Former UConn men’s basketball player Akok Akok is in stable condition after collapsing on the court in a game at West Virginia University on Friday night.
Akok, who now plays for West Virginia, collapsed as he was walking off the floor with his teammates during a stoppage in play in the second half of their preseason game against George Mason. The 24-year-old appeared disoriented as he tried to get up, and medical personnel rushed out to tend to him. Akok was placed on a stretcher and transported to a nearby hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia.
Play resumed after about 15 minutes.
“Found out good news, he’s stable, he’s responsive,” West Virginia interim coach Josh Eilert told reporters after the game. “He wanted to make sure he congratulated his teammates. He’s in a good place right now, they’re probably going to be holding him overnight, doing a lot of testing.”
Update on Akok Akok by coach Josh Eilert. pic.twitter.com/a1c37ziTIl
— WVU Men’s Basketball (@WVUhoops) October 28, 2023
Akok texted teammates from the hospital to congratulate them on coming from behind to win the game, which was played to benefit a local children’s hospital.
“He is such a good kid and a great teammate,” Eiler said.” I never thought I’d have to deal with a situation like that, it’s heartbreaking, but I’m glad he is still with us.”
Akok, a 6-foot-10 forward, was born in Sudan and raised in Manchester, New Hampshire. He played in Connecticut at Putnam Science Academy and was one of Dan Hurley’s first major recruiting coups at UConn when he committed in 2018 and enrolled in January of 2019.
An adept shot-blocker with 3-point shooting skills on offense, he was averaging 5.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.6 blocks in 28 minutes per game as a redshirt freshman for UConn when he ruptured his Achilles tendon on Feb. 16, 2020 during a game against Memphis at the XL Center.
Akok Akok was texting the team after the game, per Quinn Slazinski
— Ethan Bock (@ethanbock_) October 28, 2023
Akok was immensely popular with teammates, coaches and fans at UConn, and he worked diligently to recover from the injury but was never quite as impactful over the next two seasons. He transferred to Georgetown, where he averaged 6.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.0 blocks last season. With the coaching change there, Akok transferred in August to West Virginia to play out remaining eligibility. He reunited with Putnam Science teammate Jose Perez with the Mountaineers