Chase Ross went down with a scary-looking, left shoulder injury late in the Marquette men’s basketball team’s victory at Georgetown on Feb. 24.
His teammates recoiled in horror when they came over to check on him. Trainers draped a towel over Ross while they examined him. The Golden Eagles had only three regular-season games left, so it was fair to wonder if Ross wouldn’t be healthy enough to finish off his final weeks of college eligibility.
But a few hours before MU played DePaul on March 1 at Fiserv Forum, the 6-foot-5 senior guard came out for warmups with a heavy-duty harness strapped on his shoulder.
Ross was able to gut out 34 minutes in a 62-51 loss, scoring 12 points on 5-for-12 shooting. He should be in uniform again when the Golden Eagles (10-19, 5-13 Big East) play at Providence (14-15, 7-11) on March 3.
“I say this because if we’d won the game I would have been screaming this from the top of a mountain,” MU head coach Shaka Smart said. “The kid is such a warrior.
“His shoulder came out in the Georgetown game. If you ask anyone that’s done that before, a matter of days later there’s an extreme level of pain when you try to do this.”
Smart pantomimed lifting his left arm over his shoulder. Ross is a left-handed player.
Ross didn’t practice in the days leading up to the game. Smart said he didn’t know that Ross would be available to play against DePaul until the morning of the game.
Unfortunately, Ross has been beset by injuries over his four seasons at MU. He’s even had experience playing in a bulky harness after missing five games with a dislocated shoulder as a sophomore in the 2023-24 season. Ross had talked with the Journal Sentinel previously this season about nagging injuries, including a swollen elbow.
Ross’ punishing style of play has drawn comparisons to that of a football player. That’s led to him being banged up, but it’s also paid off with 208 steals, a mark that puts him No. 6 in MU history. He is 14 behind Stevie Mitchell, and MU only has three more guaranteed games in Ross’ career so it will be tough to catch his former teammate.
“He really has a level of physical toughness about him that is special,” Smart said.
Ross and fellow senior Ben Gold will be honored when MU finishes the regular season against Connecticut on March 7 at Fiserv Forum. Both were freshmen when the Golden Eagles won Big East regular-season and tournament titles in 2022-23, and they are finishing their time at MU in frustrating fashion.
Gold has been plagued by a right ankle injury since early January, and it kept him out of a game at St. John’s on Jan. 13. He’s tweaked it a few times since then.
“Ben Gold’s ability to fight through what he’s going through with his ankle is impressive as well,” Smart said.
The seniors’ injuries have probably affected their numbers this season, as well as the mental weight of trying to become leaders and top options. Gold and Ross have combined to shoot 68 for 249 (27.3%) on 3-pointers this season.
But Smart is thankful for his seniors for gutting it out until the finish line.
“It’s something that I would praise the heck out of if we’d won,” Smart said. “So it’d be hypocritical to not say it in a loss.”
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Chase Ross and Ben Gold fighting injuries as Marquette careers ending
Reporting by Ben Steele, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
