LOUISVILLE, Ky. – When the Louisville men’s basketball program took the court Monday night for its second and final exhibition game, Kasean Pryor had much more than basketball on his mind.

Last Thursday, the forward from USF lost a major influence in his life. South Florida head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, who coached Pryor last season during his only season with the Bulls, passed away unexpectedly due to complications that arose during a medical procedure. He was 43 years old.

Abdur-Rahim was a rising star in the college basketball coaching world. In four seasons as head coach at Kennesaw State, he took the Owls from 1-28 on the year to 26-9 with a berth in the NCAA Tournament. In what ended up being his only season as USF coach last season, the Bulls went 25-8 with an AAC regular season title.

During that 2023-24 season, Pryor was a big part of USF’s success. He was the Bulls’ third leading scorer with 13.0 points per game, while also pulling down a team-best 7.9 rebounds. He also averaged 1.8 assists, shot 44.7/35.2/81.5 on the season and recorded 12 double-doubles.

“Listening to the way Kasean talked about Amir tells you everything you need to know about what kind of teacher he was,” Louisville head coach Pat Kelsey said. “We lost a great person, a great family man, a great coach and it’s very sad.”

So it was time to return to the court and battle Spalding for the Cardinals’ final exhibition preparation, Pryor did so with a tribute to his former coach. On his shoes, Pryor wrote a simple message: “BALL 4 AMIR.”

Pryor ended up doing just that.

In just 20 minutes on the court, the 6-foot-10, 210-pound big man scored a team-high 26 points, hitting 9 of 12 field goals and hitting all three of his 3-pointers. He also grabbed seven rebounds and recorded three steals in the Cardinals’ 99-54 victory over the Golden Eagles.

“It’s been tough,” Pryor said after the game. “Yesterday I was able to go to his funeral in Atlanta. I was able to fly there and back. That meant a lot to me.

“To go out here and glorify his name and do it for them. It would have been a disservice to not come out and try as hard as I can after all the love and time he put into making sure I was at the top of my life.” “It’s just about going out there and obviously having fun, playing for my teammates and trying hard to be a coach.”

Pryor also felt Louisville’s outpouring of love. Whether it was the coaching staff or his teammates, they made sure to support Pryor during his time of mourning.

“It’s been incredible,” he said. “There has been no better support group or better support system around me. All my colleagues have hugged me. They texted me, anything I needed, they were there to help me. I could feel all the love.

“It’s a great feeling to have those guys and know that they’re supporting me. The entire staff has supported me and to know that the city is supporting me in this difficult time, it’s like no other to have that kind of support around me.”

(Kasean Pryor Photo: Matt Stone – Courier Journal/USA Today Network)

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