North Carolina finally seems to be showing the effects of four games in eight days. Both Kennedy Meeks and Leslie McDonald are nursing injuries headed into Wednesday against NC State.
Meeks suffered a hyperextended knee and sprained ankle in Saturday’s win over Wake Forest. UNC coach Roy Williams said the freshman center missed practice on Monday and had a boot on his foot for precautionary reasons. Meeks said he probably should not have re-entered the game against Wake.
“I guess I was trying to be tough,” Meeks said. “They said it didn’t help after the game, it made it a little worse, but I’ll be all right.”
Meeks, who planned to practice on Tuesday, said he expected to play against the Wolfpack. McDonald said he also plans on playing against State, although he couldn’t pinpoint when exactly he hurt his left ankle.
“My ankle just started hurting so I’m not really sure what happened,” said McDonald, who said it started hurting on Sunday. “It wasn’t anything that happened in the [Wake Forest] game or anything I don’t know. Our bodies have been under stress so much so it was probably a little tweak.”
Meeks and McDonald, both starters, played big roles in the Tar Heels’ 84-70 win over State on Feb. 1. Meeks had eight points and 10 rebounds. McDonald scored what was then a season-high 20 points in the first meeting.
