CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) -Bobby Frasor figured this season would be different, that he would finally be healthy again after battling nagging foot problems last season. Those hopes ended when he crumpled to the court clutching his left knee two weeks ago.
Now Frasor is again watching from the bench as No. 1 North Carolina pursues its national championship dream without him.
“I feel I can be a huge part of this team and what we want to accomplish, and I feel I can help get us there,” the junior said Friday in his first meeting with reporters since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament against Nevada on Dec. 27.
“I just have to be that motivator and cheer guys on,” he said. “But I know we still have the talent and players to do the same goals we had.”
Frasor was hurt when his leg gave way while he was trying to make a steal near the sideline midway through the second half. It robbed the Tar Heels (16-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) of a versatile veteran who can play either guard position and provided defense and leadership off the bench.
Frasor is scheduled to have surgery Monday, followed by months of rehabilitation.
“It’s frustrating because as a friend you don’t want to see anybody go through that,” All-American Tyler Hansbrough said. “And also for him, I think it gives him that disappointment, that ‘I wish I could be there’ type of feeling.”
Frasor was a key part of North Carolina’s rebuilding effort after the Tar Heels’ lost their top seven scorers from the 2005 NCAA title team. He started all 31 games as a freshman and averaged 6.4 points. But as a sophomore, he missed 10 games in two different stretches because of a right foot injury and never looked comfortable while averaging just 2.4 points.
Now he can only wait for next year.
“It’s not like it’s crushing our team goals,” Frasor said, “but it’s frustrating as an individual because I know I could be out there helping the team.”
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