After practice before the Gonzaga Bulldogs’ first-round matchup of the NCAA Tournament at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, the players spoke with the media in the locker room. One of those players was redshirt junior forward Braden Huff, who hasn’t spoken to the press since he dislocated his left knee back during practice on Jan. 14, just a day before a matchup with the Washington State Cougars in Pullman, Washington.
On the injury, Huff stated, “It was a normal play. Just playing defense, then all the sudden it gave out. Pretty typical play.”
“I’m feeling good. The knee is coming along well. I’m jogging, shooting. I’m out this weekend, but the rest of the tournament is up in the air,” Huff continued.
Based on his response and if the Zags can continue into the second weekend of the Big Dance, a return from Huff is still possible. He hasn’t officially returned to practice or done any three-on-three work yet, nor has he participated in shootaround.
First, the No. 3-seeded West Coast Conference champion Bulldogs (30-3, 16-2 WCC) in the West region must go up against the No. 14-seeded Kennesaw State Owls (21-13, 10-10 C-USA) out of Conference USA on Thursday, March 19, at 7 p.m. PT on TBS. The Owls won their conference tournament with three straight wins in three days.
Fun fact: Gonzaga, boasting the second-longest active NCAA Tournament streak at 27 consecutive appearances, holds the most NCAA Tournament wins over the last 10 years with 28.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on X @a_cravalho
