Louisville basketball: Mikel Brown Jr. wants to revive UofL program
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.
- USA Basketball will go for gold today at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Switzerland.
- Louisville freshman Mikel Brown Jr. and Kentucky freshman Jasper Johnson are among those representing the United States.
- Louisville native Tyran Stokes, a marquee Class of 2026 recruit who’s being courted by the Cardinals and the Wildcats, is also on the team.
USA Basketball is going for its first gold medal in the FIBA U19 World Cup since 2021 today, and a trio of players with local ties will be front and center.
Louisville’s Mikel Brown Jr., Kentucky’s Jasper Johnson and Tyran Stokes, a 502 native who is the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2026, are among those representing the United States at the biannual tournament in Lausanne, Switzerland. They’ll face Germany in the championship.
After not reaching the podium in 2023, the U.S. cruised to today’s final. It went undefeated in group play, with victories over Australia (88-73), France (108-77) and Cameroon (129-70), then took care of business against Jordan (140-67), Canada (108-102) and New Zealand (120-64) in the knockout stages.
Here’s everything you need to know to follow along from home:
The gold-medal game will tip off at 2 p.m. ET today.
FIBA will stream the gold-medal game on its YouTube page. Click here to watch.
Here’s USA Basketball’s roster for the 2025 FIBA U19 World Cup:
- Mikel Brown Jr. (Louisville)
- AJ Dybantsa (BYU)
- Caleb Holt (Class of 2026)
- Daniel Jacobsen (Purdue)
- Jasper Johnson (Kentucky)
- Morez Johnson Jr. (Michigan)
- Nik Khamenia (Duke)
- JJ Mandaquit (Washington)
- Brandon McCoy Jr. (Class of 2026)
- Koa Peat (Arizona)
- Jordan Smith Jr. (Class of 2026)
- Tyran Stokes (Class of 2026)
Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd is leading Team USA in this tournament. His assistants are Texas Tech head coach Grant McCasland and Notre Dame head coach Micah Shrewsberry — a Jeffersonville, Indiana, native.
Reach Louisville men’s basketball reporter Brooks Holton at bholton@gannett.com and follow him on X at @brooksHolton.
