Thursday’s loss to Villanova was a hard-fought and physical contest for the North Carolina Tar Heels, as you can see by the number of fouls called total in this game. And even when the Tar Heels were down three guys due to foul trouble, they nearly pulled it off.
But during the final seconds, the Tar Heels may have lost more than the game.
Guard Cormac Ryan injured himself on a missed free throw as he attempted to miss on purpose in hopes of getting a two-point tip shot. Ryan stepped on a teammate’s foot while in the lane and was on the ground for a few minutes.
While there’s no solid answer on whether or not he will play on Friday, Davis spoke on Ryan’s injury after the game:
“I don’t have an update,” Davis said. “I didn’t see the play, either. In that situation, we were trying to get a miss and get the rebound and score, so I was looking at the basket. And I didn’t see how he twisted his ankle, but obviously, he was in a lot of pain. But he’s walking around in the locker room. But I don’t have a definitive update on his availability tomorrow and how he feels right now.”
The good news is that Ryan was walking around in the locker room after the game. However, with a quick turnaround for Friday’s game, it does appear unlikely that Ryan will play unless that ankle heals quick.
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