Richmond’s Mooney stepping away to undergo heart surgery

Feb 17, 2023, 1:36 PM | Updated: 5:03 pm

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Richmond coach Chris Mooney said Friday he is stepping away from the Spiders for the remainder of the season to undergo heart surgery.

Mooney, 50, said the procedure will be performed next week at the University of Virginia Medical Center to remove an aneurysm in his ascending aorta. Recovery is expected to take four to eight weeks.

A problem was first detected during a routine physical about a month ago, Mooney said at a news conference, and doctors were able to pinpoint the aneurysm during subsequent testing.

Assistant coach Peter Thomas will guide the Spiders for the rest of the season, and Mooney said he’s confident Thomas “will do a great job.”

Mooney admitted to being “very nervous and a little scared,” but added, “I hope that this will be something that I can recover well from and I do turn my focus to that right now.”

He told his team early Friday afternoon and described them as being “shocked,” but said they would all have dinner together later in the day so he can answer any questions and possibly ease their concern.

Mooney is in his 18th season as coach of the Spiders, during which time he became their career victories leader with a 367-297 record.

He signed a three-year extension in June after guiding the Spiders to four straight victories in the Atlantic-10 Tournament — the last three against the top three seeds in succession — and an upset over Big Ten champion Iowa in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Spiders (13-14) were picked to finish seventh in the conference this season when they had to replace three of their top four scorers and brought in four freshmen and three unheralded transfers.

They have four regular season games remaining.

___

AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

Gavel (Pexels Photo)...

Associated Press

Ex-teacher sentenced to prison for making death threat against Arizona legislator

A former Tucson middle school teacher was sentenced Tuesday to 2 ½ years in prison after pleading guilty to making a death threat against Arizona state Sen. Wendy Rogers.

17 hours ago

FILE - Police officers stand outside a Target store as a group of people protest across the street,...

Associated Press

Pride becomes a minefield for big companies, but many continue their support

Many big companies, including Target and Bud Light's parent, are still backing Pride events in June despite the minefield that the monthlong celebration has become for some of them.

2 days ago

FILE - Then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden plays music on a phone as he arrives to spe...

Associated Press

Biden, looking to shore up Hispanic support, faces pressure to get 2024 outreach details right

Joe Biden vowed in 2020 to work “like the devil” to energize Hispanic voters, and flew to Florida seven weeks before Election Day to do just that.

2 days ago

Editorial members of the Austin American-Statesman's Austin NewsGuild picket along the Congress Ave...

Associated Press

Correction: US-Gannett Walkout story

Journalists at two dozen local newspapers across the U.S. walked off the job Monday to demand an end to painful cost-cutting measures and a change of leadership at Gannett, the country's biggest newspaper chain.

2 days ago

FILE - The logo of the Organization of the Petroleoum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is seen outside of...

Associated Press

Saudi Arabia reducing global oil supply, could spell higher prices for US drivers

Saudi Arabia will reduce how much oil it sends to the global economy, taking a unilateral step to prop up the sagging price of crude.

3 days ago

This photo provided by Robert Wilkes, owner of a house boat management company, shows smoke rising ...

Associated Press

Houseboats catch fire while docked at Wahweap Marina on Lake Powell

More than half a dozen house boats momentarily caught fire at a popular boating destination on the Utah-Arizona line on Friday.

5 days ago

Sponsored Articles

...

OCD & Anxiety Treatment Center

5 mental health myths you didn’t know were made up

Helping individuals understand mental health diagnoses like obsessive compulsive spectrum disorder or generalized anxiety disorder isn’t always an easy undertaking. After all, our society tends to spread misconceptions about mental health like wildfire. This is why being mindful about how we talk about mental health is so important. We can either perpetuate misinformation about already […]

...

Desert Institute for Spine Care

Spinal fusion surgery has come a long way, despite misconceptions

As Dr. Justin Field of the Desert Institute for Spine Care explained, “we've come a long way over the last couple of decades.”

(Desert Institute for Spine Care in Arizona Photo)...

Desert Institute for Spine Care in Arizona

5 common causes for chronic neck pain

Neck pain can debilitate one’s daily routine, yet 80% of people experience it in their lives and 20%-50% deal with it annually.

Richmond’s Mooney stepping away to undergo heart surgery