Injuries Could Be a Concern

Three of the teams in the Final Four have something in common -- an injury to a key player. Oklahoma State is the only team that won’t arrive in San Antonio with concerns about a starter.

Connecticut center Emeka Okafor was hit on the arm again in practice Wednesday, causing a recurrence of the numbness he experienced after suffering a shoulder “stinger,” or minor nerve injury, in the regional final against Alabama on Saturday.

“With ice and TLC, I think it’ll be just fine,” Connecticut Coach Jim Calhoun said, adding that Okafor had been playing well before he was hit shortly before the end of practice.

Georgia Tech Coach Paul Hewitt said guard B.J. Elder’s sprained ankle has improved and he thinks he will be close to 100% by Saturday’s semifinal. Elder, Georgia Tech’s leading scorer, was a limited contributor in the last two games.

Duke guard Chris Duhon, who has been playing despite sore ribs, also feels better and participated in about half of Duke’s most recent practice, which is more than he had been taking part in.

“He’s like a quarterback -- nobody is allowed to touch him,” Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski said.

Duke has used the time Duhon in which isn’t taking part in practice to prepare other players in case he is limited.

“In a game, he could get hurt and not be able to play,” Krzyzewski said. “That’s the reality of it.”

Robyn Norwood

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Stanford forward Josh Childress will make himself available for the NBA draft but still leave open the option of returning for his senior season.

“I plan on putting my name in and testing it out, testing the waters,” Childress said Wednesday.

“I do not plan on hiring an agent right now, just from the standpoint of coming back if I need to.”

On Tuesday, the All-American forward told Coach Mike Montgomery his decision.

Montgomery had said after the season that he expected his leading scorer to return. Stanford, ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time, was knocked out in the second round of the NCAA tournament by Alabama.

Childress sat out the season’s first nine games because of a left foot injury, then averaged 15.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.6 blocks the rest of the way and earned Pacific 10 Conference player-of-the-year honors.

“I don’t want to make it seem like I’m gone for sure,” he said. “I really cherished my years here at Stanford. But I owe it to myself.... I put myself in the position to see where I stand, and hopefully [fans] understand that. I want to see how I stack up against the other players.”

Childress said he would complete his sociology degree at Stanford at some point.

-- Associated Press