How the team captain learned from—and led through—a season-ending injury
When Obi Emegano went down with a season-ending knee injury in November 2013, he was devastated.
“I couldn’t be on the court with my teammates and help them in the only way I knew how,” Emegano said. “At that point, I just tried to figure out what I could do to help this team out—to lead off the court since I couldn’t be on the court.”
A torn meniscus and anterior cruciate ligament sidelined the redshirt sophomore for the rest of the year, but Emegano was determined to still contribute to his team, even if it was from the bench.
I just tried to figure out what I could do to help this team out—to lead off the court since I couldn’t be on the court.
“I am one of the captains of the team, and one of my strengths is being vocal, so I tried to keep that up and be vocal to the guys—talk to them, encourage them and let them know everything was going to be OK.”
Emegano, a transfer from Western Illinois, admits the 2013-2014 season was a difficult one, not only for him, but also for the Golden Eagles. Nonetheless, he was determined to continue to grow as a player, regardless of his injury.
“I’m still obviously a part of the team, but being injured is not the same as being there on the team. But I just said I was still going to learn whether I’m playing or not playing. I’m still going to be a student of the game and learn traits of being a leader.
“With having an injury, there are positives and negatives. I used this as a positive to try to learn and expand my knowledge of the game.”
Nearly a year after his injury, Emegano was ready to step back onto the court and put into practice all he had learned during his time off the court.
“I’ve learned how to be a better leader, and that’s been one of my main goals. I’ve always been a leader, but I’m now taking that next step. These coaches have done a great job in leading me in the right direction and coaching me on how to be a form of them on the floor, an extension of their leadership.
The ultimate goal is not how many points you can get. … It’s about winning together as a team.
Emegano reemerged as leader without missing a beat. He earned his first career Summit League Player of the Week award after a 26-point performance in the PSO Mayor’s Cup game against the University of Tulsa. But Emegano is not focused on his individual statistics.
“We really put an emphasis on winning, because we have lot of great basketball players, but we can’t do it individually. It takes a team. The ultimate goal is not how many points you can get, how many assists you can get, how many rebounds you can get. It’s about winning together as a team.”
The Golden Eagles are making a comeback to the Summit League this season, and Emegano believes this team is poised for success.
“I have high expectations for this team. I think we have a great opportunity to win this conference and make it to the NCAA tournament, and those are our goals.”
