Butler's Rotnei Clarke feeling better after scary injury
BY MICHAEL MAROT Associated Press
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
1/16/13 at 4:37 AM
When the soreness in Rotnei Clarke's shoulders dissipates, Butler's senior guard plans to carry the Bulldogs as far as he can.
For now, all he can do is watch, wait and heal.
The top scorer for the 14th-ranked Bulldogs said Tuesday he is feeling better after a scary crash into a padded basket support, but the Verdigris High School graduate still hasn't been cleared to resume contact and Butler has not said how much more time he'll miss beyond this week's two games.
"I'm going to start getting on the bike a little bit and then when the pain in my shoulders starts to leave a little bit with the nerves, I'll be able to shoot and be able to do non-contact stuff hopefully," he said, answering questions for the first time since sustaining a sprained neck at Dayton. "Right now I'm just resting for a couple of days."
Clarke was injured during last Saturday's victory when he was fouled on a layup, and the contact sent him head-first into a nearby basket support.
He stayed down for eight minutes before being taken away on an ambulance and was transported to a local hospital.
He was released later Saturday night and returned to Indianapolis with his team despite complaining of a sore neck and a bad headache.
On Sunday, trainers removed the protective brace from Clarke's neck and allowed him to go through a light workout. On Monday night, though, the Bulldogs (14-2, 2-0 Atlantic 10) issued a statement saying Clarke would be held out of Wednesday night's home game against Richmond and Saturday's home showdown against No. 8 Gonzaga.
Beyond that, the timetable is unclear.
"I'm doing the best that I can," Clarke said. "I'm going to listen to our trainers and our coaches and doctors. I just have to know that they have my best interest at hand and they want what's best with me."
Clarke was third in the Atlantic 10 in scoring heading into last weekend at 16.3 points per game.
Original Print Headline: Clarke is better after scary injury
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Clarke
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