University of the Philippines big man Francis Nnoruka sparked concern among Fighting Maroon fans on Wednesday after an injury scare during the Fighting Maroons’ UAAP Season 88 Final Four duel with University of Santo Tomas.
Midway through the third quarter, Nnoruka had to be helped off the court after UST’s Nic Cabañero inadvertently landed on his left knee after a floater attempt.
‘I felt pain in my left knee, and it was a hard hit so I needed to sit it out. I’ll just go check it out tomorrow with our PT (physical therapist),’ he told Inquirer after their 82-81 win over UST at Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday.
But when few expected it, Nnoruka returned in the fourth quarter and even finished the game. The reason was simple: he just wanted to help UP back to the Finals for the fifth straight time.
‘We all wanted it so bad. Even when I got hurt, my teammates just talked about keeping on fighting, playing through it and getting one stop,’ Nnoruka said.
‘I didn’t even talk about the pain because we’ve come this far at this point. We have to finish the job and finish the mission.’
Hurt knee and all, Nnoruka still finished with a near double-double of 19 points and nine rebounds that went along with three blocks and two steals.