Louisville basketball: Mikel Brown Jr. on U of L revival
Louisville basketball signee Mikel Brown Jr. discusses why he chose U of L and how he wants to be a part of the program’s revival.
Mikel Brown Jr. quickly found out what Louisville basketball is all about after he committed to Pat Kelsey‘s program on New Year’s Day during the ACC game against North Carolina.
Card Nation filled Fern Creek High School’s gym Friday night to watch Brown, a consensus top-three point guard in the country, as DME Academy of Daytona Beach, Florida, defeated West Oaks Academy, 73-63, at the Grind Session, a high school basketball showcase.
Before the game Friday, Kelsey posted on his X account — formerly Twitter — that Cardinals fans should attend Brown’s games this weekend. U of L fans showered Brown with love and support.
“I’m (at) a loss of words right now. Like I said, I just can’t wait to step on campus next year. This fan base is truly amazing,” Brown said. “Two days after I committed on the floor (at the KFC Yum! Center), and the crowd (is) like this, a whole bunch of red in the stands. Man, I love it.”
In addition to Cardinals fans attending the Grind Session game Friday, Brown’s parents, his agent Christian Dawkins and 502Circle NIL Collective President Dan Furman also attended.
“Louisville set itself apart because, I mean, they just came in like a dark horse. (Kelsey), (assistant coach Thomas Carr), (director of basketball operations) Mitch (Johnson), everybody,” said Brown’s mom, Marisela.
The qualities the Browns looked for in each program during the recruiting process were whether the coaches established a relationship with Brown, if the system fit his style of play, what the culture was like in the gym and the locker room, and the school’s basketball fandom.
“When we walked into the gym and we saw just all the red, we were just amazed,” Marisela said about Louisville’s fans Friday night.
“I think we definitely made the right choice in coming here between following the greatest coaching staff and the program. The fellows on the team are just great, and I think that they are a reflection of the Louisville base. It’s just phenomenal. It’s just a blessing.”
Brown, a 6-foot-3 standout, said he is excited to be part of the culture change Kelsey and his staff are manufacturing. His goal is for the Cards to return to the upper echelon of college hoops.
“Just trying to bring the revival back here, that culture that there was here, you know, in the previous years; I’ve always known Louisville as a basketball school, to be honest with you,” Brown said.
“Peyton Siva and Russ Smith, those are the guards that I remember. They were just fiery, gritty, and just their tenacity. They are just a dog. That’s all I can say about them. They’re just dogs, and watching them compete and win that national championship (in 2013). It was great.”
Louisville fans should be excited because Brown displayed all those qualities in his team’s win over the Flame on Friday.
Brown, selected as the player of the game, posted 25 points (7 of 16 from the field, 3 of 5 on 3-pointers), three assists, one rebound and one steal.
Earlier this season, DME Academy lost, 85-78, to West Oaks. The Flame’s Willie Burnett III had 44 points in the first matchup. Burnett, a 6-4 combo guard, is a four-star prospect and the 60th-ranked player overall in the Class of 2026 by ESPN.
Burnett was primed for another big game Friday, but the key to slowing him down was putting Brown on him.
Halfway through the third quarter, DME Academy made that switch. Burnett, who finished with 22 points, only scored two points in the fourth quarter with Brown guarding him.
On Saturday, DME Academy defeated Huntington Expression Prep of West Virginia, 94-87. Brown tallied 23 points, seven rebounds and eight assists.
Even though Brown is among the nation’s top guards, he knows he cannot rest on his laurels. His father, Chris Brown, an assistant coach for DME, continues to challenge his son on the basketball court.
“When (Mikel) was younger, man, I knew he wanted to play, and I knew he was going to be great. My thing was, how can I get him to not break mentally when somebody’s (on) him? You got to put him in so many positions or challenges, you gotta make sure he never gets comfortable, and that’s what I did since he was little,” Chris Brown said.
Reach sports reporter Prince James Story at pstory@gannett.com and follow him on X at @PrinceJStory.
