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Michael Porter Jr. doesn't regret returning from injury for short tourney run

Andy Lyons / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The collegiate career of Michael Porter Jr. presumably met its unceremonious end Friday, as the 6-foot-10 forward's Missouri Tigers were ousted 67-54 by Florida State.

For a player with little draft stock to gain, Porter Jr.'s decision to put his body on the line to lift Missouri's postseason prospects may have raised some eyebrows, but the young phenom appears to have avoided the potential dangers of re-aggravating the back injury that caused him to miss all but two minutes of regular-season action.

Still, the 19-year-old isn't second-guessing his decision to return in time for Missouri's truncated appearance in the NCAA tournament.

"I don't regret anything I did," said Porter Jr., according to Yahoo Sports' Pete Thamel. "I would not say I regret any decision to come back."

The Tigers had never advanced to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament (they've fallen in the Elite Eight on four occasions, most recently in 2009), so the recruitment of the presumptive one-and-done, NBA-bound talent signaled a rare opportunity for the SEC light-heavyweight program to punch above its weight class. Unfortunately, Porter Jr.'s need to undergo surgery to repair two discs in his spine nipped a lot of that optimism in the bud.

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The final ledger for Porter Jr.'s injury-marred campaign: 30 points, 20 rebounds, three steals, one block, and one assist spread over three games - and a whole lot of what ifs.

In any case, no one can ever take away Porter Jr.'s March Madness moment.

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