There was a loud groan and then Cameron Indoor Stadium was quiet.
Nothing was said, but as the 4,000 people who braved the remnants of the winter snowstorm to make last Thursday night's women's basketball game stood in absolute silence, everybody was thinking the same thing-Duke's season was over.
Not Peppi Browne.
Lying motionless beneath her own basket and having just suffered what would likely prove to be a torn ACL on a breakaway layup, she wasn't thinking about how she would manage to get off the floor, she was thinking about how to get back on it.
"I felt like I could walk," Browne said. "When I felt I could walk, I immediately thought maybe I could run."
Walking became running, running became a full practice, and yesterday, with a smile on her face even bigger than the brace she now wears around her knee, Peppi Browne announced her intent to return to the Duke lineup in two weeks.
"I'm determined to finish it off if I can," she said, a bag of ice being hustled in to replace the brace. "All that mattered was if my body could hold up, and it is. Nobody would have faulted me for quitting, but I would've kicked myself in the butt if didn't give it a shot. I don't want any regrets when I'm through."
The senior captain participated in a full practice Monday, just four days after suffering what has routinely been a season ending injury for most athletes.
But other than an itch from her brace, Browne had no complaints after practice.
"I was a little tentative when I was on the court for the first time,"said Browne, who was wearing the custom-made brace for the first time. "I did all the drills with little problem, but because I'm thinking so much some of the things I do naturally, like ball fakes... are off. But it's all mental"
The time table for Browne's return currently stands at two weeks, which likely means the Silver Spring, Md., senior will play her first game against N.C. State Feb. 17. However, Browne would likely be able to play in the Blue Devils' Valentine's Day date with Wake Forest if needed.
But with Duke's three games prior to its matchup with the No. 8 Wolfpack coming against teams that are a combined 9-18 mark in league play, it's unlikely Browne will be called on before the 17th.
"Today's practice went well, so right now I figure I could even get back earlier than [two weeks]," Browne said. "If I come back faster or slower, so be it, but I'm not going to rush anything."
But with just one practice under her belt and having suffered such a serious injury, Browne's basketball future isn't stable yet.
"It's tough to tell after just one day," team trainer Joe Angus said. "Today we put her out to see what she can't do, work on her weaknesses. Tomorrow we'll know more."
Yet the fact that Browne is playing at all, less than a week removed from a full ACL tear, is fairly incredible itself.
Both Terrell Davis and Jamaal Anderson, Super Bowl running backs from a season ago, made headlines this season, suffering torn ACLs early in the year. Neither of those two will be able to play until this fall.
Two years ago, Stanford saw it's hopes for a national title go down the drain as both Kristin Folkl and Vanessa Nygaard suffered torn ACLs during the season. Neither was able to return.
Yet Browne, who was fortunate enough to avoid any cartilage damage in her knee, will be able to continue playing with a torn ACL.
"Most people can't do it," Angus said, explaining that by little more than medical random chance Browne would be able to compensate for the ACL with increased muscle strength, particularly in her hamstring.
"Very few can play at a high level, let alone Division I, after that injury, but we think Peppi can."
Although its incredibly rare, comeback's like Browne's aren't unprecedented. Caroline Helwig, a senior on the field hockey team, tore her ACL early in the season and returned to the Blue Devil lineup within weeks.
A season ago, Clemson senior Erin Baath tore her ACL midway through the ACC schedule and returned in time for the ACC Tournament.
"That I still have the ability to play is amazing," Browne said. "My body's been good to me, so now I just thank God and continue going while I can."
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