Sources – Louisville, Pat Kelsey reach 5-year contract

Louisville has agreed with Charleston’s Pat Kelsey on a five-year deal to develop into the Cardinals’ new basketball coach, sources informed ESPN on Wednesday.

Kelsey, 48, is coming off his second consecutive NCAA match look, main Charleston to back-to-back CAA regular-season and match championships. He brings a profession 261-122 file over 12 seasons as a head coach at Charleston and Winthrop.

Louisville has scheduled a information convention for Thursday.

The Cougars went 31-4 through the 2022-23 season, successful 21 of their first 22 video games. They took eventual nationwide runner-up San Diego State to the wire within the first spherical of the NCAA match earlier than falling.

Kelsey’s rent brings to an finish a whirlwind seek for athletic director Josh Heird, who fired Kenny Payne simply over two weeks in the past. Heird first pursued Baylor coach Scott Drew, who opted to return to Waco, after which focused Florida Atlantic’s Dusty Might, who in the end selected Michigan.

This all performed out amid a backdrop of uncertainty within the ACC, as final week Clemson turned the second college in current months to file swimsuit in opposition to the convention in an try to go away.

In Kelsey, Louisville is getting a coach who will deliver a high-energy model that ought to reenergize Louisville’s loyal fan base, which has endured back-to-back last-place ACC finishes.

He’ll develop into the Cardinals’ third head coach, and fifth total, for the reason that college fired Corridor of Famer Rick Pitino in October 2017 within the wake of a federal investigation of corruption in school basketball.

Over Kelsey’s previous two seasons, Charleston was 58-12 total and 31-5 within the CAA.

This season, Charleston received its last 9 video games of the common season after which received the convention match to earn the CAA’s computerized bid. The Cougars misplaced to Alabama 109-96 within the first spherical of the NCAA match.

Earlier than taking on at Charleston in 2021, Kelsey was the coach at Winthrop for 9 seasons, main the Eagles to 4 Large South Convention regular-season titles and two NCAA match appearances. Winthrop additionally received the 2020 convention match, however the NCAA match was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

He went 185-95 throughout his time with the Eagles.

Kelsey was beforehand an assistant coach at Wake Forest beneath Skip Prosser and Dino Gaudio and at Xavier beneath Chris Mack — who spent three and a half seasons as the pinnacle coach of Louisville from 2018-22. This offers him each expertise within the ACC and within the basic geographic footprint.

Payne was fired after two seasons with the Cardinals. He went 12-52 in his Louisville tenure, successful only one recreation away from dwelling.

Eight gamers from this season’s workforce have already entered the switch portal, together with main scorer Skyy Clark (13.2 PPG) and fellow key contributors Mike James (12.6 PPG), JJ Traynor (10.1 PPG in eight video games), Curtis Williams (5.3 PPG) and Kaleb Glenn (3.9 PPG). The Cardinals’ lone recruit within the 2024 class, T.J. Robinson, decommitted earlier this month.

The Related Press contributed to this report.