Duke rolls into the Sweet 16 riding the return of center Patrick Ngongba from injury
Duke was not the same team in the five games center Patrick Ngongba missed with a foot injury. His appearance against TCU in the NCAA Tournament was a mere cameo, but it was good enough to deserve an Oscar.
Duke rolls into the Sweet 16 riding the return of center Patrick Ngongba from injury originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . GREENVILLE, S.
C. – The occasion that engendered the loudest ovation from the Duke fans, a large portion even standing, was the arrival of Patrick Ngongba to the basketball game at the 16:14 mark of the first half. They greeted him as if he had been gone a year.
Perhaps it felt that way. “I was trying not to smile too much,” he told reporters. Devils fans ought to have been most excited, though, by his entry not quite 4 minutes into the second half of their NCAA Tournament second-round game against TCU, because by then it was apparent they might not win without him.
Yeah, the final score was 81-58, and one can surmise from this Duke would have won and advanced to the Sweet 16 with Harry Styles playing center. Ngongba changed the game, though, and he might have the capacity to elevate his team to the NCAA Championship. Ngongba is one of the few ever to roll into a postgame locker room on two wheels, but his ride wasn’t exactly a Harley.
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