St. John’s Brady Dunlap now dealing with abdominal tear
Brady Dunlap’s run of bad luck refuses to go away.
Already sidelined with a torn UCL in his left hand, the sophomore wing also is dealing with a small abdominal tear, coach Rick Pitino said Friday before St. Johns big battle against Villanova on Saturday night at the Garden. .
It is uncertain if the 6-foot-7, sharpshooting Dunlap can rehab the tear without surgery.
An operation would end his season and take roughly two to three months to heal.
“A poor young man who loves basketball, has gone through so many injuries so far, and he’s been in a lot of pain, and I just don’t want his spirits to get down right now, so we’re exhausting every possibility to keep him from surgery, but he may have to have it,” Pitino said.
Earlier in the year, Dunlap was bothered by hip pain. It turns out it was coming from the abdominal area, his father Jeff told The Post. It has not improved since the hand injury, and now tests have revealed the tear. A medical redshirt is possible, but Dunlap’s focus still is on coming back this year if possible, Jeff said.
After St. John’s win over Xavier, coach Sean Miller complimented the Johnnies, saying: “If you want to talk about a hard-playing, tough-minded group, I don’t know if there is a team in the country that embodies those qualities better than them.”
Pitino relayed that quote to his players.
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“That’s a great compliment. I think that’s something you want to point out that people recognize [their] work,” the Hall of Fame coach said. “They don’t recognize [our] lack of 3-point shooting or lack of something else. When you respect somebody like [I do with] Sean, you give feedback.”
Added forward Zuby Ejiofor: “It means a lot, coming from Sean Miller, to know that we can play together and as hard as we can, and it’s going to get noticed. That’s our identity, just playing hard and playing for each other and having fun.”
Freshman guard Jaiden Glover still can’t shoot right-handed due to the bone bruise in his right wrist. It’s unlikely he’ll be able to play Saturday against Villanova.
