Florida player in critical condition
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida forward Keyontae Johnson, the Southeastern Conference’s preseason player of the year, collapsed coming out of a timeout Saturday against rival Florida State and needed emergency medical attention.
Johnson was taken off the court on a stretcher and rushed to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital for evaluation. The Gators said he was in critical but stable condition.
Johnson had just dunked in transition before he fell to the floor as Florida broke its huddle. Several Gators players were in tears and a couple of them buried their faces in towels as coach Mike White gathered his team to say a prayer.
The game continued a few minutes later, but Johnson’s teammates clearly were affected by the scary scene of seeing him in the midst of a medical emergency. Florida was ahead 11- 3 after Johnson’s dunk but was outscored 42- 24 in the rest of the first half and lost 83- 71.
White canceled postgame interviews to join Johnson at the hospital as his players boarded a bus for the two- hour trip back to Gainesville. Johnson’s parents were flying in from Virginia to be with their son.
Whether the game should have resumed surely will be debated. White let his players choose twice — moments after Johnson left the court and then again at halftime.
‘‘ Whatever they thought was in the best interest of their team, then I would accept it,’’ Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton said. ‘‘ My administration asked me, and I told them we would be OK with whatever they decided. It was my understanding that they wanted to play.’’
Hamilton said several of his players were in tears, too.
‘‘ Those types of things can affect you in some adverse ways,’’ Hamilton said. ‘‘ We’re just all hopeful and praying that he’s OK. If it affected our players in an emotional way, I can imagine what the situation was with his teammates.’’
Johnson, a 6- 5 junior, averaged a team- high 14 points last season to go with 7.1 rebounds. He also led the Gators with 38 steals.
Like most of his teammates, Johnson tested positive for COVID- 19 during the summer. Although the cause of Johnson’s ailment wasn’t immediately known, the coronavirus can lead to myocarditis, a viral infection of the heart muscle. At its most severe, myocarditis can lead to sudden cardiac arrest and has been a documented cause of death for young athletes who are otherwise healthy.
The SEC mandates strict protocols, including rigorous heart testing, before a player can be cleared to return to play after a positive COVID- 19 test.