Due to a serious injury sustained during a game against Alabama, one of the Auburn Tigers’ key players will miss the remainder of the NCAA Tournament, leaving the team absolutely perplexed.
Senior guard Chris Moore suffered a horrific ankle injury that sent him down hard less than ten minutes into the Tigers’ first NCAA Tournament game of the postseason. After Moore was fouled during the play, head coach Bruce Pearl removed him from the game almost instantly, and the seasoned forward did not attempt his own free shots.
As the Tigers attempted to steer clear of the same errors from the previous season, Pearl said during a media timeout that Moore’s absence would mean more Chad Baker-Mazara and more Chaney Johnson:
Despite being one of the best seeds, the Auburn Tigers were upset by Yale in the First Round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The Tigers are among the top teams this year and are expected to go far in the Big Dance.
But losing Moore, a regularly used bench player, was not a good way to begin Auburn’s postseason campaign.
In an apparent positive indication for the Tigers, Moore was spotted smiling as he left the tunnel after performing some easy drills there to try to test his ankle a few minutes later in the game, according to CBS.
Moore participated in 33 games for Auburn this season, including four starts. In each appearance, the forward averaged 10.7 minutes, 1.6 rebounds, 1.2 points, and 0.5 assists. Moore has been in three prior March Madness events and has been a member of Auburn since 2020.
According to CBS sideline reporter Allie LaForce, Moore’s ankle was sprained, but the Auburn coaching staff said they were still unsure if he would play in the game.
The Tigers were ahead 28-18 of the Alabama State Hornets, who had beaten Saint Francis (PA) in the First Four round, before Moore could ever make it back to the game.
