Eric Musselman details Tramon Mark's injury status after Duke game

Arkansas guard Tramon Mark gets closer to a return to the court every day. After the Razorbacks’ 80-75 win over Duke on Wednesday, head coach Eric Musselman provided an update on Mark’s recovery.

“The back is feeling better. Now we have some hip and groin stuff just from the aftershock of what the body absorbed,” Musselman said. “But when he’s available, I have no idea because we’re not going to play him if that groin — that’s an injury that can linger. There’s no way we’re putting him out there until he’s got full clearance.”

Mark went down late in the second half of Arkansas’ 87-72 loss to North Carolina on Nov. 24. Mark was stretchered off the court. Before leaving the game with an injury, Mark excelled. In 33 minutes, the 6-foot-6 guard tallied 34 points and five rebounds while shooting 13/17 from the field and 4/6 from beyond the arc.

In seven games this season, Mark is averaging 18.4 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. Moreover, Mark is extremely efficient, shooting 55.4% from the field and 40% from deep. The Texas native transferred to Arkansas this offseason after playing three seasons at Houston.

Tramon Mark inspires his teammates

He was one of the best players for the Cougars last year, starting all 37 games. Mark averaged 10.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per game in the 2022-23 campaign. Evidently, Mark isn’t only a valuable asset on the court.

“[He’s] really impressive because we took off for two days — which we never do — Saturday and Sunday, and we show up Monday, and he’s in full uniform,” Musselman said. “There was no chance he was going to be able to do anything but gingerly walk around, but he put his uniform on. I’ve never seen it ever. He did it again today.

“I think that helped our chemistry, believe it or not. That’s a player being all in. He could have easily been in street clothes. He could have easily gotten laid off on the side and gotten treatment. [Mark] didn’t get treatment at all Monday, Tuesday or today in shootaround. He was in full uniform, going from station to station.”

Evidently, Mark’s grit inspired his fellow Razorbacks. On Wednesday, Arkansas stunned No. 7 Duke with an 80-75 victory. The win is even more impressive considering Arkansas 1-2 record at the Battle 4 Atlantis.

Mark will have several more days to rest before Arkansas’ next matchup. On Monday, the Razorbacks will square off against Furman at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network+.