rebounds.
Junior forward Brandon Huntley-Hatfield and junior guard Koron Davis chipped in nine and eight points, respectively, for the Red team.
On the White squad, sophomore guard Skyy Clark and junior forward JJ Traynor led the way with 11 points apiece. Clark, a transfer from Illinois, also had five assists and three steals.
Sophomore forward/center Emmanuel Okorafor (10 points, nine rebounds) and freshman guard/forward Curtis Williams (10 points) also found double figures for White.
Williams had all 10 of his points in the second half to help the White team close the gap after a slow start.
“I think this team has a whole new identity,” Clark said. “And we have just been building off that all summer. A lot of people have been sleeping on us, so we are just going to come out and hoop. We have pressure, but at the same time we have no pressure to come out and play free, play hard and just show people what we can do.”
The Cardinals will play their first exhibition game of the preseason against Simmons College on Oct. 18 at the KFC Yum! Center. The game will stream on ACC Network Extra.