Villanova guard Justin Moore discusses injury, recovery, advice from Kevin Durant

Villanova guard Justin Moore came a mere few minutes away from making a Final Four appearance, but after suffering a heartbreaking late-game injury, the Wildcats will appear on college basketball’s biggest stage without his presence.

Moore, a star guard for Villanova, will have to sit out for the duration of the Final Four — and a potential national championship appearance, if the Wildcats can sneak by No. 1-seeded Kansas — as he recovers from a torn right Achilles tendon in the final minutes of Villanova’s Elite Eight matchup with Texas Tech, a devastating injury that he discussed on the TBS Final Four pregame show.

Moore interviewed with CBS reporter Tracy Wolfson, while using a one-legged scooter to hold himself upright.

“I’m doing way better,” Moore said, when asked about his surgery on Monday. “I was in a lot of pain when it first began, but I’m off the medicine now, taking Tylenol and getting around on this scooter.”

A junior from Fort Washington, Maryland, Moore was averaging 14.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per contest this year, and he finished the Elite Eight game against Houston with eight points, two rebounds, a block and a steal in 37 minutes played. His team will miss his presence in Saturday’s Final Four matchup; moreover, he’ll miss being on the court.

“It’s definitely nerve-wracking (not being able to play), and it hit me hard, especially when I was in the hospital, just laying there. But I had to get over it and be there for my teammates and coaches,” Moore said. “It’s family-oriented here. We’re all a team, we’re all brothers. We always have each others’ back.”

Moore won’t be alone in his recovery process, and he has a wide support net at Villanova: his teammates, his coaches, the training staff and, as he revealed on the pregame show, Kevin Durant.

Durant, an NBA MVP and Texas alum, suffered a similar injury a couple seasons ago. Moore said that Durant reached out via FaceTime to offer his support.

“He (Durant) really just wanted to make sure that he was there for me, and that I would be able to come back from it,” Moore said. “A lot of people, when they tear their achilles, their career is over. But he (Durant) wanted to let me know that my career has just begun and I’ll be back better than ever, and that if I have any questions or any issues throughout the process, I’m free to hit him up.”

No. 2-seeded Villanova and No. 1-seeded Kansas will tip off at 6:00 p.m. ET in the first of two Final Four games Saturday night.