Jan. 9, 2001-- It's not about his heart, or his knee. University of Utah head basketball coach Rick Majerus says he's taking off the rest of the season to care for his mother who's suffering from cancer in Milwaukee.
The announcement came one week after 52-year-old Majerus underwent a coronary angiography and had stents inserted to clear two blocked arteries at LDS Hospital.
Majerus was released from the hospital over the weekend after being treated for nearly a week. The coach went to the hospital New Year's Day complaining of chest pains.
At a late afternoon news conference, Majerus's physician said the coach has no damage to his heart muscle. An EKG and Echocardiogram show Majerus has "the heart of a 17-year-old."
However, two arteries to the heart were blocked, so Majerus underwent surgery to open them. His doctor says all the coach's arteries are open now, and his prognosis is good.
Majerus has also been rehabilitating his knee, which was surgically repaired and hadn't healed properly. He stopped coaching this season's team after an opening game win over Idaho State. He hadn't returned to the team before his latest hospitalization.
Majerus's mother is battling what appears to be cancer. She survived breast cancer in 1989, but doctors say she now has a mass in her lung.
Majerus says his heart and knee are fine. He says he's tired, but he's taking the season off because of his mother.
An emotional Majerus said, "My mother isn't doing so well. We're a very small family. My father is deceased. I am an only son. I have the time and the financial resources to be as supportive as I need to be."
The coach will have no contact with the team during his absence.
In his absence, the Utes have been coached by assistant Dick Hunsaker, who will continue in that capacity. Utah is 9-6 after opening Mountain West Conference play with an 83-71 victory over Wyoming on Monday night.
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