American basketball players try to flee Ukraine; One succeeds, one still stuck
'The ambiguity of not knowing what to do and not knowing if you're going to see your family again – it was a very scary moment'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}American professional basketball players Toure' Murry and Maurice ‘Mo’ Creek found themselves caught up in the Russian invasion of Ukraine that began last Thursday. But while one player managed to escape, the other is still stranded in the war zone.
Murry, a former player for the New York Knicks and the Utah Jazz, spoke with "Fox & Friends First" host Todd Piro early Sunday morning to recount his harrowing experience of escaping Ukraine in the final moments leading up to Russia's invasion.
"It's been very difficult to just, you know, grasp everything," Murry said. "It went from 7 in the morning, getting a text from my team, telling us to ‘get your bags, pack your things and let’s go.'
FORMER INDIANA BASKETBALL PLAYER STUCK IN UKRAINE AMID RUSSIAN INVASION: 'I'M TERRIFIED'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"In that moment, I knew things were very serious," he continued. "From then on, that didn't end until I got back to Houston today, last night at 10 p.m."
Marotta captured cars lined up in Ukraine hoping to leave the country (Fox News Digital/Lisa Bennatan)
Murry, who played for the Ukrainian basketball league before conflict erupted last week, went on to recount his experiences from visiting Poland's and Romania's borders to find a way out of Europe and back to the U.S.
"It was just sitting outside in traffic all day and then walking to the border and standing outside for 14 hours plus in the cold, freezing, and just the ambiguity of not knowing what to do and not knowing if you're going to see your family again – it was a very scary moment."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Though Murry was able to return safely to the U.S. on Saturday, former George Washington University basketball star Maurice 'Mo' Creek is still stranded amid the conflict.
"I've been hearing the bombs at night, the shooting at night, and it's just terrifying for me to hear that," he shared with "Fox News Live" host Mike Emanuel in the early hours Sunday morning.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}When asked why evacuating the country before the invasion occurred was so difficult, Creek said his team did not want him to leave because they believed the invasion would never happen.
"Even though I thought that it would happen, they didn't think it would, so they were basically holding me here, trying to see if it would happen, and I was trying to get out, but it never came to terms," he said. "By the time it did come to terms, I was already stuck here."
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Creek shared that his family and coaching staff are "worried sick," and he says he is trying to get out "as soon as possible."