Bad break, but Brust stays positive
His leg is broken, but his spirit is not.
Mundelein star guard Ben Brust busted up the tibia in his right leg in a 65-63 loss at Stevenson on Saturday, but was remarkably upbeat and positive on Monday, particularly in the wake of news that he will miss the rest of the season and be on a basketball-free diet for the next three months.
Brust, a 6-foot-2 junior who is high on the wish list of many Division I college coaches and has already been extended 15 scholarship offers, visited an orthopedic surgeon Monday morning and has decided to undergo surgery on Wednesday to repair the area above his ankle.
"There's no words for this. It's rough. I've never had a feeling like this," said Brust, who chased down a Stevenson fastbreak, pinned a layup attempt against the backboard and then came down funny on his foot. "Every injury is rough, but for this to come right before the playoffs-it's hard.
"Everything's going to be fine, though. I'm expecting a full recovery. In order for me to get back from this all healthy and strong, I've got to have a good attitude about it. As an athlete, things like this happen and how you recover from negative things says a lot about you."
Brust's numbers - 29 points, 5 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 3 steals per game - also speak volumes about his importance to the Mustangs, who dropped to 9-9 with the Stevenson loss. They'll be challenged to find a way to fill his shoes in the lineup.
"Yeah, it's kind of like, 'Now what do we do?'" Mundelein coach Dick Knar said. "You don't replace someone like Ben. You just have to do things differently, make adjustments and other people will have to step up."
Brust, meanwhile, is going to have to get used to powering down.
A self-described high-motor person, he isn't used to idling, especially when it comes to basketball.
"I've never really had a break from basketball before, I've never really sat out," said Brust, who will be on crutches for at least three to four weeks. "But I'm just going to make the best of this.
"This will be a good chance for me to lift weights and really get stronger in a way I've never been able to because I've also been busy playing. I can also watch the game and learn. I'll be at all the games, all the practices. I'll be there to support my teammates and watch the game from a different perspective. It will be a different type of learning for me."
By mid-April, Brust hopes his transformation - and the healing of his leg - will be complete. By then, he says he'll be more than ready to start playing again.
He's already eyeing the spring AAU season. Brust plays for Joy of the Game's Rising Stars.
"I want to play basketball again as soon as possible, and (next spring and summer) are really important," Brust said.
The spring and summer following the junior season are usually the most important in the recruiting process. Brust currently has offers on the table from mid-majors such as Butler, Southern Illinois and Bradley, but is also drawing interest from big-time programs like Stanford, Notre Dame, Marquette, Northwestern, Iowa and Davidson.
"I know he wanted to make his (college) decision earlier, so this may delay that," Knar said. "But I don't think any colleges will drop off. He'll have the summer to get himself going again and then he'll have his whole senior year. He'll be OK."