Injuries

Robbie Hummel: Fighting Adversity (And MSU Fans)

Greg Mengelt — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 19:14:48 -0800

It’s a shame what happened to Purdue senior Robbie Hummel at the Breslin Center during Saturday’s 83-58 loss to the Spartans.

Hummel was reportedly taunted by a Michigan State fan, who shouted at Hummel that he hoped he would tear his ACL a third time, according The Lafayette Journal & Courier’s Jeff Washburn.

Hummel, who has been one of the best players in the Big Ten since arriving at West Lafayette in 2007, has had a heartbreaking career at Purdue and he deserves more respect than that.

Purdue coach Matt Painter agrees. He called out the student for his behavior and lectured him during the game.

“I was just trying to fight,” Painter told Journal & Courier. “I think (the Michigan State student section is) great. But if they are going to say, ‘I hope you tear your ACL again,’ I’m going to say something. He doesn’t deserve that.”

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said if he had heard it, “I would throw the guy out of here. It’s just uncalled for. It’s ridiculous. So if that made Matt Painter mad, I completely understand.”

What’s even more of a shame is the affect Hummel’s knee injuries have had on his game. The Valparaiso, Ind., native averaged 11.4 points as a freshman, 12.5 as a sophomore and was having a Big Ten Player of the Year-type season when he suffered his first injury at Minnesota late in his junior season. At the time, Hummel was averaging 15.7 points and 6.3 rebounds, and the Boilermakers were 19-3 and riding a 10-game winning streak and were ranked third in the nation.

Without Hummel, Purdue went 4-3 down the stretch and lost to eventual national champion Duke in the Sweet 16.

Hummel returned for the 2010-11 season, only to tear his ACL on the first day of practice. Even without Hummel, the Boilermakers raced out to a 15-1 start before going 26-8 and finishing second in the Big Ten at 14-4.

Boilermaker fans are left only to wonder about what would have happened during those two seasons had Hummel been healthy. A serious argument can be made that the Hummel-led Boilermakers may have gone to back-to-back Final 4s and made runs at a national title or two.

The good news was that Hummel got to return this season. The problem is his surrounding cast – outside of fellow-senior point guard Lewis Jackson – simply doesn’t have enough high-level Big Ten talent. Through Tuesday, the Boilermakers are 14-7 overall, 4-4 in the Big Ten – after back-to-back home losses to Wisconsin and Michigan – and are in danger of making Hummel’s senior season less than memorable.

As good and courageous as Hummel has been, it’s clear he’s not 100 percent healthy. He leads the Boilermakers with 15.4 points and 6.3 rebounds, but his field goal percentage is down significantly.

Through no fault of his own, Hummel has also disappeared late in games, likely a sign of a fatigued knee. Against Xavier and Butler, he shot 7-of-21 and 6-of-17, respectively, and went scoreless down the stretch in both games, allowing the Musketeers and Bulldogs earn come-from-behind victories after being down double-digits in the final 10 minutes.

In Saturday’s loss to No. 9 Michigan State, Hummel’s career hit a low point. He didn’t make a shot for the first time in his career, going 0-for-11 and finishing with two points in a 83-58.

“I thought I got a lot of good looks and just didn’t make them. It’s pretty frustrating, really,” Hummel said. “There’s not much to say really. It’s pretty embarrassing that I didn’t make a shot.”

In Tuesday’s loss to No. 20 Michigan, Hummel scored 16 points, but he missed two 3-point attempts late as the Boilermakers lost 66-64.

“I got great looks, I just didn’t knock them down,” Hummel said. “I was basically wide open.”

“I would run that play 100 more times,” Jackson said of Hummel’s final game-winning attempt. “Rob’s a great shooter.”

And he’s been a great, great player – arguably the best in the Big Ten over the past half-decade and one of Purdue’s greatest of all time. It would be a shame to see Hummel’s career end the way it appears to be heading.

He deserves better.

Arizona Freshman Kevin Parrom Injured

Press Release — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:26:53 -0800

TUCSON, Ariz. - University of Arizona men's basketball player Kevin Parrom will be sidelined due to a stress fracture in his left foot.

Parrom, a 6-foot-6, 205-pound, freshman guard/forward from the Bronx, N.Y., averaged 8.0 point, 2.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game in Arizona's two exhibition games.

The normal recovery time for this type of injury is four to eight weeks.

-- arizonawildcats.com

Northwestern G Jeff Ryan Out For Seaosn

Press Release — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:25:12 -0800

EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern senior guard/forward Jeff Ryan (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during the Wildcats' season-opening contest against Northern Illinois Friday night and will miss the remainder of the 2009-10 season.

Ryan is expected to undergo surgery to repair the knee in the coming weeks.

"I feel badly for Jeff," Northwestern head coach Bill Carmody said. "He had been playing very well the past weeks and we were looking forward to him being a key contributor this season. It's an unfortunate situation and we hope that he's able to have a speedy recovery."

Ryan has appeared in 80 career games, including making 22 starts. He saw action in 28 games a year ago and averaged 2.1 points per game after posting norms of 5.1 points per game as both a freshman and a sophomore. Ryan ranks eighth in school history with a .496 career field goal percentage.

-- http://nusports.cstv.com

Marquette FR Junior Cadougan Injured: Likely to Miss Season

Press Release — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 07:21:56 -0700

Milwaukee – Freshman Junior Cadougan of the Marquette University men’s basketball team suffered an injury to his achilles tendon Thursday afternoon during conditioning and will more than likely miss the entire 2009-10 campaign, head coach Buzz Williams announced Friday morning.

Cadougan will undergo surgery on his right foot in the coming days and will immediately begin the 4-to-6 month rehabilitation process.

“We all know injuries are a part of sports,” Williams said. As a program, we are all hurt and disappointed for Junior. He will receive the absolute best care possible prior to, during, and after his surgery. Even though he will not be in uniform this year, he will still be a valuable member of our team this season.”

The Toronto, Ontario, native is one of six newcomers on this year’s squad, a group that comprised a consensus nationally ranked recruiting class. Cadougan averaged 22.0 points, 8.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 steals per game as a senior at Christian Life Center Academy in 2008-09 and was expected to compete for time at the point guard position.

UNC: 2009 NCAA Tournament Capsule

Joel Welser — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 04:10:04 -0700

North Carolina Tar Heels

Atlantic Coast Conference (28-4, 13-3)

Seed: #1 South

RPI: 3

Big Wins: 12/3 vs Michigan State (98-63), 1/28 at Florida State (80-77), 2/11 at Duke (101-87)

Bad Losses: 1/4 Boston College (78-85), 2/21 at Maryland (85-88), 3/14 vs Florida State (70-73)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2008, Final Four loss to Kansas

Coach: Roy Williams (49-18 in 19 NCAA appearances)

Why They Can Surprise:

North Carolina averages over 91 points per game, which is second in the nation. Coach Roy Williams will push the ball at every opportunity and he has the depth to do it. The team is very experienced led by the backcourt trio of Wayne Ellington, Danny Green and Ty Lawson. All three of those players are superb outside shooters and consistency in that area was an issue last season. That is not the case anymore. Lawson sat out the ACC Tournament with a toe injury, but UNC was playing it pretty safe and he should be good to go for NCAA Tournament.

This is not a team that is simply running and gunning and taking bad shots. They are getting to the basket and feeding the big men, most notably Tyler Hansbrough who is good for at least 20 points and ten rebounds a game. UNC has five players who averaged double-digit scoring on the year and the emergence of players like Ed Davis and Larry Drew II give the Tar Heels a whole boatload of scoring threats.

Why They Can Disappoint:

Turnovers can be a problem, but considering UNC will always push the tempo it is understandable. Now that Lawson and Ellington are upperclassmen, it was expected that the turnover numbers would go down a bit. And they have. Committing 13.1 turnovers a game is not bad for a team that dishes out 18.7 assists and scores so many points. The lone concern is the three-point shooting defense. North Carolina allows their opposition to shoot 34.6 percent from beyond the arc. That is not a great percentage by any means, but the Tar Heels could be better. If a team starts getting hot from beyond the arc, the Tar Heels can lose.

Who To Watch:

This team works around Hansbrough and the fact that the guards have not forgotten such things is a big bonus. In many cases, especially with an up-tempo style of play, the big man will get left out of the picture while the guards run around all day. UNC and Coach Williams will not allow that to happen and Hansbrough will get plenty of touches under the basket. His frontcourt counterpart, Deon Thompson, has done a great job at the power forward position. While he can score and is the second best rebounder on the team, Thompson’s best asset is adding a shot blocking presence on the defensive end.

Probable Starters:

Ty Lawson, Junior, Guard, 15.9 ppg, 6.5 apg, 2.0 spg

Wayne Ellington, Junior, Guard, 15.2 ppg, 2.7 apg, 4.8 rpg

Danny Green, Senior, Forward, 13.3 ppg, 2.8 apg, 4.7 rpg

Deon Thompson, Junior, Forward, 11.2 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 1.3 bpg

Tyler Hansbrough, Senior, Forward, 21.4 ppg, 8.2 rpg

Key Roleplayers:

Ed Davis, Freshman, Forward, 6.4 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.8 bpg

Bobby Frasor, Senior, Guard, 2.7 ppg, 1.5 apg

Larry Drew II, Freshman, Guard, 1.4 ppg, 2.1 apg

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 91.2 (2^nd in nation, 1^st in conference)

Scoring Defense: 72.7 (287, 12)

Field-Goal Percentage: 48.5 (11, 2)

Field-Goal Defense: 41.2 (67, 5)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.0 (91, 3)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 38.1 (34, 1)

Free-Throw Percentage: 76.3 (10, 2)

Rebound Margin: 7.6 (9, 1)

Assists Per Game: 18.7 (2, 1)

Turnovers Per Game: 13.1 (112, 3)

Joel’s Bracket Says: Elite Eight loss to Oklahoma

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5 things: Texas Troubles, Injuries, Curry FT's Overrated?

Kevin McNeill — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 14:48:45 -0800

Kevin McNeill's weekly 5 Things column breaks down what's important in the world of college basketball.

This week, we learned that...

1) Maybe foul shooting isn’t as important as we thought

The very best teams in the country, at least in terms of the latest Coaches’ poll, all have several things in common. They have certified superstars that will be high NBA draft picks in June, they have multiple offensive weapons, and they usually out-rebound their opponents by a solid margin.

They also stink at free throws.

The #1 team in the nation, Pittsburgh, is currently ranked 251^st in the nation in free throw percentage (out of 330 teams). UConn is 157^th. Oklahoma comes in at 194^th and Memphis is right there at 165^th.

Only until you reach the North Carolina section of the polls, specifically the Tar Heels (10^th) and Duke (61^st), do you find teams that really take advantage of the charity stripe.

But they are more the exception than the rule. Other teams widely seen as top contenders for a Final Four run are just as abysmal. Michigan State is ranked 170^th in free throw percentage, but they are automatic at the line compared to Louisville (256^th) and Missouri (255^th).

This is not to suggest these schools will not make it to Detroit. Memphis last season was the 318^th worst free throw shooting team in the country (out of 328 schools), yet still posted the nation’s best record, and made the national title game. They were actually only two minutes away from winning the championship, but couldn’t hold on to a nine point lead because of, well, free throws.

In fact, it wouldn’t be so bad if many of these teams did make it to the Final Four. Poor foul shooting has contributed to some of the most memorable national title games in history. Who could forget (dating myself here) Derrick Coleman missing a one-and-one at the end of the 1987 title game, setting up Keith Smart’s game winning shot? There was the terrible free throw shooting by Kansas in 2003 which allowed Syracuse to jump out to a big lead, only to have the Orange’s own poor shooting from the stripe down the stretch allow Kansas back within one final shot to tie it, which was swatted away by Hakim Warrick. And of course, there was the unforgettable final from a year ago.

There may be another memorable game in a few weeks.

2) There have been some Texas-sized disappointments this season

Returning four starters from last season’s Elite Eight team, including top rebounder Damion James and second-leading scorer AJ Abrams, Texas was a fashionable pick to win the national title this year. They were projected to (barely) finish second to Oklahoma in the Big 12 in the preseason, and began the year ranked in the top 10.

They remained there as recently as Jan 12^th, before losing to Oklahoma in Norman. After seemingly righting the ship with three straight wins, they lost at home to Kansas State and Missouri. The next game they were stunned at Nebraska.

The Longhorns did earn a hard-fought victory over Oklahoma Saturday, but the first half concussion to Blake Griffin that knocked him out of the game seemed to taint the effort. Previously, they lost to Texas A&M on the road, and needed overtime to put away 9-17 Colorado.

Texas, at 18-8 and 7-5 in the Big 12, is in good shape for an at-large berth. They have quality wins over UCLA, Villanova and now Oklahoma. But even this late in the season they are not a lock yet - especially with road dates with Kansas and Oklahoma State still on the schedule – something that was unimaginable two months ago.

Baylor was another trendy pick to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament, returning an experienced team with most of their starters from last year’s surprise Tourney team, including preseason Wooden Award candidate Curtis Jerrells. They began the season ranked in the Top 20.

Now they have dropped seven of their last eight, are completely out of the NCAA bubble picture, and – at 16-10 – in danger of missing out on the NIT.

Texas A&M was sitting pretty at 14-1 at the beginning of conference play, with resume-boosting victories over Arizona and LSU. Twelve games later, they are sitting at 5-7 in the Big 12, in sole possession of eighth place. They need to win their final four games – which includes a home matchup against Missouri - to ensure a winning conference record. Even that will probably not be enough to earn an at-large berth should they fail to advance deep into the Big 12 Tournament.

Texas Tech is just a train wreck. Coach Pat Knight was suspended one game by the Big 12 Conference for ripping the refs in his post game news conference after losing to Texas A&M at home Saturday. This comes a month after Knight was reprimanded by the Conference for making a fool of himself and charging the referees after being ejected from a losing effort against Nebraska.

The Red Raiders are currently 2-10 in the Big 12 with games remaining against Oklahoma and Kansas. They have won two games in their last 13 tries. At least the school re-signed Mike Leach.

3) The Citadel now has a shot at the Southern Conference’s automatic bid

Stephen Curry clearly has not recovered from a severely turned ankle, and may not be for the rest of the season, which means a tiny senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina may be on the verge of one of the most improbable NCAA Tournament berths in history.

The Citadel crushed a Curry-less Davidson on the road last week, the Bulldogs’ 10^th straight victory – the second longest in the nation behind Memphis. Once 7-9, they now sit at 18-10 and in sole possession of second place in the conference behind the Wildcats, and having already swept the third place team, the College of Charleston.

Davidson shot a miserable 25% from the field in that game without their leader. In their previous meeting back in January, the Wildcats shot 47% in a 15 point drubbing, helped in no small part by Curry’s 32 points.

On Saturday, Curry returned to the lineup against Butler, but clearly was favoring his ankle, and simply did not have the quick first step that has made him the nation’s leading scorer. He shot just 6 for 23 from the field, and committed seven turnovers.

Now it is highly unlikely, even with Curry not at 100%, that the Wildcats do not win the Southern Conference regular season title. They are in first place by two games, and their remaining three games are against UNC-Greensboro, Georgia Southern, and Elon – three of the worst teams in the conference. However, the Southern Conference Tournament could be ripe for a shocking upset.

The Citadel has never once been to the postseason. They haven’t won more than one game in the Southern Conference Tournament in 50 years. They have had four winning regular season records in the last 20 years. They have posted just a single 20 win season which came 30 years ago.

Suffice it to say, the Bulldogs playing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament would be the single biggest underdog in the history of organized athletics. But somehow, I don’t think they would mind.

3) The America East regular season title will be decided this week

Vermont and Binghamton are currently tied for first place in the America East Conference with just a single game to go. Binghamton has swept the Catamounts, both games in nail-biting fashion, so either a win or Vermont loss gives them the regular season title. That title, and # 1 seed in the America East Tournament, is crucial because the highest seed gets home court advantage in the title game. The # 1 seed has gone on to win the conference’s automatic berth in three of the last four years.

Vermont plays on the road against a Maine team that has won just four conference games on Sunday, while Binghamton is at home Thursday against UMBC (Maryland-Baltimore County).

5) Injuries are playing a major factor in other conference races as well

With the best player in the country, the Sooners were legitimate national title contenders, and had the best record in college basketball. Since Blake Griffin suffered a concussion in the first half of a crucial game against Texas, however, Oklahoma has lost two in a row, the latest at home to Kansas, who now own sole possession of first place in the Big 12.

Griffin should be back in the lineup for the matchup against Texas Tech on Saturday, but it may now be too late to salvage a Big 12 regular season title. The Jayhawks final three games are against underachieving Texas Tech and Texas (at home) and a revenge game against arch-rival Missouri (also at home).

St. Mary’s was on track to overtake Gonzaga for first place in the WCC, but star guard Patty Mills broke two bones in his hand during the game against the Zags that would have accomplished it . After that crushing defeat, the Gaels went on to lose three of their next four, and were soon out of contention in the conference. Even after a huge win over a ranked Utah State team recently – their third win in a row - ESPN’s Andy Katz reported that St. Mary’s would have a very tough time earning an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament should Patty Mills not return in time for the WCC Tournament, simply because they “probably won't be able to convince the (NCAA selection) committee that they can be the same team without him.”

Finally, the season-ending knee injury to Jerome Dyson, who was averaging 13 points and 4 boards a game, is a potentially huge blow to UConn’s chances in the Big East Conference. The Huskies currently have a half game lead in the Big East over Marquette, Louisville and Pittsburgh with three games to play. Two of those games are on the road against the Panthers and Golden Eagles.

NBA: Top Trade Deadline Winners

Hoopsworld — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 09:05:44 -0800

By: Bill Ingram

As expected, yesterday's trade deadline brought a flurry of deals between teams across the NBA. We didn't see the blockbusters that came out last year at this time, but we did see a significant number of teams take care of some business. In fact, a couple of teams helped themselves significantly. With that in mind, here are the big winners:

1) The Orlando Magic. As we saw last night in New Orleans, the Magic needed to address their point guard position in a much more serious way than by simply adding Ty Lue, and today they did that. Not only did they get a solid starting point guard in Houston's Rafer Alston, they did it by giving up a player they wanted to unload anyway in Brian Cook. Alston played some of his best basketball under Stan Van Gundy in Miami, so this could turn out to be a championship move for Orlando.

2) The Chicago Bulls. The Bulls took care of the present and the future in their multiple trades this week. The future is set with Brad Miller at center and John Salmons on the wing. Miller will provide invaluable veteran guidance for the Bulls' young big men and will likely start on Friday. Salmons is having a career year, is amazingly efficient, and will push the Bulls to the next level. Tim Thomas is a solid bench contributor - provided he agrees to show up in Chicago this time - and he and James both come off the books before 2010. The Bulls are now officially a playoff team, and have some room to work with in 2010, as well.

3) The New York Knicks. Larry Hughes has been chomping at the bit, waiting for a chance to play. Now, not only will he get to play, he'll play in a Mike D'Antoni system that could give him room to put up big numbers. At the same time, they landed the ending contract of Chris Wilcox, got rid of Jerome James and Malik Rose, who didn't play, and continued their push to get out from under the bad contracts Isiah Thomas saddled them with.

What Didn't Get Done

We were more than a little surprised that Kevin Pritchard didn't put Raef LaFrentz's ending contract to good use. Rumors had players like Richard Jefferson, Gerald Wallace, and even Vince Carter in the discussion for Portland, but as it stands the Blazers will keep the contract and let it expire.

The Phoenix Suns may be a little too excited about their wins over the hapless Los Angeles Clippers. New head coach Alvin Gentry convinced management to keep Amar'e Stoudemire in the mix, and subsequent rumors about trading Shaq evaporated, as well. The Suns will pay luxury tax this season and will lose money unless they get to the seventh game of the second round. Pretty optimistic on the Suns' part.

The Dallas Mavericks were hoping to land a playoff-ready piece in exchange for Jerry Stackhouse's ending deal, but will now have to stand pat and hope Stackhouse can actually get healthy and contribute before April.

And finally, great big kudos go out to a list of NBA general managers who said they weren't dealing and then didn't. Bryan Colangelo (Chris Bosh, Andrea Bargnani), Rod Thorn (Vince Carter), Danny Ferry (Wally Szczerbiak), and Rod Higgins (Raymond Felton) all told us they weren't making moves and they kept their words.

Ginobili Out 2-3 Weeks

The San Antonio Spurs released their medical findings with regard to Manu Ginobili's latest injury, and the diagnosis is not good. The Spurs, trying to cling to home court advantage in the Western Conference, will be without one of their big three for two-to-three weeks as he recovers from a stress reaction of his distal right fibula.

Poll: Is UCONN Still the #1 Team w/o Jerome Dyson?

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:15:29 -0800

SIU's Bryan Mullins Out Indefinitely

Press Release — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 07:38:11 -0800

Southern Illinois senior guard Bryan Mullins will be out indefinitely with a stress fracture in his right foot, head coach Chris Lowery announced Tuesday.

Mullins, who has missed only two games in his career to date, leads the Missouri Valley Conference in assists and recently became just the second player in league history to surpass 500 career assists and 250 career steals.

Last season, Mullins missed the postseason NIT games against Oklahoma State and Arizona State, due to a stress fracture in his left leg. He spent much of the off-season rehabilitating the injury.

Mullins' right foot began to bother him in mid-January, although its effects were not immediately seen on the court. As recently as last Wednesday, Mullins had one of the best games of his career with 13 points, 10 assists and five steals. He struggled Saturday in Evansville, however, making 1-of-5 shots.

Lowery said the injury will be re-evaluated by doctors in several weeks, and he left open the possibility Mullins could return.

The Downers Grove, Ill.-native has been a mainstay in SIU's starting lineup the last four seasons. He made his first-career start as a freshman on Nov. 26, 2005, and started 97-straight games prior to last season's injury.

He ranks among the career leaders in numerous categories at Southern, including assists, steals, 3-point shooting, career starts and minutes played. Last season, he was named the MVC Defensive Player of the Year and second-team all-conference.

Off the court, Mullins is a finance major with a perfect 4.0 GPA. He was named an ESPN The Magazine CoSIDA Second-Team Academic All-American in 2008.

In place of Mullins, sophomore Justin Bocot is expected to make his first-career start when SIU hosts Illinois State on Wednesday.

Ryter's Block: Steele's College Career Over

Matthew Ryter — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 00:55:39 -0800

The Story: Alabama guard Ronald Steele will skip the remainder of his senior season due to a heel injury. Steele has been diagnosed with plantar fasciitis, a condition caused by excessive stretching of tissue on the bottom of the foot. The first two-time Alabama prep Mr. Basketball player earned first-team all SEC honors as a sophomore. Steele’s injury plagued career started with knee problems in his junior season. He had surgery on both of his knees and sat out the entire 2007-08 season. A once almost certain NBA first round draft pick, Steele has suddenly fallen of the map. Amidst the injury filled career the guard still managed to join Robert Scott as the only players in school history to record 1,000 points and 400 assists.

Ryter’s Block: There may be more to the story. Doesn’t the timing of this announcement of a previous preseason All-American player seem a little off? There are 12 regular season games left. The injury is definitely part of it but there also speculation that Steele has had a rocky relationship with Alabama coach Mark Gottfried. Gottfried apparently didn’t seem pleased when Steele announced that he would sit out the 2007-08 season (medical redshirt). This was after Steele played over 30 minutes a game the previous season with two bum knees. This all just may be a rumor, but it makes you think.

You have to feel bad for a player like Ronald Steele. He had a great deal of potential, and may still have that potential when healthy. He should have left for the league after his sophomore season. Hopefully, a team gives him a tryout. Steele has the IQ to be a terrific point guard but who knows how his knees, and his heel for that matter, will hold up.