Ju Ju carried off the court with an injury | Page 3 | The Boneyard

Ju Ju carried off the court with an injury

As much as us Huskies want to get the ring this year, are any of us, even secretly, thinking with JuJu gone the task is easier? NO, I don't think a one of us wouldn't wish her back on the court if we could. I'm just so disappointed that we won't see her and Paige going at it.
 
bballnut90 said:
I know Mississippi State isn't very good but USC looks phenomenal tonight. Even if Juju's out next weekend, they're going to be a handful for UCONN (assuming both teams advance) with more offense running through Iriafen and inserting a lethal 3pt shooter in Howell into the lineup.
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From an on-court perspective it certainly eases the path for UConn, but USC will be playing for Juju now and sometimes that extra inspiration goes a long way (I’m thinking of Louisville after the Kevin Ware injury).
 
Bone Dog said:
Her knee buckled. It’s clear from the replays. Had nothing to do with the defenders. It looks pretty bad. I’m afraid Juju’s season is over.
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She was pretty far outside, sandwiched between two players, so it was time to make a move or get run off the court. So my guess is she planted the foot and the knee didn't like it. Maybe hyper extended. Always been my suspicion that a pretty fair number of these are creeping injuries.
 
The way she was hit hard with the defender's body while driving for a fast break layup is way too common in wbb. It's being coached imo and needs to stop. Getting hit that hard while running that fast is different in basketball than football, because in basketball the player is more vulnerable because they are dribbling the ball instead of cradling it, and the dribller has to compensate their balance to keep control of the ball. Thus, the added force to her right leg in this case, which collapsed. If wbb is serious, they need to make these high speed collisions flagrant fouls at a minimum.

 
This was bad timing for JuJu and it takes some of the shine off of what will be a crazy competitive upcoming weekend in women’s basketball.

UConn has its hands full with trying to get past the Oklahoma rebounding machine. If they survive that, they will face a USC team that will be fighting like crazy to get to a Final Four for their fallen star. Hopefully Geno has them solely focused on one play at a time, one game at a time.
 
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Frankus said:
The way she was hit hard with the defender's body while driving for a fast break layup is way too common in wbb.
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I didn't see any hard contact in the replays. What you see, especially from the long view down the court is that the defender runs parallel to keep Juju from getting to the rim. She doesn't bump her, but she also doesn't make way for her. It was an ordinary blocking foul, if it was a foul at all.

This was not the defender's fault, as far as I can see, though looking to blame anyone in these things may not make much sense. Juju pushed the pace, which is what she does. It's part of what makes her a great player, and it usually results in her getting to the rim and getting an and-one opportunity. In a half court set, this doesn't typically result in injury because no one's moving that fast. But on a run out, if the defenders do their job and defend the play, the risks are a lot greater.
 
GoChips20 said:
From an on-court perspective it certainly eases the path for UConn, but USC will be playing for Juju now and sometimes that extra inspiration goes a long way (I’m thinking of Louisville after the Kevin Ware injury).
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Definitely eases the path for UCONN, I don’t think USC is an easy out though if Iriafen plays close to how well she did last night and if Howell/Smith can knock down shots and pick up some slack. The biggest loss though is Juju’s defense IMO. She’s an elite defender and USC will have a hard time matching up defensively with UCONN’s shooters.

Realistically though this completely zaps USC’s title chances. If they play well they could beat Kansas State and maybe upset UCONN if everything aligns, but I don’t think they can win 3 consecutive games going up against the likes of UCONN/UCLA/South Carolina.
 
Greg said:
Devastating, same as the Paige and Azzi injuries. Just horrible. I hope she has a full recovery and gers more opportunities to play for a championship. I hate to see young athletes injured or anyone else for that matter.
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And El-Alfy and Patterson and Brady and Griffin... the list is very, very long. The UConn women's basketball program has been ravaged by injuries for last 3 years
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
She was pretty far outside, sandwiched between two players, so it was time to make a move or get run off the court. So my guess is she planted the foot and the knee didn't like it. Maybe hyper extended. Always been my suspicion that a pretty fair number of these are creeping injuries.
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To further your assertation, Juju had recently had a couple of ankle sprains that she played thru. I wonder if that was the same leg.
 
The 1 minute area of the post below has an extraordinary overhead view of the critical second of JuJu's injury. Gives me a totally different impression. Lots of contact with the inside player. Seems to take her left leg out from under her, putting everything on the right.

 
So sad for Juju and her teammates. I watched the replay several times. The Mississippi players didn't do anything wrong. Chasing her down the court, reaching in to get the ball, and just a horrible bad luck accident. I know the USC fans were furious at the Mississippi player(s) they felt were responsible, and there were hard feelings expressed after the game in the hand shake line.

I hope the fans can get over it and not blame MSU... Said Gottlieb (after the game): "You can't tell me that the energy of the crowd and how angry they were with the other team and how much they were for our team [isn't] so much about what JuJu has given to this arena, to this program, to this city."

As USC built its large lead, the game took on a different tone, with a few moments Trojans players described as "chippy." It all culminated in a postgame handshake line in which players from both teams had to be separated.

I get the sadness and frustration and human tendency to want to blame, but she needs to lead the way, IMHO, in not blaming the other team.

I have no doubt Paige AND Azzi will reach out - both of them sadly have a lot of experience dealing with season ending injuries, and coming back from them. Best wishes to Juju for a successful surgery and rehab, and hope she comes back better than ever...
 
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RockyMTblue2 said:
The 1 minute area of the post below has an extraordinary overhead view of the critical second of JuJu's injury. Gives me a totally different impression. Lots of contact with the inside player. Seems to take her left leg out from under her, putting everything on the right.

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I've taken a look at it a few times and I disagree rocky. This was as close as I could get to freezing it at the moment of contact. The defenders are in legal guarding positions.
IMG_6391.jpeg

Bone Dog said:
Her knee buckled. It’s clear from the replays. Had nothing to do with the defenders. It looks pretty bad. I’m afraid Juju’s season is over.
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That's the way I saw it too, to the point that if Juju's D doesn't buckle, I could see it being a no call.

I don't want to put him on the spot, but I am curious to get the Mississippi State worldview on all of this, including fan reactions from that point forward. @MSSportsGuy Do you feel like weighing in?
 
CL82 said:
I don't want to put him on the spot, but I am curious to get the Mississippi State worldview on all of this, including fan reactions from that point forward. @MSSportsGuy Do you feel like weighing in?
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Sure thing. Honestly it didn't appear to me to be a dirty play even from a couple of angles. A couple of fellow fans and I messaged last night and we agreed it just looked like her knee buckled in the way we've seen it dozens of times.

It certainly fired up the crowd and the Trojans. I can't say I blame them for being very disappointed and upset but don't think it's anyone's fault.
 
I didn't hear anything about this until this morning. I wish the best for JuJu and hope that she takes the time to heal and doesn't try to get back too soon (always an issue for elite athletes). From what I saw, it looked like her knee buckles and she begins to go down before any significant contact with the MSU players.
 
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One of the things that JuJu does very well is she creates contact during her shooting motion. As she finishes, she plays into the defender. Often, she gets the basket plus a free throw, and worst-case scenario she just gets free throws. She scores a ton of points because of all those free throws, and it puts the defender into foul trouble quicker. She is very effective at this!

To me, it looks like she was racing for the layup at full speed, the defender was stride for stride, was between her and the hoop and neither was going to yield. The defender could have just let her have the layup, but that is not going to happen this early into the game with fouls to give, and your season on the line. Just the same, Watkins could have turned back and passed the ball to a trailing player. But turning back is absolutely not what we are going to see out of JuJu, ever! Pressing the defense hard is what she does, she is not only looking for the score in that situation but an added free throw as well, this is why she is as great as she is!

Unfortunately, playing into contract also comes with some degree of risk. It’s hard to watch and the outcome is gruesome for certain. For all the Trojan fans booing, I recognize that this is your star and there is a lot of emotion. There is no worse possible outcome or timing for that injury to have occurred, and I am sincerely sorry that this happened. This year’s tournament field has certainly lost one of the best players.

This however was not a dirty play by the defender or that MSU team. To me it appears to be an unfortunate result of an extremely aggressive player purposefully running right into the defense’s kitchen with the idea that at worst it would draw contact and a whistle.

God bless you JuJu Watkins, the ACL injury is horrible but great athletes heal from it and recover 100% every single year. Keep your head up, you will recover from this as well.
 
Ozimoto said:
I didn't hear anything about this until this morning. I wish the best for JuJu and hope that she takes the time to heal and doesn't try to get back too soon (always an issue for elite athletes). From what I saw, it looked like her knee buckles and she begins to go down before any significant contact with the MSU players.
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Looked to me like she planted that right foot outside of her path of travel as she was striding, as if she was either readying herself for the impact that was coming or possibly even with the intent to create the impact. Either way, by planting that right foot just a little outside of her regular path of travel, the knee simply collapsed interior. Unfortunately, it happens an awful lot in the women's game, with emphasis on the awful!
 
Obviously this sucks in so many ways. Wanted to see her in a possible rematch v. UConn. Wanted to see her next year and in the WNBA. But the timing of the injury and the recovery process? Cr@p all around. MAYBE she gets back for part of next year, but we know all too well how long it takes to recover your game shape.

I hope she takes advantage of a redshirt and uses USC facilities to recover fully and get her basketball legs again.

And again - this so totally sucks.
 
CL82 said:
I've taken a look at it a few times and I disagree rocky. This was as close as I could get to freezing it at the moment of contact. The defenders are in legal guarding positions.
View attachment 108155

That's the way I saw it too, to the point that if Juju's D doesn't buckle, I could see it being a no call.

I don't want to put him on the spot, but I am curious to get the Mississippi State worldview on all of this, including fan reactions from that point forward. @MSSportsGuy Do you feel like weighing in?
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No foul. She made contact with the other player. Sorry I wasn't clear about that.
 
EricLA said:
So sad for Juju and her teammates. I watched the replay several times. The Mississippi players didn't do anything wrong. Chasing her down the court, reaching in to get the ball, and just a horrible bad luck accident. I know the USC fans were furious at the Mississippi player(s) they felt were responsible, and there were hard feelings expressed after the game in the hand shake line.

I hope the fans can get over it and not blame MSU... Said Gottlieb (after the game): "You can't tell me that the energy of the crowd and how angry they were with the other team and how much they were for our team [isn't] so much about what JuJu has given to this arena, to this program, to this city."

As USC built its large lead, the game took on a different tone, with a few moments Trojans players described as "chippy." It all culminated in a postgame handshake line in which players from both teams had to be separated.

I get the sadness and frustration and human tendency to want to blame, but she needs to lead the way, IMHO, in not blaming the other team.

I have no doubt Paige AND Azzi will reach out - both of them sadly have a lot of experience dealing with season ending injuries, and coming back from them. Best wishes to Juju for a successful surgery and rehab, and hope she comes back better than ever...
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Just plain bad luck. Yes, it makes the winner of Oklahoma v. UCONN get an easier task but I doubt there is a Husky that does not wish JuJu was playing.
 
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Prayers to Juju. We know too well how devastating this is.

And hopefully a huge wake up call to ESPN/selection committee who have been too cute by half for a while now. Texas is not a better team than either USC or UConn and putting Paige vs Juju in the regionals for the sake of a big ratings juice heading into the Final 4 (similar to LSU-Iowa last year) was obvious and unfair to both teams.
 
JeannoCT said:
I thought it was terrible the crowd was booing everytime Mississippi State had the ball. I don't believe the players caused that injury. I hoped Coach Gottlieb would take the mike and tell them to stop the nonsense, but no.
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ESPN reported the crowd booed the Mississippi State cheerleaders as they did their half-time routine. Also, they reported there were some harsh words exchanged in the post-game hand shake line.
 
The problem with ankle injuries is that they often result in a brace or heavy tape job that does not allow the ankle to bend normally under pressure and as a result the force can be translated up the leg and put a bit of extra strain on a knee. Part of the reason football linemen get broken leg bones so often. Knees and ankles are immobile due to braces so stress has to go somewhere. So sad that she got injured. It means so much more when you get to beat a team when both teams are healthy and ready to go.
 
JeannoCT said:
I thought it was terrible the crowd was booing everytime Mississippi State had the ball. I don't believe the players caused that injury. I hoped Coach Gottlieb would take the mike and tell them to stop the nonsense, but no.
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So sad for JuJu. I wish her well in her recovery. However, as for Gottlieb, clearly she should have stepped up and calmed the crowd down! The Mississippi State girls did not deserve that anymore than they deserve what is reportedly happening on social media. It was clearly a routine basketball play and JuJu’s injury was not caused by anything the Miss. St. girls did!

I think Gottlieb should have to answer two questions. 1. Why is the biggest star in College Women’s Basketball routinely still in the game late in the fourth quarter when her team is up 30-50 points? 2. Why is JuJu trying to drive to the basket through two defenders when she had a teammate completely open running to the basket.

JuJu is averaging 35 minutes a game in a season where her team has 16 wins by more than 30 and five others by more than 20? Yes, she is a great player and everyone wants to see her score 28-30 ppg but I just think her coach should have done what coaches are supposed to do and rested her more when the games were clearly out of reach. I am not saying her injury is the coach’s fault but I do question whether Gottlieb has the strength of will to say to her star player, “The game is over, come sit and rest.“ No player of JuJu’s status should be in a game late in the fourth when her team is up by that much.

As for the second question, (why didn’t she pass to her wide open teammate?) that imo opinion is clearly Gottlieb’s fault! I’m guessing 90+% of all basketball coaches would immediately call timeout and sit that player on the bench while an assistant pointed out the error of her ways. However, it would not happen at all this late in the season as that would have been coached out of that player by now! If not, that player would be spending a lot of time on the bench. I cannot imagine a single player on the UConn (or LSU, Louisville, Duke, NC, SC, NC St, Kentucky, or even UCLA) roster, not passing the ball in that situation!

Would passing the ball have saved JuJu from her injury? Perhaps. No one can say for certain but I do believe that there is great pressure on Gottlieb to facilitate JuJu’s stardom and I’m betting that is the reason for both the extended minutes in blowouts and the lack of fundamentals that would lead to the kind of play that resulted in her terrible injury!

I have no doubt that some will point out that our own Geno has been guilty of leaving his star players in too long. I would agree with them, though he has been much better this season with a fuller roster. I personally believe he learned his lesson when Paige went down in the Notre Dame game and has put that habit behind him.
 
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