Michigan State forward Kyle Ahrens injured his left ankle and was taken off the court on a stretcher on Sunday at the Big Ten tournament, and his status was uncertain for the rest of the postseason.
After an awkward landing in the first half, Ahrens screamed in pain, clutching his lower left leg. Medical personnel placed an air cast on his leg and teammates gave him hugs before he was wheeled away.
"He thought it was broke," coach Tom Izzo said. "He thought his career was over. He was thanking everybody. It was one of those times that you don't forget in your coaching career."
X-rays showed the ankle was not broken, but the extent of the injury was not clear. Ahrens will have an MRI once the softball-sized swelling goes down.
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• NCAA tournament teams Belmont, Temple, Arizona State and St. John's were the last four in and will head to Dayton, Ohio, for play-in games. Belmont earned its first at-large bid in program history, and Arizona State gave the Pac-12 a third team in the tournament.
• Indiana, UNC Greensboro, Alabama and TCU were identified as the first four left out of the bracket.
• Duke and North Carolina have met in basketball 251 times but never in the NCAA tournament. It if happens this season, it would be for the national title.
• Oregon coach Dana Altman said this after the Ducks became the second team to win four games in four days at the Pac-12 tournament: "In my 39 years in coaching, I've never seen a team grow up that much that fast."
