Crowd Goes Silent When High School Athlete Collapses, Gets Carried Off on Stretcher

A New Jersey high school basketball player collapsed during a game on Sunday and was taken out of the gym on a stretcher.

Tarik Watson, a junior forward for Roselle Catholic High School of Roselle, New Jersey, was stricken during the second quarter of a game against Long Island Lutheran in Brookville, New York, according to Newsday.

“The near-capacity crowd of about 1,000 went silent as trainers, a paramedic and a Jericho Fire Department ambulance crew” worked on Watson, Newsday reported.

“This was the first time we’ve ever seen a player collapse in this fashion, and it was [a] very scary scene,” Brian Reichert wrote for NYC Hoops.

“I don’t think he stopped breathing, but he lost consciousness for a little bit. … But he came back pretty quick,” Lutheran assistant athletic director Todd Huebner said.

John Buck, the head coach for Lutheran, said it looked to him as though Watson “fainted without any specific reason and went down.”

As a precaution, Watson was immobilized and taken away on a stretcher before being transported to a children’s hospital in Queens.

As he was being wheeled out, Watson gave the crowd a thumbs-up.

“He had movement in all of his extremities. … Everything seemed good when he left,” Huebner said.

The game was suspended and Buck prayed with the crowd.

“I’ve coached for 15 years; I’ve never had a game stopped in the middle of it,” he said.

On Tuesday, Roselle coach Dave Boff said Watson was doing well and resting at home after being discharged from the hospital on Monday night, according to a follow-up report from Newsday.

The basketball recruiting site Rivals ranks Watson No. 102 among juniors, with offers received from Creighton, Georgetown and Providence.

Watson thanked his supporters on Instagram on Tuesday.

“I would like to thank everyone for all their thoughts, prayers and compassion shown towards me during these circumstances. I would like to let everyone know I’m doing well and I appreciate all the love and support for me and my family!” he wrote.