LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — The old-fashioned counting stats are fascinating for Adrian Wooley, the dynamic guard from Kennesaw State who committed to Pat Kelsey and the University of Louisville from the transfer portal Monday.
Third in Conference USA in scoring at 18.5 per game.
Third in shooting percentage at 51.3, which is actually the leader among backcourt players.
Seventh in assists at 3.52 per game — as a 6’5″ player comfortable playing either guard position.
No surprise. This is how Wooley described his daily routine to folks at Kennesaw State:
“Wake up, go to practice, study hall, back to the gym to get some more shots in, then I’m good for the day … I think my teammates and coaches would describe me as outgoing and outspoken.”
Eleventh in free throw percentage at 76.1.
Eighth in steals at 1.45 per game.
Fifteenth in defensive rebounds at 3.9 per game.
Third in minutes at 31.9 per game.
These across the board numbers are for a freshman, a freshman that one of the recruiting services ranked the 308th best player in the high school Class of 2024.
Before the season began, Wooley shared his goal with the folks at Kennesaw:
“I want to be Freshman of the Year.”
Mission accomplished in CUSA.
So, what else are the Cardinals getting in Wooley?
Well, he is a player that all the high majors whiffed on a year ago when he graduated from Paul W. Bryant High School in Cottondale, Alabama, a town of less than 3,000 near Tuscaloosa.
That’s the heart of the Southeastern Conference but you won’t find any SEC offers on Wooley’s recruiting profile. None.
No, according to 247Sports, Wooley picked Kennesaw State over Arkansas State, East Texas A&M, Florida Gulf Coast, George Mason, Jacksonville State, Louisiana Tech, Marshall, Murray State, Northeastern, Richmond, Southern Illinois, St. Bonaventure and Tennessee Tech.
The analytics say that Louisville landed a player who appeared to improve every month with Kennesaw, a team that defeated Rutgers, a Big Ten squad with two 5-star freshmen, in its 19-14 season.
Over the final 13 games, Wooley averaged 19.8 points, while making nearly 46% (34 of 74) shots from distance. Credit Wooley with 15 games when he scored 20 or more points as well as 13 games when he made at least three shots from distance.
Wooley is the rare three-point shooter who also excels at getting to the foul line. He made 41% of his 152 three-point attempts but also ranked second in Conference USA by attempting 165 free throws.
In other words, crowd him and he will drive the ball. Play off of him and he will take the three.
No surprise then that Bart Torvik’s analytic formula gave Wooley the second-best overall offensive rating of any player in Conference USA behind Lamar Wilkerson, a senior at Sam Houston State.
Wooley was the only freshman ranked among the top 30 offensive players in the league by Torvik.
That led me to the obvious follow-up. Where did Torvik’s formula rank Wooley among all freshmen?
The answer is No. 7.
That list is topped by Cooper Flagg of Duke, Asa Newell of Georgia, Kon Knueppel of Duke, Dylan Harper of Rutgers, V.J. Edgecombe of Baylor and Tre Johnson — six players who could be taken in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft.
Wooley is just ahead of Maryland’s Derek Queen, Jase Richardson of Michigan State and Khaman Maluach of Duke, three other players who could be bound for the NBA.
Torvik is not the only formula that recognized Wooley for a tremendous season. At Ken Pomeroy, Wooley posted the fourth best offensive rating among all CUSA players.
Evan Miyakawa’s formula is not as bullish on Wooley. He is ranked a 4-star transfer prospect as well as the 97th best player in the portal.
Over the last year Kelsey and his assistants proved they knew what they wanted in the portal. The numbers show Wooley has the skills to contribute quickly for the Cards.
