UM’s Reed to sit out season with broken foot Tchekane Bofia draws suspension

The University of Maine men’s basketball team received bad news and bad news Wednesday.

Star senior guard Kevin Reed and the school made it official, announcing he will redshirt this season with a broken foot. Also on Wednesday, freshman forward Philippe Tchekane Bofia was suspended for at least one game by America East for a flagrant foul and subsequent ejection from Saturday night’s loss in Albany, N.Y.

Reed, who suffered a stress fracture of the fifth metatarsal in his left foot during a preseason practice, will sit out the remainder of the season as a medical redshirt and return as a fifth-year senior next season.

“Basically the amount of games I was missing and the progress from my injury were two of the big reasons,” said the 24-year-old Yarmouth, Mass., native. “It was slower than I expected. I was first told six weeks and it’s been 11 or 12 now. The bone itself is taking a long time to heal. Right now it’s just 80 percent.”

Reed said his family was his first concern while weighing the decision. He and wife Hannah are expecting their first child in March.

“That was who I checked with at first,” said Reed, who has only been running for four days.

“I can run and jump now, but if I come down on someone’s foot the wrong way, that could be the end of it,” he added. “I feel all right, but at the same time, the pace of the game with the cutting and everything might be too much this soon.”

Reed, an early childhood development and family relations major, is well on pace toward graduation this May and says the extra year will give him a chance to take graduate classes and work on a minor.

He says the team’s current record (5-9, 0-3 in America East play) and bright future with just one other senior (Freddy Petkus) besides himself on the roster had little to do with his decision.

“Even if we were 4-0 in the conference or even if we were going to the big dance, I would still redshirt,” he explained. “This takes a lot of the pressure off me trying to rush the comeback. I don’t want to rush and have something bad happen and get it reinjured.”

Maine coach Ted Woodward understands and supports Reed’s decision.

“He’s a person who understands it’s not about this week or this month. He has a lot of foresight. It takes a very mature person to look at it this way,” said Woodward. “Obviously, anytime you take a player of his caliber out of the lineup, it hurts your team. He’s been a critical force as far as rebounds for us and his loss hurts us in a bunch of ways, but we want to make sure everything’s done correctly and we haven’t had him all year and our guys are adjusting.”

Although Woodward confirmed that Bofia would miss Thursday’s home game against Binghamton University, he was unsure if Bofia’s suspension would be for one or two games.

“My understanding is that’s an automatic penalty from the league and we’ll know whether it’s for one or two games later today or early Thursday,” Woodward said.

It’s a tough one-two punch to the Black Bears, who will now also be without two of their top rebounders.

“You know what? You have to roll with it sometimes,” Woodward said.