Manchester's Akok alert after suffering medical scare during game
Oct. 29—West Virginia forward Akok Akok collapsed during the Mountaineers' charity exhibition against visiting George Mason Friday night and had to be stretchered off the court.
The program later said in a statement that Akok, who played in high school at Manchester West, suffered a medical emergency and was transported to a Morgantown, West Virginia, hospital for further observation.
"WVU forward Akok Akok suffered a medical emergency during the second half of the West Virginia-George Mason charity exhibition game," the statement began.
"He was transported to Ruby Memorial Hospital for further evaluation. More information will be provided when available."
Afterward, West Virginia interim coach Josh Eilert said during his postgame radio show that he received a message from the hospital that Akok was alert and wished his teammates well.
Akok was beginning his fifth season of college basketball and first at West Virginia after transferring from Georgetown. In three seasons at UConn and one at Georgetown, Akok averaged 5.1 points and 4.7 rebounds per game across 86 games (62 starts).
Akok, a 6-foot-9 forward, played one season at West — his sophomore season in 2015-16 — before transferring to Putnam Science Academy in Connecticut. He helped PSA win the 2018 National Prep Basketball Championship.
Akok was born in Sudan and moved to New Hampshire when he was about a year old.
At the time, Rivals.com rated Akok as a five-star prospect, and he was No. 40 in the ESPN 100, a list of the top recruits in the Class of 2019.
