Rafael Suanes-US PRESSWIRE
The UNCW Seahawks have suffered a big loss to their early season potential. Senior guard Tyree Graham will miss 2-4 weeks recovering from hernia surgery that he will undergo today, Thursday, October 11. This surgery now makes Graham doubtful to play in the team’s season opener on November 11 vs. UNC-Asheville
Head coach Buzz Peterson said Graham, who expects to be a key leader for this season’s Seahawks team, will undergo a robotic surgical procedure performed with lasers.
Graham, who has been plagued with injuries throughout his entire career, has been dealing with the nagging condition during the entire preseason, forcing him to miss several preseason team workouts.
Previously, Graham tore his ACL before the 2010-2011 season during a preseason workout while playing for Rutgers. Then, after recovering from that injury, he ruptured his Achilles tendon during postseason workouts and never appeared in a game in New Brunswick. Hoping to escape his unlucky misfortunes, Graham transferred to UNCW as a graduate student transfer.
UNCW begins practice Friday before the team celebrates with fans at Midnight Madness.
Over his expected absence, the Seahawks will play an exhibition game vs. NC Wesleyan at home. Following that contest is, of course, the team’s opener vs. UNC Asheville. If Graham can recover with no setbacks, he should be ready to compete in the team’s first road game at Richmond.
The Seahawks have a pretty challenging non-conference schedule ahead of them, and they will need all kinds of leadership in order to overcome the challenges and struggles the team will face on the road.
Jake Fischer is the CAA Correspondent for Rant Sports-NCAA Basketball. Make sure to follow Jake on Twitter @fischsportsline.
