By JOSH NEWMAN
Jahlil Okafor will miss Saturday afternoon’s game vs. Clemson thanks to ankle injury suffered on Wednesday, Duke announced.
ESPN reported late Thursday night that the Blue Devils freshman had a protective boot on his left foot as a precaution and would continue to be evaluated as Duke prepared to host the Tigers at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
The 6-foot-11 Okafor, a National Player of the Year candidate, was injured late in the first half of Duke’s 92-90 overtime win over North Carolina on Wednesday. He landed awkwardly after attempting a hook shot, suffering an apparent left ankle injury.
Okafor disappeared to the locker room briefly, had the ankle re-taped and played all 25 minutes of the second half and overtime. He finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds, while classmate Tyus Jones and senior Quinn Cook each finished with 22 points to lead the way.
“Sometimes you can play the night of the game because your adrenaline is moving, especially for big guys,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “We’ll see if he’s going to be ready for Saturday. We can’t practice tomorrow anyway, but we’ll get him some rest. I would think he’s going to play, but we don’t know that.”
The projected No. 1 pick in June’s NBA Draft, Okafor is averaging 17.9 points and 9.4 rebounds for the 23-3 Blue Devils, who are projected as a No. 1 seed in the latest version of ‘Bracketology for ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.
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