Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Omier may miss tourney opener
Sophomore forward hobbled by ankle injury suffered against Duke
CORAL GABLES — One big question surrounds the Hurricanes as they prepare for their first-round NCAA Tournament game later this week: Will forward Norchad Omier be healthy enough to play?
Omier, a third-year sophomore forward who transferred to Miami after two strong seasons at Arkansas State, has been a crucial part of the Hurricanes’ success this year. But after playing in UM’s first 31 games, Omier left Miami’s ACC Tournament semifinal against Duke shortly after the game began due to an ankle injury, throwing his status for the NCAA Tournament into doubt.
“There’s really no update at this point,” Miami coach Jim Larrañaga said Sunday. “We’ve got our fingers crossed and we wish him the best. But we’ve got to prepare both ways: that we have him or we don’t have him because we don’t know what his status will be for quite a while.”
Omier played just one minute against the Blue Devils before suffering the ankle injury. The Hurricanes stuck with the Blue Devils but eventually lost 85-78.
Anthony Walker, a fourthyear junior, received the bulk of the minutes in Omier’s absence. He played 22 minutes and had six points and four rebounds. Freshman A.J. Casey played 15 minutes and had two points and no rebounds.
“We have the pieces, we have the guys,” guard Jordan Miller said. “It was a close game against Duke the whole game. Norchad’s obviously our inside presence, but again, A.J. Casey ... and Anthony Walker really stepped up big. ... It’s not impossible without Norchad, but obviously, we’d love to have him.”
Larrañaga said the Miami training staff has been working hard to get Omier, who is averaging 13.6 points and a team-best 9.7 rebounds this season, ready to play for Friday night’s matchup against Drake (7:25 p.m. start) in Albany,
New York.
“We have doctors and trainers that are taking care of him 24-7,” Larrañaga said. “Sam Johnson’s the best trainer, and he has Norchad in the training room all day long. And Norchad is working on it. Of course, he wants to play.”
Larrañaga and Omier’s teammates said the third-year sophomore is in good spirits despite the injury.
“If you know Norchad at all, if you’ve talked to him at all, he’s got more energy than anybody,” Larrañaga said. “So he’s going to always have a smile on his face, and he’s going to do everything possible to get himself ready and to help this team.”
In the meantime, the Hurricanes have to prepare for the possibility that Omier will miss the game. It would be a serious blow for fifth-seeded Miami as it faces No. 12 Drake (27-7), the Missouri Valley Conference champions.
“At this point, we just put trust on our athletic trainer to help him get ready as much as he can,” Miller said. “If he can’t go, we have to find a way.”