Japan's Saki Hayashi Injured During World Cup Playoff

BERLIN — The noise inside the arena stopped in an instant.

Japan shooting guard Saki Hayashi, the sharpshooter who lit up this World Cup in its opening days, crashed to the floor late in the second quarter of Japan’s playoff clash with Hungary on Tuesday, clutching her right arm after a heavy foul in midair.

She still made the shot.

Hungary’s Agnes Torok caught Hayashi as she rose, but the contact didn’t stop the ball dropping through the net. The landing did the damage. Hayashi came down awkwardly on her right arm and stayed down, motionless, as teammates and opponents quickly waved for medical staff.

What looked like a serious arm injury turned a tense knockout game into a scene of concern. The arena fell into a somber hush as Japan’s medical team worked on the guard. A blue tarp was brought out to give her privacy while she received treatment on the court.

When Hayashi was finally helped to her feet and led away, the silence broke. Fans from both countries rose to applaud her off.

Her loss cast a long shadow over Japan’s night. Hayashi had already stamped her mark on the tournament with a stunning performance in Japan’s opening win over Mali on Friday, when she buried nine 3-pointers and announced herself as one of the deadliest shooters in Berlin.

This time, Japan had to grapple with the scoreboard and the shock.

At halftime, Hungary held a 37-34 lead in the playoff, a tight, nervy battle with a major prize at stake: a quarterfinal date with the United States on Thursday.

Japan walked to the locker room three points down, but with a bigger question hanging over them — how to move forward in the tournament without the player who had just been their brightest spark.