Austin Hatch, 2-time plane crash survivor, scores in hoops comeback
LOS ANGELES -- Two-time plane crash survivor Austin Hatch hit a 3-pointer on his first shot in his first basketball game in nearly three years.
Hatch survived two crashes eight years apart, including a 2011 crash that severely injured him and killed his father and stepmother. Hatch's mother, brother and sister were killed in the first crash.
Hatch's teammates stormed the court after his basket at Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, earning a technical foul. Loyola still won 87-59.
“It was the best technical foul I’ve ever been a part of,” Loyola Coach Jamal Adams told the Los Angeles Times.
"My 3 was pretty cool, but, more importantly, we're now 14-0," Hatch posted on his Twitter account.
The 6-foot-6 Hatch grew up in Fort Wayne, Ind., but has lived with his uncle in Southern California since August. He waited until 14 games into Loyola's season to play his first game since the second crash, not wanting to participate until he was ready to be a contributor.
Michigan coach John Beilein has said he'll honor Hatch's scholarship with the Wolverines in whatever role Hatch can play. Hatch verbally committed to Michigan 10 days before the 2011 crash, which left him in a coma for eight weeks with a traumatic brain injury.