It was certainly gratifying to see photos yesterday of Louisville hoopster Kevin Ware up and walking on crutches not 24 hours after that horrific injury in Sunday’s NCAA Elite Eight game.
The entire nation was stunned as Ware suffered a compound fracture of his right leg while contesting a shot against Duke — an injury so gruesome that CBS quickly stopped airing replays.
In two hours of surgery, doctors reset the bone and inserted a rod; coach Rick Pitino said Ware would be able to join the team in Atlanta this weekend for the Final Four.
That’s fitting: Because Ware’s only thought — even as he was writhing on the floor in agony — was for his team.
“The bone’s six inches out of his leg and all he’s yelling is, ‘Win the game, win the game,’” said Pitino. “I’ve never seen that in my life . . . Pretty special young man.”
That’s putting it mildly.
And win they did: The Cardinals came on like gangbusters after halftime and ran away with the game, 85-63.
Ware, a 20-year-old sophomore who grew up in the Mott Haven section of The Bronx, faces a long, slow recovery. But doctors say his injury, bad as it was, isn’t necessarily career-ending.
That’s good news. If anyone deserves another shot, it’s Kevin Ware. His courage and selflessness at a moment when he’d have been justified in thinking only of himself couldn’t have been more inspiring.