Michigans Yaxel Lendeborg suffers worrisome ankle injury but returns in bizarre Final Four scenario
Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan’s top player this season, went down with a concerning ankle injury during their Final Four game against Arizona on Saturday.Midway through the first quarter, Lendeborg rolled his ankle while fouled on a layup attempt, along with taking a rough fall back down on the hardwood.Lendeborg slapped the ground as he landed, screaming in pain while getting up before putting his hands in his face while walking off the court after hitting both of his free throws.The 6-foot-9 senior went to the locker room immediately after, with the TNT broadcast saying that Michigan staff was checking both Lendeborg’s ankle — which he hurt during the Big 10 tournament — and his knee.However, no injury surfaced to be serious enough to keep him from the court.Lendeborg wound up returning to the court to open the second half, with Michigan staff telling the broadcast that he is suffering from an MCL injury along with the twisted ankle.However, the situation didn’t come without some confusing twists.
After roughly three minutes of play following the injury, Lendeborg made a brief return, hobbling to the Michigan bench before going back to the locker room.According to the TNT broadcast, the Wolverines’ staff is icing Lendeborg’s ankle while monitoring the severity of the injury.Lendeborg, who is in his first season with the Wolverines after spending three seasons at junior college and two at Alabama-Birmingham, had a breakout year for Michigan, earning Big 10 Player of the Year honors while averaging 15.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks through 38 games.Despite being one of the top NCAA players this season, Lendeborg’s journey to get there was far from easy.“I had no confidence in myself when I went to JUCO,” Lendeborg told reporters on Friday.“I didn’t want to go anyway, so it was like I was just wasting time.
The journey has really felt like a dream, every step of the way.I went through so much.
“Mentally, it was definitely draining.Th...