Saint Joseph's Player Taken Off In Stretcher After Brutal Leg Injury

About midway through the first half of Saint Joseph’s match-up against Duquesne on Saturday, Pierfrancesco Oliva drove to the rim looking for a layup. Dukes defender Michael Hughes rose up and blocked the shot, causing Oliva to fall down hard to the floor. The Hawks player immediately grabbed his leg and began screaming in pain. His teammates and Hawks medical staff rushed to his aid once the game was stopped a few seconds later. Fair warning, while there’s no immediate close-up or replay of the injury itself, Oliva’s screams are still a disturbing to hear. If you’re interested in a graphic image of the injury, you can find it here.

Oliva was taken to a local hospital and stayed the night in Pittsburgh alongside his coach, according to a tweet from SJU’s men’s basketball account. We will update this post with more information as it becomes available.

H/t to Brad