Mo Watson - ACL out for season

[Savannah Jay]

I'm pretty sure he was not examined by the X docs. Fluker was on X's bench looking at Tyrique Jones

Coach McDermott specifically said in his postgame press conference that Creighton trainers and Xavier's doctor did structural tests on Mo's knee.

When an ACL blows, like mine did, the knee swells quickly. You can't do a structural test and have any certainty of knowing what is going on. You either wait until the swelling goes down which usually takes several days, or you do an MRI. I trust the trainers know this. However, if the ACL was blown on the first incident, it was already torn and no further damage could be done to it. But the meniscus was at risk with continued use. If there was any thought that the ACL was torn, then he should not have been reinserted into the game.

There seems to be confusion about when and by whom he was examined. After the knee knock, Mo went to Creighton's bench, had ice put on it (we all saw that) and was attended to by Creighton trainers (and I believe only Creighton trainers at that point). In Mo's post game interview, he told Coach it was sore but he wanted to go back in the game. Based on the trainers exam and what Mo was telling them, coach had no reason to not allow it. Creighton fans (and Butler fans) remember Mo had a similar knee knock in the game against them, and came back in and was fine. That probably also played some factor in the decision to let him go back in the game.

After he was injured the second time and taken straight to the locker room (or trainers room), I believe that is when the X doctor looked at it, along with Creighton's trainers. It was based on those initial structural tests, as well as a lack of swelling, that gave coach, our trainers and us fans hope that it wasn't the ACL (or any other ligament). In fact, McDermott was interviewed yesterday morning and he stated even yesterday morning that it was not very swollen. Which makes the news that much more devastating.

[dakphonics]

Watson went to the bench after the initial injury and was in a lot of pain, but he iced it and walked around. He went to the coach and said he got it loosened up and was ready to get back in there, and coach was being cautious, but Wop is a pretty confident and convincing guy. The injury happened on the first fall, Wop just didn't realize it until after that layup when his leg gave out on him. For anyone blasting Mac on this, why don't you ask Wop if he blames the coach? He doesn't. Shit happens. End of story.

And yes it was Xavier's team doctor that believed all ligaments were intact, but that happened later.

[xman]

There's not a bigger compliment I can give to an opponent than to say I enjoyed watching him play. Wishing Mo the best.

[billyjack]

Creighton is such a fun team to watch especially with Mo. This really sucks. I think it's key that the Jays have 2 months to adjust, so that's a lot of time. They have good strength and muscle, height and attitude, and many interchangeable parts, which will help a ton. Usually all 5 guys on the floor can score.

So i thought Creighton with Mo was a Sweet 16 lock, and probable Elite-8 team, with a good chance at a Final Four or National Championship. Things have changed but anything is still possible. Defensively they're now longer and stronger overall.

In the second half vs Xavier (without Watson), in halfcourt it looked like they ran a lot of post-up and isolation, with a flex type offense like Ed Cooley runs... again, interchangeable parts.

Side note as someone mentioned above... in last 30 seconds vs Butler last week, Watson knocked knees with a Dawg, a was on the floor grabbing is knee... he was down for a long minute, and McDermott came over, then all at once Mo sprung up like an impala and sprinted back to the bench.

[FDS]

Creighton is such a fun team to watch especially with Mo. This really sucks. I think it's key that the Jays have 2 months to adjust, so that's a lot of time. They have good strength and muscle, height and attitude, and many interchangeable parts, which will help a ton. Usually all 5 guys on the floor can score.

So i thought Creighton with Mo was a Sweet 16 lock, and probable Elite-8 team, with a good chance at a Final Four or National Championship. Things have changed but anything is still possible. Defensively they're now longer and stronger overall.

In the second half vs Xavier (without Watson), in halfcourt it looked like they ran a lot of post-up and isolation, with a flex type offense like Ed Cooley runs... again, interchangeable parts.

Side note as someone mentioned above... in last 30 seconds vs Butler last week, Watson knocked knees with a Dawg, a was on the floor grabbing is knee... he was down for a long minute, and McDermott came over, then all at once Mo sprung up like an impala and sprinted back to the bench.

When this happened I also questioned why he was even still in the game. Creighton had 15 point lead with 30 seconds to play. Why risk having your star player get hurt during the meaningless final 30 seconds? Why risk having him get hurt by putting him back in the Xavier game? Injuries don't happen in vacuums and even if he only bruised his knee with the first knock, he was clearly favoring the leg. When you have to favor one leg, the mechanisms in and around the knee react differently and move differently to protect the initial injury, this frequently leads to further injury due to the ligaments being used in a capacity that they are not prepared to be used. I still think this is on McDermott...

[TrueBlueJay]

I now know what FDS stands for.

[FDS]

I now know what FDS stands for.

FormerlyDawgsStudent (an old name on an old board)

Does McDermott stand for riding your star player into the ground?

[DudeAnon]

I now know what FDS stands for.

FormerlyDawgsStudent (an old name on an old board)

Does McDermott stand for riding your star player into the ground?

[TrueBlueJay]

I now know what FDS stands for.

FormerlyDawgsStudent (an old name on an old board)

Does McDermott stand for riding your star player into the ground?

You're wrong on both accounts:

FingDmbSht

McDermott stands for Mid Season COY

http://www.foxsports.com/college-basketball/gallery/fox-sports-college-basketball-midseason-americans-award-winners-011817

[sciencejay]

In the presser yesterday, McD and Wop made it clear that Wop reinserted himself into the game. Mo said that the trainer rubbed ice on his knee after the original contact with Sumner and he did some squats (really!) and it felt much better. So he checked himself back in. He and McD had that kind of trust--when Mo felt like he was ready to go back in, he went. It's been this way all season. Mo made his own decision.

So those who blame McD should reevaluate their position. McD didn't even realize Mo checked himself back in, but when he did, he assumed that Mo and the trainer were in agreement that all was good. And then it wasn't. Retrospectively knowing the seriousness of the injury doesn't change the decision-making process that teams (coaches/players/medical staff) use to evaluate injuries on the fly and determine whether a player needs to be held out or not. As others said, Mo went down hard against Butler, but got up and was good to go.

It's easy to sit in an arm chair and criticize others. Often it makes the criticizer look foolish when all the facts come out.