'No loose floorboards' on Final Four court where UNC star Armando Bacot was injured, says manufacturer

The manufacturer of the court at the men's college basketball Final Four told ESPN on Tuesday that the spot on the floor where North Carolina star Armando Bacot injured himself during Monday night's championship game didn't have any structural issues.

«The court's absorption characteristics are by design, and there were no loose floorboards or panels within the court, as confirmed by an expert technician who was present at every game of the men's Final Four to ensure the quality and safety of the floor,» said Jeff Krejsa, vice president of marketing and strategy for Connor Sports, which manufactures the Final Four court.

In the final minute of No. 8-seeded UNC's 72-69 loss to 1-seed Kansas at New Orleans' Caesars Superdome, Bacot collapsed to the court and was forced to exit the game after aggravating a right ankle injury.

Slow-motions replays, which later went viral on social media, showed what appeared to be a floorboard just outside the restricted area of the paint that depressed slightly under the weight of Bacot's right foot in the instant before he reinjured the ankle. Bacot didn't mention the floor in the aftermath of the game, but the video of his right foot pressing down on the floor prompted countless retweets and questions about the caliber of the playing surface.

Krejsa's comment came in an e-mail after ESPN asked for comment from the NCAA.

«The Championship floor, as is all the floors, is a panel system engineered for athlete safety and comfort, achieved by its ability to absorb impact forces as an athlete jumps or pivots abruptly,» Krejsa said, «while also ensuring that other players nearby are not negatively affected.»

Bacot did not return after the play was finally whistled dead. Bacot turned the ball