Kevin Ware’s high school basketball coach has yet to see the gruesome TV footage of how his former star player broke his leg Sunday while helping Louisville win a trip to the Final Four this week in Atlanta.
But Rockdale County High School’s Alvin Williams did talk to Ware over the telephone Monday and said the player was “in great spirits.”
Ware became the biggest story of this year’s NCAA tournament when he shattered his right leg in front of a national TV audience while defending a 3-point shot by Duke’s Tyler Thornton. While his teammates and coach cried, Ware rallied the team by saying: “Just win the game. I’m OK. Just win the game.”
Williams, who was on the second day of a seven-day cruise in the Caribbean, said he got a call Monday morning from one of his assistants, who said, ” ‘Hey man, Kevin is looking for you; give him a call,’ and so I gave him a call.”
“He was very upbeat and had a real positive spirit,” Williams said of Ware. “The last thing he said to me was, ‘Coach, I’m all right.’ So he’s going to be fine.”
The coach missed Ware’s first-half injury while traveling but did tune in to watch the second half of Louisville’s win over Duke on Sunday night. Williams didn’t really have any idea about the seriousness of Ware’s injury until he talked with one of his assistants early Monday.
Williams plans to meet with Ware later this week in Atlanta, if possible.
“Wherever he is, I’ll go to him then,” Williams said. “If I wasn’t on a cruise ship with my family, I’d be where he is right now.”
The coach and player have kept in contact since they led Rockdale County to the 2011 state championship game — the school’s first appearance in the finals since 1987. Ware averaged 19 points and 9 rebounds as a senior.
His recruiting journey took a lot of twists and turns. Ware signed early with Tennessee but reopened his recruitment after Bruce Pearl was fired. He committed to Central Florida and then later switched to Louisville, while also considering Georgia.
The 6-foot-2 Ware, a sophomore, was one of the top players off Louisville’s bench this season.
“I tell you what: With Louisville making the Final Four, it has me believing that they have the best team in the country,” Williams said. “They have great kids, great players and actually an awesome coach who really knows how to coach this time of year.
“Kevin is going to do well. Some people are born to do things. Kevin was born to play basketball. I expect him to get better and better.”
Ware was photographed Monday walking on crutches after undergoing two hours of surgery Sunday in Indianapolis to have a rod inserted into his leg.
“This morning, he’s doing terrific,” Louisville coach Rick Pitino said during a conference call Monday. “He’s in great spirits.”
Pitino said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, CBS analyst Greg Anthony and former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann — who suffered a similarly gruesome injury on national television — also called on Monday to check on Ware, who will probably remain in Indianapolis with his family until Tuesday. Ware will join his team later this week in Atlanta and will be on Louisville’s bench when it plays Wichita State in the semifinals Saturday.
Ware, who inspired his teammates with his toughness after the injury, finally broke down Sunday night.
Said Pitino: “He watched the players at the press conference; nurses said that was the first time he cried, when the players started talking about him.”
