Kevin Curley, team trainer, had been icing her right ankle in the final couple of minutes on the UND bench. Curley moved the coach's daughter, Cierra, down a few seats and gave up his own seat, freeing enough chairs for Pudenz to comfortably stretch and elevate.
Curley knows a franchise-type player when he sees one. He wanted to elevate the ankle of the player who elevated her play on Wednesday afternoon, lifting the Sioux to a 96-69 quarterfinal victory against Kennesaw State of Georgia in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight women's basketball tournament.
Talk after the Sioux victory centered on whether Pudenz would be ready for today's semifinal against Emporia State of Kansas more than about Wednesday's quarterfinal.
Pudenz limped off the court after scoring a team-high 22 points on 5-of-8 shooting from 3-point land. Nobody close to the Sioux program had any doubt that Pudenz will be at her guard position when the Sioux face the Hornets at 6 p.m. today.
Even coach Gene Roebuck was confident.
"She'll play, that's my gut feeling, anyway," Roebuck said. "I wouldn't want to be the guy who told her she can't play. Jaime has played with pain before. She's tough as nails."
Exhibit A: When Pudenz left the court with about 12:30 left in the second half, she told her sister, Tiffany Pudenz, a Sioux student assistant coach, that she had heard something pop and her ankle was throbbing. "But she said, 'I'm going back in,'" Tiffany said.
Exhibit B: In a game for Red Rock Central High School in Minnesota, Pudenz broke her nose in a holiday tournament. Within five minutes, Tiffany witnessed her sister return to the floor. Tiffany says Jaime just needed enough time "to stop the bleeding."
The 5-foot-5 Jaime might have developed her high threshold for pain back in Jeffers, Minn. She and her sisters, Tiffany and Tracey, played hotly contested outdoor games against their neighbors, the Haken boys.
"She's always been the type of person to play with the guys and be real physical," Tiffany said. "She'll be out there I know, for sure. She'll fight through pain if it's bad."
Pudenz, a junior, has started 94 straight games since she and the Sioux opened her freshman season with a 94-26 victory against Mayville State. UND is 88-6 with her running the offense. The Sioux may need her close to full strength to defeat a solid Emporia State team today.
Against Kennesaw, the omnipresent Pudenz was 7-of-12 from the field and 3-for-4 from the free-throw line, with five rebounds and four assists.
Roebuck said he expected a big game from his energetic guard.
"I could see it yesterday in practice. She was so focused and working on her shot and comfortable with her shot," he said.
Pudenz, named the Elite Eight's outstanding player two years ago and to the all-tournament team a year ago, is used to big games. She was looking forward to another one on Wednesday.
Her father, Al, also noticed a comfortable Jaime on Tuesday night and Wednesday.
"She seemed to be in good spirits, like the pressure wasn't bothering her," Al said.
She tried to remain in good spirits after the injury, which happened when she got tangled up with teammate Tonia Jones in the first half against Kennesaw State.
Roebuck was trying to stay positive, too, saying he believed Pudenz would be ready "if we can get her into treatment."
Those media folks were causing delays.
"Yeah," Roebuck said when asked if Pudenz would start today. "She's not on crutches."