Hurt Handlogten going to Indy to cheer on Gators

Mar 19, 2024, 09:52 AM ET GAINESVILLE, Fla.– Florida center Micah Handlogten, who gruesomely broke his left leg 2 minutes into the SEC championship game Sunday, will be on hand to watch his team in the NCAA tournament.Already utilizing crutches while recuperating from surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, Handlogten will make the four-hour ride to Indianapolis with his parents to view the seventh-seeded Gators play either Boise State or Colorado on Friday in the opening round of the tournament.Handlogten’s existence is sure to supply an emotional lift for the Gators(24-11), who are going back to the NCAA tourney for the first time in 3 years. It’s the program’s first look under second-year coach Todd Golden.Editor’s Picks ” For us, it’s just going out there and playing for him,” teammate Will Richard said Tuesday. “Micah has done so much for this program. He’s an excellent guy, fantastic teammate, hard worker.”

Handlogten had been arranged to fly back to Gainesville on Monday after having a rod and 2 screws inserted into his leg. However Florida officials scheduled him to remain there and rehab before rejoining the team in Indy.

“It’s going to be amazing,” Handlogten told the group website. “I enjoy the young boys to death. They’re my siblings. I could not have asked for a much better group of guys to spend my sophomore year with, and I’m looking forward to spending my junior and senior year with them, too.

“Individuals who know me know I’m a company follower in God, and I can just rely on him that whatever is part of a strategy. This is not an obstacle. This is an opportunity.”

Handlogten started 32 games this season and averaged 5.3 points and 6.9 rebounds. His production dipped late in the season as freshman Alex Condon cut into his playing time. Handlogten had more fouls (44) than points (43) over Florida’s last 15 games.Still, he was

an essential part of the Gators’ deepest frontcourt rotation considering that they won consecutive national championships in 2006 and 2007. He led the team with 108 offending rebounds and ranked 3rd with 29 blocks, and he will be missed.

“I believe it’ll be a huge lift for him and kind of get his spirits back,” Golden said Tuesday. “He’s truthfully in excellent spirits, all things thought about. Way better spirits than I ‘d be in, to be honest. However it’s going to be a huge lift for the team likewise. It undoubtedly shook everyone up a lot. I think we’re still feeling it a little bit.

“However it provides us a great thing to rally around in the competition. … My hope is that the guys wish to do everything they can to play their butts off for him on Friday.”

Handlogten had two rebounds versus the Tigers and was attempting to come down with a 3rd when he landed awkwardly on his left foot. He immediately decreased in pain and rolled onto his side, putting his hands to his face.Blood was visible on the back of his calf as fitness instructors and coaches rushed to Handlogten’s side. Handlogten’s parents were escorted onto the court from their seats in the stands. His mother, Danielle, wearing his No. 3 jersey, kneeled near her son’s head as he was dealt with on the court with his father nearby.Handlogten’s leg was supported in an air cast before he was placed on a backboard and taken off the court on a stretcher. Colleagues came by to wish Handlogten well as he was rolled off the court, and sophomore Riley Kugel was weeping on Florida’s bench.Handlogten ranked 11th nationally, averaging 2.3 shots blocked per game, at Marshall, where he was the Sun Belt Conference freshman of the year in 2022-23. The 7-foot-1 center from Huntersville, North Carolina, moved to Florida in hopes of making the NCAA tournament.He’ll exist as a cheerleader now– and with a complicated roadway ahead.” It’s a long healing, however I’m anticipating it,”

he stated. “God will direct me, and I’ll be a much better player for it

.”I’m going to come back much better and stronger for it. I have something to work for. I have a goal in mind, and I’m going to make every effort to reach it. “