Creighton recruit to have Open Heart Surgery

[Desperado]

Omaha Central basketball player Josh Jones is scheduled to have open heart surgery this morning at the Nebraska Medical Center.

Bacteria has traveled through his bloodstream from his mouth into his heart, the Creighton recruit said from his hospital room on Saturday.

"It's kind of scary," he said. "I'm confident because I want to get better."

Jones said surgery is necessary because the bacteria is causing one of the valves in his heart to leak.

"It makes my heart work more to shoot out the blood," Jones said. "They want to get rid of it before it gets bigger and goes in my vessels and stuff."

The All-Nebraska senior guard, who averaged 18 points last season, said he hasn't felt well for about three weeks. He said he was having high fevers and chills. He finally asked his mom to take him to the emergency room last Saturday.

"I couldn't take it no more," he said. "I was going to school and trying to fight it."

He said he isn't sure how his recovery will affect his preparations for basketball season.

Jones said doctors have told him that the bacteria in his mouth might have entered the bloodstream through a cut in his gums.

[Jason Svoboda]

Man, that's unfortunate. Good luck to the kid and I hope he has a speedy recovery.