Kepnang Out for Season After Oregon State Mishap

The Husky big man from Cameroon hurt a knee in Corvallis.

When we last saw Franck Kepnang he was lying in considerable pain on the baseline at Oregon State before getting helped to the locker room with what appeared to be a serious knee injury.

The 6-foot-11 University of Washington center, a transfer from Oregon, had crashed to the floor in the second half, clutching his right knee, in a game the Huskies would lose 66-65.

On Saturday, the school confirmed that Kepnang, after playing just eight games for the UW, has been lost for the season.

On Sunday, the Huskies (6-2 overall, 0-1 Pac-12) will host Colorado (4-4, 0-1) at noon at Alaska Airlines Arena in their conference home opener.

With Kepnang done, this robs the UW of a difference-maker inside. In his eight games, he averaged 9 points, 6.3 rebounds and nearly 2 blocks per game.

The injury put a frustrating capper on what had been an uplifting week for the Cameroon native.

On Monday, the big man played with his mother seated in the crowd for the UW-Seattle U game, which the Huskies won 77-66. According to Husky coach Mike Hopkins, these Kepnangs had been separated for at least four years.

"That was the first time she'd seen him play in a live basketball game," the coach said. "Pretty special stuff."

As they left a near-empty arena, in an endearing moment, Kepnang stopped to take a photo of his mother with the basketball floor in the background. 

Three days later, Kepnang was dealing with the crippling injury on his return to Oregon.

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