Auburn’s 97-80 Sweet 16 win over North Carolina is one that Tigers hoops fan will remember for years to come, but it’s a bittersweet victory.
In the second half, Auburn star Chuma Okeke suffered what looked to be a severe knee injury, having to leave the game with roughly eight minutes left. It was a difficult moment for everyone. UNC players came over to offer Okeke well wishes.
“I think in those moments, you begin to see what these guys are made of, both teams, the fabric,” AU coach Bruce Pearl said after the game. “We started to pray. We asked God to watch over our brother. And Carolina did it and our guys did it. Our guys said — as soon as he went down, they said, ‘Let’s pray.’ Blessed that we live in a country where we’re able to do that. That was I think everybody’s first thought. Wasn’t about the score or the next possession. It was about our brother.”
Saturday morning, Pearl shared the latest on Okeke, telling ESPN’s “College GameDay” that the sophomore forward is at the hospital getting an MRI. He said that the Tigers “fear for the worst.”
Bruce Pearl on Gameday just now: Chuma Okeke is at the hospital right now getting his MRI. No update yet on his injury, but “we fear for the worst.”
— Tom Green (@Tomas_Verde) March 30, 2019
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
