James' injury, and place in MU history
Feb. 25, 2009 10:35 p.m.
Needless to say, it's a tough way to go out for Dominic James.
Just minutes into what was the biggest game of his four years at MU, the senior point guard went down with a broken left foot -- apparently suffered while driving toward the baseline and making a pass to Dwight Burke -- and left shortly thereafter, never to return.
Coach Buzz Williams was straightforward and to the point in discussing James after the game.
"Dominic broke his fifth metatarsal in his left foot. His career at Marquette is over," he said. "Not sure exactly when his surgery will be; we're trying to figure that out as we speak. Hopefully the sooner, the better. It's probably a 100-day rehab window.
"It's the exact same injury that happened to Liam McMorrow earlier in the year."
Williams said he was unsure how James suffered the injury.
"I didn't see it," he said. "He just came to me and said, 'Coach, I'm done. You've got to get me out.' I think I subbed Jimmy, and let Wes initiate offense. I didn't know if he had a cramp. I had no idea.
"Then Coach Layer told me at maybe the second media time out that he was done for the game, and then Mike Broeker told me at halftime that he was done for his career."
James, who was on the bench with his foot wrapped and on crutches, was unavailable for comment afterward. Williams, however, said he was taking the news his stay at MU is over hard.
"Entering arguably -- because of the timing of it -- the most important stretch of his career as a basketball player, probably the way that you would anticipate that he would handle it," he said.
Speaking from experience -- I suffered a the same thing (also known as a Jones fracture) in my right foot back in 2000 -- it's a slow-healing, frustrating, painful deal.
Mine took a full four months to heal, but I didn't have surgery. James will likely have a pin or a screw inserted into the bone to help speed the process along.
As Williams said, redshirt center Liam McMorrow suffered the same injury prior to the season, had surgery, and over the past few weeks appears to finally be rounding back into shape.
James wound up playing four minutes, and became MU's all-time leader in games played with 128 in the process, passing former leader and teammate Ousmane Barro.
James fell short in his quest to become MU's second all-time leading scorer, however. With three points against Connecticut, he finishes with 1,749, 25 short of passing George Thompson for No. 2.
He's currently MU's all-time leader in field goals attempted wih 1,534, but will soon be passed by Jerel McNeal, who's 28 behind him.
James finishes second in assists with 631, fourth in steals with 238, sixth in field goals made with 625, tied for seventh with Russ Wittberger in free-throws attempted with 529 and 10th in three-pointers made with 168.
He also leaves MU with a hand in some truly memorable moments.
How about his 25 points against Duke in the championship of the CBE Classic as a sophomore? His three-pointer with five seconds left to win at Valparaiso six days later? His cold-blooded free throws with less than a second remaining to send MU into overtime and eventually past Pittsburgh later that year? Or his three-pointer just prior to the buzzer to seal a victory at North Carolina State on Dec. 22 of this year?
As far as physical talent, there aren't many like James out there. Small in stature, he was a crowd pleaser with his leaping ability, dunks and lateral quickness.
He seemed to evoke some strong emotions in fans, either because of his dalliances with the NBA after his sophomore and junior seasons, or because of his terrible struggles shooting the basketball this season.
But he was a class act from beginning to end, and along with McNeal and Wesley Matthews was hugely responsible for the resurgence of MU basketball when all three arrived on campus back in 2005 in advance of MU's move into the Big East.
James will undoubtedly be the Golden Eagles' biggest cheerleader as they make their way into the post-season.
And in the final analysis, he should go down as one of the truly great players to wear an MU uniform.
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