Louisville men's basketball coach suffers bizarre injury trying to avoid celebration

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Sometimes, even winning takes a toll.

Louisville Cardinals men’s basketball head coach Pat Kelsey learned the hard way on Tuesday night as he tried to avoid the postgame celebration fracas following their win over the Kentucky Wildcats.

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Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey did not like a call during the second half as the Louisville Cardinals hosted the Kentucky Wildcats at the KFC Yum! Center on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

The No. 12 Cardinals defeated the No. 9 Wildcats 96-88 at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville.

He entered his postgame media availability with his right middle finger in a splint. He said he was trying to avoid his assistant coaches mobbing him after the victory on the other side of the arena.

"Now I’m 50, but I got some wheels," he said. "There’s a curtain that separates the two halves of the court, and I try to bust through, but my finger gets caught on something."

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Louisville Cardinals head coach Pat Kelsey went into the Cardinal student section after the Cards beat the Cats 96-88 in the UofL-UK annual rivalry game at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Kentucky Nov. 11, 2025. (Matt Stone/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Kelsey said his finger was bent at nearly 90 degrees but was unsure if it was broken. A team physician helped him reset the finger.

"There’s so much adrenaline going on in my body right now, I didn’t feel anything," he said.

Louisville’s win over Kentucky is one of their biggest in recent