By RUSS BROWN Photos by Matt Johnson
ReviVILLE is in full swing in Louisville as we head down the stretch toward the all-important postseason tournaments in college basketball. At publication time, UofL was 15-5 overall, surpassing the total wins (12) in the last two seasons, on a nine-game winning streak, sitting in second place in the Atlantic Coast Conference and enjoying its first Top-25 ranking in four years at No. 21.
And among the most significant reasons that coach Pat Kelsey has been so successful in his first season is the play of his dynamic guard duo of Chucky Hepburn and Reyne (pronounced rain) Smith.
They are both valuable for different reasons. Hepburn, a transfer from Wisconsin, is the Cardinals’ starting point guard who runs the show, directing traffic on offense and harassing opposing players on defense. Smith, who followed Kelsey from College of Charleston, is the shooting guard and he takes those responsibilities seriously, launching -- and making -- a high volume of 3-pointers.
A strong case could be made that they are the best one-two punch among guard combinations in Division I. Let’s start with Smith.
At 6 feet, 2 inches tall and a solid 195 pounds he is considered an elite defender and team leader who started for Wisconsin from his first game as a freshman. In high school, he was a four-star recruit out of Omaha, Nebraska, and chose Wisconsin over Creighton, Minnesota and Nebraska. Hepburn started all 103 games during his three of his seasons with the Badgers, totaling 1,103 points, 313 assists and 162 steals before deciding to transfer.
He has been even better in Louisville’s up-tempo style of play that allows him to get out on the fast break and spot open teammates before the opposing defense has a chance to get set up in the half-court. And Kelsey’s scheme allows him more freedom on offense. At Wisconsin last season he had only three 20-point games; this year he already has four for U of L, including a career-high 32 against West Virginia in the Battle 4 Atlantis.
“Chucky is the straw that stirs our drink,” Kelsey says. “He’s one of the best point guards in the country; I don’t think there’s any question. He affects the game in so many ways. I wouldn’t trade him for anybody. He’s a special, special player.”
Hepburn showed just how special he is in a 98-73 rout of SMU on Jan. 21 in Dallas when he handed out a U of L school record 16 assists, one more than Francisco Garcia had against Murray State in 2004. Of the Cards’ first 50 first-half points, Hepburn was involved in 37 of them. He scored 13 points, and his nine assists led to 24 more points.
He also had five rebounds with just two turnovers in 38 minutes. On the season, he leads the ACC in assists with 6.4 per game and steals (49) and tops U of L in scoring at 15.1 points ppg.
Hepburn improved his season assists total to 127, and depending on how many games the Cards play in the ACC and NCAA Tournament, he could overtake single season record holder and UofL Director of Player Development Peyton Siva, who had 228 during the Cards’ 40-game run to the 2013 national championship.
“I know my guys are constantly in the gym getting shots up, so I’m able to trust them when I find them on the court,” said Hepburn, whose previous career best was 10 assists in U of L’s 89-61 win over Indiana in the Battle 4 Atlantis. “I love playing with this team, man. We’ve come a long way, but we still have a lot of room to grow.”