Arizona announces season-ending injury updates

According to the Wildcats’ statement, Kourouma and Tack are “in good spirits following their operations.”

The Next and The Equalizer are teaming up

The Next is partnering with The Equalizer to bring more women’s sports stories to your inbox. Subscribe to The Next now and receive 50% off your subscription to The Equalizer for 24/7 coverage of women’s soccer.

Before Arizona upset the No. 19 Utah Utes in a home game on Jan. 7, Kourouma shared on her Instagram story a photo of her jersey in a locker room that it would be her last game with the team. She had recently undergone a successful surgery to repair a dislocation on her left shoulder.

“I leave it completely up to her, 100 percent up to her, on how you feel and what you’re willing to do,” Arizona head coach Adia Barnes said. “I mean, ideally, we would want her to wait, if she felt good enough, but she’s in a situation [where] it’s very hard to wait because it’s always slipping out. Like, she can get hit at practice, and I think that’s hard as a player psychologically. You know, it’s painful every time it comes out, and I think it’s hurting more and more.”

Kourouma averaged 9.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game when playing 13 games for the Wildcats throughout the season.

Tack underwent successful surgery to repair her torn ACL on her right knee, which is the same knee she injured in high school, according to PJ Brown of the Arizona Daily Star. She is also a javelin thrower for the Wildcats’ track and field team and will miss the upcoming season in the spring.

The Arizona Wildcats have a 10-5 (2-1, tied for 4th in Pac-12) record and have dealt with many significant absences throughout the 2023-24 season. Junior forward Fanta Gassama was briefly in Tucson before transferring to play for New Mexico State last fall. The team already lost freshman forward Montoya Dew after she underwent surgery on her left knee before the start of the season.

Maya Nnaji, a sophomore forward who is the highest-rated recruit in the history of the Arizona Wildcats program, has left the team to focus on her academics. Notably, as reported by Arizona Desert Swarm, she is on the accelerated pathway to medical education, as her ultimate goal is to become a doctor.

“In light of recent events, it has become clear to me that I need to reprioritize my main goal and true life’s purpose: becoming a physician. With the support of my family and guidance from Above, I am stepping away from basketball to start a new chapter of my life,” Nnaji said in an Instagram post.

Add Locked On Women’s Basketball to your daily routine

Here at The Next, in addition to the 24/7/365 written content our staff provides, we also host the daily Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast. Join us Monday through Saturday each week as we discuss all things WNBA, collegiate basketball, basketball history and much more. Listen wherever you find podcasts or watch on YouTube.