INDIANAPOLIS—The first half was not a rematch of the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game or two storied coaches meeting in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1992. It was the injury to Louisville’s sophomore guard Kevin Ware.
With the Cardinals leading Duke 21-17 and 6:33 on the clock, Ware was defending a Tyler Thornton 3-point attempt near the Louisville bench. When Ware landed on his right leg he suffered a horrific injury, later classified as a compound fracture. The bone was very clearly protruding from Ware’s skin.
As Ware was placed on a stretcher and rushed to IU Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, his teammates were in shock over the injury. Junior shooting guard Russ Smith broke down into tears, and senior Peyton Siva and sophomore Wayne Blackshear and Chane Behanan dropped to the floor. Member of both teams were clearly shaken up by the incident.
We're not going to show a picture of Ware's injury itself, but at the right is a picture of Louisville star guard Russ Smith after the play. Smith and the rest of the Cardinals were emotional after the injury in support of their teammate.
Ware, a 6-foot-2 sophomore, was averaging 4.6 points per game.
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