Louisville to Face Kansas for First Action of the Basketball Season.

No. 11 Louisville opens its preseason slate Wednesday night with a high-profile exhibition against No. 17 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse, the return half of a home-and-home series that saw the Jayhawks win 90-82 last year in Louisville.

The game carries extra intrigue because of Flory Bidunga. The 6-foot-9 forward, who earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors last season while averaging 13.3 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks for Kansas, returns to Lawrence as a Louisville transfer and preseason All-ACC selection. Bidunga headlines a nearly completely rebuilt Cardinals roster under third-year coach Pat Kelsey, who brought in a highly ranked portal class that includes Jackson Shelstad, Seth Trimble, Karter Knox, and Alvaro Folgueiras. Only junior guard Adrian Wooley is a significant returning scholarship player.

Kansas, picked third in the Big 12 preseason coaches’ poll, features a mix of returning talent (including Tre White and Melvin Council Jr.) and elite newcomers headlined by top-ranked freshman Tyran Stokes. Bill Self’s team opened its exhibition schedule with an 80-62 win over Pittsburg State last Friday.

Louisville was selected third in the ACC preseason poll. Both programs enter the season with national title aspirations and will use the non-counting exhibition to test lineups and chemistry before regular-season openers later this month and early November. The Cardinals follow with a home exhibition against Mercyhurst on October 28 before opening the regular season November 2 against Chattanooga.