USA Today: Wright State celebrated with injured teammate

Excerpt

The Wright State men’s basketball team celebrates on the court after winning the Horizon League Tournament.

The Wright State Raiders beat the Cleveland State Vikings to win the Horizon League tournament on Tuesday night. They’ll be heading to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2007.

After the huge win, the players circled around and celebrated with their teammate Ryan Custer. Custer suffered a spinal cord injury during an off-campus party last summer and now has partial paralysis.

Custer has inspired many with his positive attitude, and from the Raiders’ postgame celebration, it’s clear he’s still a crucial part of the team, even if he can’t be on the floor during the game. A former Wright State player told WCPO-TV of Custer

“In terms of perseverance and in terms of toughness we’d be here until midnight if I went on down the list,” former Wright State guard Mike LaTulip said. “I knew he was a tough kid. I knew he was the type of kid who would persevere through stuff. Seeing how he has dealt with this right from the beginning – it has inspired me and a lot of people. When you have a friend and a teammate like that you know he’d support you the same way. He would do the exact same thing for me.”

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