Buckeyes’ Key fights through shoulder pain
The grimace and the grab seems to be happening with more regularity. At some point in each Ohio State men's basketball game, center Zed Key either extends to try and reach the ball or takes a hard shot to his left shoulder.
The heavy black protective brace that tightly wraps the shoulder continues to do its job. Key continues on, sometimes after a few minutes of rest on the bench, and no further injury is incurred.
But, yes, it hurts. Every time. And that's what Key, who until suffering a left shoulder sprain against Purdue on Jan. 5 was averaging a career-high 13.4 points and shooting a team-best 62.9% from the floor, is dealing with on a nightly basis for an Ohio State team that goes to Iowa on Thursday having lost 11 of 12 games since
he suffered the injury.
“It's not excruciating, but it lets you know that it's there,” Key said. “It's a 6 (out of 10), maybe. It's nothing where I'm like, ‘OK, I can't play.' If you move in certain ways, it's going to let you know. When people hit it in games, it's gonna hurt.”
That's a tough go for a player whose physicality is a critical component to his game, and his numbers since wearing the brace bear that out. Key returned for a Jan. 12 home game with Minnesota, missing a road loss to Maryland, and has shot 45.0% (36 for 80) from the floor and averaged 11.3 points and 7.3 rebounds while wearing the brace. After posting five double doubles through the first 13 games without the brace, Key has one since his return.
“It is tough because you feel the pain,” Key said. “You want to go out there and be pain-free and play like I know how to play and was playing at the beginning of the year, but I stay locked in for the guys from the bench, trying to give energy.”
Each day requires about an hour and a half of rehabilitation work before practice, Key said.
He has started warming up for games without the brace because it constricts his breathing, but it's a necessity when it comes to playing games.
“It comes across your chest and it's tight, so it can limit my reach so I won't be able to get hurt hopefully again,” Key said. “It definitely affects range of motion and breathing.”