Current:Home > MyTyler Kolek is set to return from oblique injury for No. 2 seed Marquette in NCAA Tournament -WealthRoots Academy
Tyler Kolek is set to return from oblique injury for No. 2 seed Marquette in NCAA Tournament
View
Date:2025-04-17 11:39:28
INDIANAPOLIS – As the Marquette men's basketball team headed off the court Thursday after its open practice at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Tyler Kolek grabbed a loose basketball.
The 6-foot-3 consensus All-America guard didn't hesitate to heave up a shot from halfcourt. The ball splashed through the net.
Yup, Kolek is back.
He missed six games with an oblique injury suffered Feb. 28, including Marquette's three games in the Big East tournament.
Is Tyler Kolek 100%? Is he worried about aggravating his oblique injury?
Kolek was moving well in practice on Thursday, firing one-handed passes across the court and splashing down three-pointers.
FOLLOW THE MADNESS: NCAA basketball bracket, scores, schedules, teams and more.
"I've been practicing this whole week," Kolek said. "I feel good. I feel confident.
"At this point in the season, nobody is 100%. Everybody is battling through something. Just got to put the straps on and battle up again."
How painful was Tyler Kolek's oblique injury?
Kolek hadn't spoken publicly about his injury until he took the stage for a media session at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
He talked about the process of getting ready to return.
"So it's a Grade 2 oblique strain," Kolek said. "It was a three-to-four-week injury, so we're still kind of on the front end of it a little bit. But I made great progress. The doctors really took care of me. I did everything that I could to get back.
"That first night and first day – it's basically a core muscle injury, you don't realize how everything you do is your core. Me and (teammate) Kam (Jones), we were in class the next day on Thursday, and he had to grab my arm and help me out of the chair. I couldn't really even stand up. That morning I got in the car, I couldn't even reach out to really shut the door of the car.
"It was definitely a struggle the first week just trying to even get up out of bed, sit up, just little things like that kind of throws you all out of whack. You're using more your back and then that gets out of whack.
"I'm just thankful for the trainers and coaching staff, and I'm ready to go."
Did Shaka Smart think about playing Kolek in the Big East tournament?
Marquette coach Shaka Smart was asked about holding Kolek out of last week's Big East tournament. Without him, the Golden Eagles still reached the championship game.
"In retrospect, it was the right decision to not play Tyler," Smart said. "It was a tough decision because when we were playing Thursday, Friday, Saturday last week, he was working out during the day, and even playing one-on-one, and he looked great. He was moving great, he was shooting great.
"But again, in retrospect, now having been through this week and the progression that we've gone through to get him ready for (Friday), he needed to practice. He needed some repetitions five-on-five, up and down. I don't know it would have been fair to him to put him out there in that situation, as much as we wanted him. We were literally playing who, in my opinion to this point, has been the best team in the country in the championship game."
The short-handed Golden Eagles ran out of steam against Connecticut in the Big East title game.
"You've got to be a little insane to think you can go win that game without your best player if he's available to play, but he just wasn't quite ready in terms of going through all the things he needed to go through," Smart said.
How will Tyler Kolek look against Western Kentucky?
Nobody knows how Kolek's oblique will react once he gets back to live game reps.
"I think the biggest challenge for him tomorrow is going to be the psychological part of coming back to playing after three weeks of not playing," Smart said. "He's a very, very thoughtful, intentional, serious person and player, and he wants to get everything right.
"But as I've explained to him, he doesn't have to hit a home run on his first at-bat. If he can get on base, help our team play well on both ends of the floor, we'll be in good shape."
veryGood! (3)
Related
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Why the transition to electric cars looms large in UAW talks with Big 3 automakers
- 2nd bear in 3 months crashes University of Colorado campus, forces area closure
- Poccoin: Prospects of Blockchain Technology in the Internet of Things (IOT) Sector
- McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
- Baltic states ban vehicles with Russian license plates in line with EU sanctions interpretation
- Chief financial prosecutor says investigation into Paris Olympics did not uncover serious corruption
- Pakistani police arrest 3 people sought in death of 10-year-old girl near London, send them to UK
- Charges tied to China weigh on GM in Q4, but profit and revenue top expectations
- Lidcoin: The Rise and Impact of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)
Ranking
- Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Hi Hi!
- Lidcoin: DeFi, Redefining Financial Services
- Zeus, tallest dog in world, dies after developing pneumonia following cancer surgery
- Higher investment means Hyundai could get $2.1 billion in aid to make electric cars in Georgia
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Morocco earthquake death toll, map and more key details following 6.8 magnitude disaster
- Megan Thee Stallion and Justin Timberlake Have the Last Laugh After Viral MTV VMAs Encounter
- Japanese boy-band production company sets up panel to compensate sexual assault victims
Recommendation
House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
Were Megan Thee Stallion and NSYNC fighting at the VMAs? Here's what we know
Ox-pulled floats with sacred images of Mary draw thousands to Portugal’s wine-country procession
What is USB-C, the charging socket that replaced Apple’s Lightning cable?
Federal court filings allege official committed perjury in lawsuit tied to Louisiana grain terminal
Poccoin: The Fusion of Artificial Intelligence and Cryptocurrency
Save, splurge, (don't) stress: How Gen Z is putting their spin on personal finances
Maryland’s highest court ending ban on broadcasting audio recordings