LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- University of Louisville men's basketball coach Pat Kelsey has been in town for just over a year -- and it's been an eventful year.
From his introduction last March to the program returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six years, Kelsey took a Louisville program that had become a subject of derision and led it on a remarkable 19-game improvement, putting himself into the conversation for national coach of the year honors after a second-place finish in the ACC and the ACC Coach of the Year award.
On Thursday, the U of L Athletic Association showed its appreciation, raising his salary by $1 million. Kelsey signed a $2.3 million contract last March, and earned a $25,000 bonus by being ACC Coach of the Year and a $50,000 bonus for leading the team to the NCAA Tournament.
Kelsey's salary now is $3.63 million, on a contract that runs through the 2030 season. The new deal also increases the incentives he would earn for reaching the Sweet 16, Elite Eight and Final Four.
A look at some major events during Kelsey's first season:
Josh Heird and Pat Kelsey during his introduction as Louisville coach on March 28, 2024.
March 28, 2024 – Pat Kelsey is named head coach at the University of Louisville, replacing Kenny Payne, who was ousted after two seasons. His hiring comes at the end of an eventful search process that went through several names before he was tapped.
He made reference to that by mentioning his wife, Lisa, in an opening news conference that energized the Louisville fan base, saying, “The good news is I was her third choice, and that worked out really well. So I feel really good.”
March 30, 2024 – Reyne Smith, a sharpshooting guard from Australia, announces that he will follow Kelsey to Louisville from Charleston to become Kelsey’s first Louisville recruit. Smith went on to lead the nation in three-pointers made for a time during the 2024-25 season before an injury sidelined him late. He became the first Louisville player with 100 made threes during the regular season and finished with 107, second-most ever for a Cardinal in a single season.
July 31, 2024 – Louisville beats a Bahamas Select team 111-59 in an exhibition in the Bahamas, the first of two exhibition blowouts. The game put on display the up-tempo, quick passing attack that Kelsey had employed at Charleston.
Oct. 5, 2024 – At his first “Louisville Live” appearance, Kelsey tells fans, ““The revi-Ville is real!”. . . This team is going to make you proud.”
Oct. 7, 2024 – Kelsey tells a crowd at the program’s annual Tipoff Luncheon, “We're about toughness. We're about competitiveness. We're about guys that put the team first. Our guys make people around them better. That's a Louisville basketball player: basketball IQ, hoop dudes, guys that are passionate about their craft. We strive to have the No. 1 culture in the country."
Pat Kelsey talks to fans at the program's annual Louisville Live! event in the KFC Yum! Center in October, 2024.
Oct. 21, 2024 – Louisville makes 24 three-pointers in its first preseason exhibition under Kelsey, beating Young Harris 116-59.
Nov. 4, 2024 – Louisville opens the Pat Kelsey era with a 93-45 win over Morehead State in its first regular season game.
Nov. 9, 2024 – The Cardinals lose to No. 12-ranked Tennessee 77-55 in front of a raucous “White-Out” crowd of 16,475 in the KFC Yum! Center. After the loss, Kelsey said, “They’ve had a lot of ‘atta boys’ and a lot of pats on the back and a lot of high fives. I mean what I've said since this team’s been together -- they’ve been phenomenal. It's a really, really good group, and I do believe, with everything I got, that this team is going to end up being really good. But, for the first time, (we) got hit in the mouth and (we’re) going to face adversity.”
Nov. 19, 2024 – Louisville announces that forward Abobacar Traore will miss an extended period after suffering a broken arm in practice.
Nov. 27, 2024 – Louisville blows out Indiana 89-61 in its opener of the Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament in Paradise Island, Bahamas. It is the program’s first win over a ranked team since 2021. The Cardinals beat West Virginia 79-70 in overtime a night later.
Nov. 29, 2024 – Louisville falls to Oklahoma in the championship game of the Battle 4 Atlantis, but more important, loses center Kasean Pryor for the season when he went down with a torn ACL.
Dec. 3, 2024 – Guard Koren Johnson announces that he will undergo shoulder surgery and miss the remainder of the season, the second Louisville player to be lost for the year due to injury. That night, Louisville falls 86-63 at home to Ole Miss, its second straight loss.
Dec. 8, 2024 – After building a 14-point lead and leading at halftime, Louisville can’t hold off No. 9 Duke in a 76-69 loss, the team’s third straight.
Dec. 14, 2024 – The Cardinals fall to in-state rival Kentucky 93-85 in Rupp Arena in Kelsey’s first experience of the Bluegrass rivalry. It would be their last loss for six weeks.
Pat Kelsey shouts to his team during a game in the 2025 season.
Dec. 28, 2024 – Noah Waterman makes a buzzer beater to send Louisville past Eastern Kentucky 78-76. Aboubacar Traore returns to play after a 10-game absence. After the game, players and coaches have a series of discussions to talk about how the team will have to play moving forward, tweaking some parts of its offensive attack and, primarily, establishing its defensive identity.
Jan. 1, 2025 – Louisville beats North Carolina 83-70 to improve to 9-5. The New Year’s Day win eclipses the program’s win total from the previous season. At the game, Louisville introduces 5-star point guard Mikel Brown, who announces his commitment to the program at center court.
Jan. 3, 2025 – The Cardinals win 70-50 at Virginia, their first win in Charlottesville since 1990.
Jan. 7, 2025 – Louisville beats Clemson 74-64 to claim second place in the ACC standings.
Jan. 14, 2025 – An 85-61 win at Syracuse gives Louisville its 13th win of the season, eclipsing the total number of wins the program had achieved the previous two seasons combined (12).
Jan. 20, 2025 – After wins over Syracuse and Virginia Tech run their winning streak to eight games, the Cardinals return to the AP Top 25 for the first time since January of 2021.
Feb. 1, 2025 – After a 25-point win at SMU and a 13-point win over Wake Forest at home run its winning streak to 10 games, Louisville stumbles in a 77-70 loss at Georgia Tech. It would be the Cardinals’ final loss of the regular season.
March 5, 2025 – Reyne Smith, Louisville’s best outside shooting threat, goes down with a high ankle sprain and does not return in a win over California. He would not play again until the NCAA Tournament.
Pat Kelsey and Reyne Smith embrace after a Senior Day victory in the KFC Yum! Center.
March 8, 2025 – Louisville ends its regular-season on a 10-game winning streak with a 68-48 win over Stanford. The Cardinals finish the season 25-6, with a program record 18 conference wins. Their 18-2 ACC record earns them the No. 2 seed in the upcoming ACC Tournament, their highest-ever seed in that event.
March 10, 2025 – Kelsey is voted ACC Coach of the Year, and point guard Chucky Hepburn wins Defensive Player of the Year. He’s the first Louisville coach to win a conference coach of the year award since Rick Pitino in 2004-05 in Conference USA.
March 14, 2025 – Louisville beats No. 10 Clemson 76-73 to advance to the ACC Tournament championship game for the first time. The Cardinals’ 27th win gives Kelsey more wins than any first-year coach in program history.
March 15, 2025 – Duke beats Louisville 73-62 in the ACC Championship game.
March 16, 2025 – Louisville receives a No. 8 seed from the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee, the lowest ever awarded to a program ranked as high in the computer rankings. Speaking with Kentucky Sports Radio host Matt Jones on ESPN Radio, Kelsey said, “I'll be completely honest with you, like watching the Selection Show is like, when that popped up, you know, it it hurt a little bit. You know, you felt slighted a little bit. You know, it is what it is, at this point. You have the advantage of no choice. But, you know, in my opinion, we should be playing an 12- or 11-seed. Every metric under the sun that you look at, and all the experts, NET, we’re 23rd, which would put us in, you know, (against) a possible five seed range.”
March 17, 2025 – The final Associated Press poll before the NCAA Tournament begins ranks Louisville No. 10.
March 20, 2025 – Creighton beats Louisville 89-75 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Rupp Arena.
April 4, 2025 – Kelsey is third in the AP National Coach of the Year voting, behind co-winners Rick Pitino of St. John’s and Bruce Pearl of Auburn.
April 7, 2025 – ESPN publishes its “way too early” Top 25 for the 2025-26 season, ranking Louisville No. 3 in the nation.
April 10, 2025 – Kelsey is given a raise by the Louisville Athletic Association board of directors.
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