Heading toward the biggest stage in their college basketball careers this week, Kerr Kriisa and Azuolas Tubelis have a lot more to worry about than sprained ankles, upcoming opponents or their jump shots.
They also have to call home.
In Kriisa’s case, home is Tartu, Estonia, just about 60 road miles from the Russian border. Estonia is a country that declared independence in 1918 but was later controlled by the Soviet Union for more than four decades before regaining independence in 1991.
For Tubelis, home is Vilnius, Lithuania, a city that was partially occupied by Soviet forces after declaring independence in 1990.
So it’s not hard to imagine how some folks in their Baltic homelands might wonder how far Russia will try to go after invading nearby Ukraine.
“I'm following that every day,” Tubelis said. “Every morning I wake up, I check (the) news.”
Guard Pelle Larsson, who is from across the Baltic Sea in Sweden, says he also keeps up on what he called a “terrible” situation.
Kriisa expressed the same.
“Obviously, it's ridiculous, to be honest. It's pretty sad,” Kriisa said. “I mean, hopefully we all think the same way here, so there's nothing much to really add: We all know it's unbelievable what's going on right now. And the crazy part is we to don't know what's happening next. Estonia is right by Russia so people are obviously scared. It's bad.”
Tubelis said he’s encouraged that Ukraine is getting weapons to defend itself and is optimistic there will be an agreement to stop the fighting with Russia. He’s also grateful his hometown is six hours from the Ukrainian border and still far away from the conflict.
Tubelis said his mother, Valentina Tubeliené, assured him as much.
“When it started, I called my mom. I said, 'Is everything OK? Maybe you need to come to the U.S. to be safer'’" Tubelis said. "But she said that everything is fine. They're not touching Lithuania. So it's not that bad. They won't come.”
For a short time, at least, Kriisa won't have to worry about his mother. Because she'll be in San Diego this weekend.
"Luckily my mom is coming out here on Thursday to watch us play," Kriisa said. "I can spend time with her."
Arizona point guard Kerr Kriisa answers questions during media availability Tuesday in McKale Center. Kriisa suffered an ankle injury in last week's Pac-12 Tournament, but says he hopes to be able to play when the Wildcats open NCAA Tournament play on Friday in San Diego.
Ankle scare turns to optimism for Kriisa
While Kriisa showed up tired and still a little sore for a short media interview session Tuesday, he probably couldn’t be happier.
Because now the Arizona point guard says he expects to play in the NCAA Tournament this weekend after seeing how his ankle splayed out at a 90-degree angle late in Arizona’s win over Stanford in the Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinals, dealing him a significant sprain that kept him out for the Wildcats’ semifinal and championship game wins.
“I was scared that it's over because I’ve never had that bad of a sprain,” Kriisa said. “I felt like my leg was a completely different direction and I was scared to look down… But we went straight after to take X-rays and when I found out that nothing was breaking, 'J-Rock' (athletic trainer Justin Kokoskie) told me that 'We’ve just got to work on it. You will play,' then happy tears came on my face. It was a good moment.”
It was a good moment that led to a lot of work and not a lot of sleep. Kriisa said he and Kokoskie have done some "crazy stuff that I’ve never seen before," with Kokoskie giving him a break to nap only between 3-5 p.m. on Monday.
"I haven't really had rest," Kriisa said. "I'm pretty tired from this rehab stuff. I want to get to get healthy and just practice and play with my brothers."
Kokoskie confirmed via text that Kriisa has been otherwise sleeping only between midnight and 8 a.m, and putting in 14 hours a day in rehabilitation efforts. Kriisa's ankle sprain is different than the high ankle sprain teammate Azuolas Tubelis suffered on Jan. 20, but both injuries could normally sideline a player for three weeks or more.
"He's working his ass off!!!" Kokoskie wrote. "Great kid!! Proud of him!!"
In the meantime, Kriisa has tried to have a little fun with it. He posted photos of his ankle to Twitter on both Sunday and Monday, sharing all his purple bruises and swelling, and prompting UA coach Tommy Lloyd to joke on his radio show that fans probably now know more about the ankle than he did.
"I’m not on social media and apparently, every step of his rehab has been public disclosure," Lloyd said, chuckling. "I can’t make any crazy predictions but I know right now he’s preparing like he’s gonna play. We’ll see how close he gets to that and we’ll make a decision as we approach game time.”
The Wildcats are scheduled to open Friday against the winner of Wednesday's 16-seed First Four matchup between Bryant and Wright State. They could opt to sit Kriisa out and, if they win, reintroduce him on Sunday against either TCU or Seton Hall.
But whatever the case, Kerr’s already made his decision. Both in his body and his mind.
He’s playing.
"Of course," he said. "If I wouldn't think (I could) then probably my leg wouldn't be healing as good. It's all mental. You’ve got to believe. I'm believing and it is going in good direction right now."
Mathurin named second-team All-American
The Wildcats may have received an extra shot of motivation Tuesday, when wing Bennedict Mathurin was named to the second Associated Press all-American team and center Christian Koloko was not among the four finalists for the Naismith's Defensive Player of the Year award.
Mathurin landed on the second team below first-team honorees Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky, Ochai Agbaji of Kansas and three Big Ten players: Keegan Murray of Iowa, Kofi Cockburn of Illinois and Johnny Davis of Wisconsin.
Gonzaga’s Drew Timme and Chet Holmgren joined Mathurin on the second team, along with Jaden Ivey of Purdue and Jabari Smith of Auburn.
Former Wildcat guard James Akinjo tied with JD Notae of Arkansas for the final spot on the third team, giving it six total players. Also named to the third team: Paolo Banchero of Duke, Collin Gillespie of Villanova, E.J. Liddell of Ohio State, Walker Kessler of Auburn.
When asked about the second-team pick later Tuesday, Mathurin had little reaction.
"I don't really pay attention to what people are saying about me or my teammates," Mathurin said. "So having the second team, third team, first team, I don't really care. All I really, really want to win is national championship and prove the haters wrong."
Mathurin has been named one of five finalists for the Naismith's Jerry West Award for top shooting guard, along with UCLA's Johnny Juzang, Agbaji, Davis and Ivey. Mathurin was also named a first-team all "District 19" pick by the NABC, while Koloko and Tubelis were named to the second team.
The Naismith's Defensive Player of the Year list dropped Koloko from its list while cutting from 10 to down to four players: Holmgren, Tshiebwe, Kessler and Duke's Mark Williams.
