Florida Gators forward Erik Murphy has a fractured left rib and could miss the SEC opener, USA Today reported on Monday.
Erik Murphy injury: Florida forward has fractured rib
Gators coach Billy Donovan hasn’t ruled Murphy out of the Gators’ SEC conference opener against Georgia on Wednesday.
USA TODAY Sports
The senior guard is the second-leading scorer on Florida with 12.1 points per game. Murphy is thought to have originally injured his ribs during a victory over Air Force on Dec. 29. He then aggravated the injury during practice last week.
Gators coach Billy Donovan hasn't ruled Murphy out of the SEC opener against the Georgia Bulldogs on Wednesday night, saying the decision would be Murphy's and how much pain he could tolerate.
“He is not going to significantly hurt himself anymore because he’s going to be padded up and it’s not going to be a problem, but what happens is if he gets hit there or reaches and stretches it becomes so uncomfortable.”
Rib injuries can be a problematic thing to heal. Murphy is currently cleared to play but Donovan told USA Today that Murphy has some trouble breathing and sleeping. The initial injury against Air Force didn’t slow him down, as he scored 21 points in the contest off of 8-of-10 shooting. He didn’t play in the Gators final non-conference game against Yale on Jan. 6.
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