Jordan Pope injury update: Texas guard reveals he suffered 'complete break' in foot against Gonzaga

Jordan Pope suffered a complete break in his foot late in the second half against Gonzaga in Texas‘ Round of 32 upset win, he revealed. Despite the severity of the injury, Pope played 33 minutes during the Longhorns’ Sweet 16 loss against Purdue on Thursday.

Pope appeared hobbled in the final moments of last Sunday’s win over the Bulldogs. Head coach Sean Miller described it as a “lower-leg situation” in the lead-up to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament.

“I think I can clear the air now: Five minutes left against Gonzaga, I broke my foot, a complete break,” Pope revealed. “It was definitely tough. I’m not sure a lot of guys would have went out there and played. But, you know, credit to my my training staff, Warren (Young), and our doctor. They did a lot of work the last four days, 24/7 giving me treatment and just giving me a chance to really be questionable for the game. Credit to those guys, they got me ready.

“Thankfully, I was able to go out there and play somehow. I had a lot of fun and I thank the Lord that I was able to get through that.”

By the way he played, you wouldn’t know he was hooping on a broken foot. He scored 12 points on 4-9 shooting from the 3-point line. He also recorded a pair of rebounds and one assist along the way.

Miller said after the game that he would have not played Pope in the Sweet 16 had his training staff determined it would have led to worsening the injury. In the end, it was Pope’s (who is a senior) call if he would ultimately suit up.

“Watching him out there tonight is really remarkable, really was what he did, how he played under those conditions,” Miller said postgame. “I don’t know how many guys that I’ve coached under these conditions on this stage would have chosen to play.

“It would have been very easy for him just to say, ‘Make the Sweet 16. I’m not going to be 100%. I don’t know how I’ll look. And because of that, I can’t go.’ He gave us everything and gave us the opportunity to win.”

Miller said that a decision on whether Pope will require surgery will be determined in the coming days. For now, that remains to be seen.

In the end, Texas’ season would end after falling short against Purdue, 79-77 after a last-second tip-in from Boilermakers star Trey Kaufman-Renn with less than a second left in regulation. The shot ended Texas’ season right after Texas’ Dailyn Swain made a layup and tied the game after being fouled.